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Confidence in your appearance is critical to simply finding joy in life. The science of facial expression indicates that the simple act of smiling can lift your spirits, lower blood pressure and give you hope for the rest of your day. Anything that gets in the way of confidence in your appearance can actually limit your health.
FACS: Facial Action Coding System
We all have a range of expressions possible thanks to the 44 muscles under the skin on our face. These muscles actually allow for nearly 5000 different expressions. Happiness and confidence, displayed with a bright, cheery smile, are just a few of the emotions you can share in your range of expressions.
The act of smiling can lift your spirit. When you smile and take in a deep breath, happy thoughts and memories are easier to access. The act of smiling triggers the neurons in the upper left quadrant of the brain. This area of the frontal cortex is where the emotion “happy” lives. As we feel happier, we stand a little taller, appear, and hopefully feel a little more confident.
Confidence Matters
Building a personal style and feeling confident about it can take time. It also takes a bit of stubbornness and a willingness to stick to your guns, which is also a form of confidence. If you love a certain color and it goes out of fashion, wear it. It the latest styles don’t look nearly as good as your favorite three-year-old garment, protect your budget and your sense of style and wear what you think looks best.
Knowing that you look good will encourage you to keep your head up. People will notice your face because your chin is up and your eyes are visible. Smiling at this point is critically important to generate a sense of friendliness and safety; direct eye contact without a smile can be seen as confrontational.
When you smile at someone who makes eye contact, try to engage your whole face and inhale as you smile. A full-face smile will include the skin around your eyes, leading to a set of crinkles that indicate your smile is genuine. A flat-faced smile with no crinkles will look false to the viewer, so be sure to focus your gaze and your attitude on a smile that encompasses your whole face.
Be Proud of Your Smile
Perhaps your teeth get in the way of a confident smile. There are many tools on the market to brighten and straighten your teeth. You can also get temporary veneers to brighten your smile while you make decisions on the best way to care for your teeth long term.
While you’re making your decision on any permanent dental choices, your temporaries can give you a smile that makes you proud and that you want to share. Your clip-on veneers won’t be as strong as your teeth, so make plans to stick with soft foods; anything especially crispy or crunchy can damage your veneers.
Avoid
- crunchy or crusty bread
- sticky candy
- chewy meat
- nuts
- sugary or sticky food
Additionally, veneers are easy to stain, so you will want to avoid tobacco, coffee, tea and red wine. If you can’t avoid these products, make sure you rinse thoroughly to get these products off your veneers.
Confidence in Your Smile and Your Words
If you’re embarrassed by the condition of your teeth, you may limit your smiles to tight-lipped expressions that don’t allow you to breathe deeply or share a kind word. Over time, this limited expression can get in the way as you try to connect with others.
Many who are ashamed of their teeth tend to keep their lips closed when they talk, which makes it very hard to understand what they have to say. The inability to smile and display your teeth can actually limit your communication options over time.
Being confident in your smile isn’t just vanity. As you refrain from smiling, you refrain from connecting, which can lead to loneliness. Over time, loneliness and isolation can be incredibly harmful to your heart, brain, and mind. If you have a long history of problems with your teeth, temporary veneers can give you a smile you can be proud of for the first time in your life.
