Experts talked about the impact of an artificial smile on stress
Even an artificial smile helps to reduce stress levels and improve a person's emotional state. The brain perceives signals from facial muscles as an indicator of the internal state and is able to "reconfigure" the emotional background in response to facial expressions. All the details are in the Izvestia article.
The effect of a smile on the condition
The idea that facial muscle movements can change the emotional background originated in the 19th century. Modern research supports the hypothesis of facial feedback: the brain reads the work of muscles as a signal for action. Ekaterina Kashukh, Candidate of Medical Sciences, expert at the Hemotest Laboratory, explained that a large-scale international study in 2022 involving 3,800 people proved the effectiveness of this method.
From the point of view of neurobiology, the process is triggered through the activation of the limbic system. When a person smiles, the brain reduces the production of the stress hormone cortisol and begins to release endorphins and dopamine. This happens automatically, even if the person does not believe in the benefits of exercise.
"Even if we smile through force, the facial muscles send a signal to the brain. The brain reads it and perceives it as a sign that everything is in order. In response, it reduces the production of cortisol, the stress hormone, and releases more endorphins and dopamine, which are associated with feelings of pleasure and calm," explains the doctor.
According to her, a simple exercise with a smile can only help in the short term. It takes 20 seconds to consciously hold a smile to feel small changes in the emotional background and collect your thoughts faster. However, this method does not provide a stable therapeutic effect.
Limitations of Fake Joy
Despite the positive effect of mild anxiety, artificial joy is not a universal remedy. A strained smile is not able to cope with deep anxiety, anger or fear. In addition, such a technique gives only short-term results and cannot replace professional medical care.
Neuropsychologist Maria Todorova notes that the constant suppression of real feelings behind a mask of well-being is dangerous. This can lead to emotional burnout and chronic stress.
"A psychologically healthy approach is not to ban negative emotions, but to acknowledge their existence and then choose a way to deal with them. An artificial smile can help calm down, but it should not replace living your own feelings," said the neuropsychologist.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
