With many of us now spending copious time navigating virtual meetings, a phenomenon nicknamed ‘Zoom Face’ has emerged over the past few months. The combination of not being able to get into beauty clinics for our regular skincare assistance, with staring at our reflections throughout frequent virtual meetings, has led to people seeing themselves in a new way. None of us stand in front of a mirror and watch how we naturally rest our faces or talk. Normally as we groom ourselves in front of the mirror, we are not watching how our face moves, we don’t analyse the lines that form as we speak. Nor do we look at ourselves at the unflattering angles the laptop too often captures. With these now commonplace virtual meetings, this is exactly what we’re doing.
Add to this the fact that our skin is looking duller and often more problematic than ever, due to beauty clinics now being closed for over three months, and ‘Zoom Face’ anxiety is on a noticeable rise.
Celebrity Irish skin therapist Eavanna Breen is one of the best-known skin experts in the country and has moved her business online throughout lockdowns. Undergoing daily online skin consultations with clients, Eavanna has noticed this ‘Zoom Face’ phenomenon really take off over the past month particularly.
“It is the amount of time we are now spending on these virtual meetings that is causing this massive increase in anxiety about how our faces look and move. We have an image in our own heads at all times of how we look to other people, these virtual meetings are exposing elements of ourselves, to ourselves we may not have known before and that is really what’s going on here”.
“I am consistently now asked questions by regular clients of mine, many of whom I have been working with for years, that I have never heard them express concern about before. Such as how their mouth moves as they speak, how tired they look, uneven facial structure, jawline concerns, right through to odd realisations such as noticing discrepant blinking”.
“When we are on these virtual meetings, our colleagues cannot notice when we are staring at the screen that we are actually staring at ourselves. We are analysing, to a level of which we have never done before, all the minor details and movements of our faces. And it’s really noticeably now giving people unwelcomed additional anxiety.”
With no end in sight to this new way of interacting with the world, Irish skincare and beauty expert Eavanna has come up with a few ways to help you avoid unwelcomed ‘Zoom Face’ anxiety.
Place your camera high so that you get a better angle from your laptop camera. Stack it on a pile of books or a box if that is all you have available.
Invest in a ring light to place on or behind your laptop. They can be found online at great price points and they can really help make you look brighter and fresher. Look for a ring light that offers warm and cool tones (many do) and one that also has varying levels of intensity, depending on your situation (e.g. the daylight).
Book a virtual skin consultation. By speaking to a skin therapist, we can guide you to achieving your skin goals. Getting advice from a professional on the state of our skin can give clarity and perspective to any concerns that you might have. We can also guide you on how to protect your skin from screen damage.
The camera drains colour and flattens features so using a bronzer and highlighter is a good way to add definition to your face.
Invest in a really good home facial kit, you might not be able to get into the salon but there are certain things that you can do at home to help your skin. Akina Beauty Clinic’s home renewal kits and LED Face masks are two great ways to help improve texture and brighten the skin from home.
When you feel like you have had enough of the emotional and physical effects of Zoom Face, it’s simply time to turn off self-view during your virtual meetings.
Eavanna Breen and the Akina Beauty Clinic team are available for daily online skin consultations throughout lockdown. During all virtual consultations, the expert team will carry out a thorough analysis of your skin, discuss any concerns you might have and set you on course to secure your best possible skin health and complexion. Each skin consultation is only €50, which is immediately redeemable against product your skin expert has recommended for your skin’s individual needs
