Exercises for drooping eyelids, also known as facial yoga, offer a natural way to treat ptosis, a condition in which your eyelids begin to sag. Ptosis can be caused by age or loss of muscle. You can counteract it by using a few simple techniques to stretch and strengthen the areas around your eyes to make you look younger and more facially balanced. Practice these exercises three to five days a week to begin seeing results.
Resisted Blinking or Squinting
There are a few ways to practice resisted blinking.
Finger Assisted
In a finger assisted blink or squint, your fingers act as a counter-force so the muscles surrounding your eyes can activate.
- Place the length of your fingers over the lower edge of your eyebrows.
- Squint so your eyes are just barely open or close your eyes and squeeze them as tightly shut as possible
- Open your eyes and repeat.
You can also complete this exercise with your fingers just underneath your lower lids or with your fingers placed just outside the outer corners. Perform 10 to 20 repetitions of each variation two or three times through.
Simple Squeeze
An alternative to the finger assisted blink is simply closing your eyes and squeezing them as tightly shut as possible. This doesn't provide the same amount of resistance, but still engages all of the muscles around your eyes for an effective result. Complete five to ten rounds.
Wide Eyes
There are two effective ways to widen your eyes for the purpose of engaging the muscles of the upper lid and the muscles around the corners of the eyes.
C-Hand Resisted
This resisted version assists in maintaining soft forehead muscles, to avoid developing wrinkles the in the future.
- Form your hands into the letter "C."
- Cup each hand around your eyes like binoculars so your fingers land just over your eyebrows and your thumbs just over your cheekbones.
- Apply pressure to your face with your hands and draw them away from each other laterally to stretch your forehead muscles.
- Open your eyes as wide as possible.
Hold for four to five seconds before relaxing.
Unresisted
The unrested version of eye widening is just as effective at working your upper lids. All you have to do is raise your eyebrows and open your eyes as wide as possible. Hold for five to ten seconds, then release and relax. Repeat three to four times.
Forehead Engagement
This next move helps you engage the muscles of your forehead.
- Place the fingertips of four fingers across the underside of your brows, keeping your eyes open.
- Simultaneously press your fingers upward and draw your forehead muscles down
- Hold for five to seven seconds, then release.
Repeat about three times before moving on.
Eyebrow Raises
Eyebrow raises also engage the muscles of your forehead while strengthening the muscles around your eyebrows. There are only two steps.
- Close your eyes
- Lift your eyebrows as high as you can
There are three variations of this exercise that you can perform.
- Lids fully closed
- Lids half closed.
- Lids fully closed with the muscles of your cheeks drawing up.
Build a Routine
Exercises for drooping eyelids are made to help reverse the effects of aging and muscle weakening that lead to the appearance of sagging. You can look younger, reduce wrinkles, give your face a more symmetrical appearance by performing these exercises regularly and consistently. Build a routine of completing them at least three times a week to see results and maintain them.
