14 DAY TRIAL // A short while ago, Kim Kardashian explained on social media why she had stopped smiling for photos since she began dating current husband Kanye West: she wanted to limit the appearance of wrinkles on her face by controlling her facial expressions. She’s not the only one to think this is the solution, as it turns out.
Tess Christian is 50 years old and she tells the Daily Mail that the reason her face is relatively wrinkle-free is because she hasn’t smiled or laughed in 40 years. She’s not miserable, though, she insists.
Control over facial muscles can reduce wrinkles
Tess tells the British publication that she never really liked how she looked when she smiled, so when she decided that she’d look much better if she didn’t, she didn’t feel like she was doing something that out of the ordinary.
That is not to say that it came easy to her, she adds: in time, she’s trained herself to do what she calls laugh inwardly, but she had to be very careful to control her muscles and keep her poker face on at times when she would feel a smile creep up on her lips.
Today, at the most, the corners of her lips will shoot up when she feels like smiling. She’s proud that she managed to maintain her sober expression even when she got to hold her child for the first time in her arms, after the birth.
Experts tell the Mail that limiting the appearance of wrinkles by not smiling is a possibility, but not one that is advisable. Just like people react positively to someone’s smile, because misery loves company, the tendency is to avoid those who are constantly morose.
Because Tess never smiles or laughs, she could be described as morose, always sullen and never in a good mood. It’s hard to imagine she’s a pleasure to be around.
Woman who doesn’t smile claims she’s fun, actually
But this is where people are wrong about her, Tess reveals for the same publication: just because she doesn’t smile doesn’t mean that she’s not enjoying her life or that she isn’t fun. Her friends know her best, and they know she can be a hoot – she just doesn’t show it.
“I don’t have wrinkles because I have trained myself to control my facial muscles. Everyone asks if I’ve had Botox, but I haven’t, and I know that it’s thanks to the fact I haven’t laughed or smiled since I was a teenager. My dedication has paid off, I don’t have a single line on my face,” she says.
Yes, I am vain and want to remain youthful. My strategy is more natural than Botox and more effective than any expensive beauty cream or facial. It’s not as if I’m miserable. I love life. I just don’t feel the need to show it by walking around with a rictus grin on my face,” Tess adds.
The photo attached to this article is of Tess today, showing off the results of the alleged 40 years gone without a smile or a laugh. The article at the Mail linked above includes photos of her when she was younger: while it’s true that she still looks pretty wrinkle-free, it’s also true that she had fillers injected into her lips to make them plumper.
Wouldn’t some Botox have been a better, easier alternative for the wrinkles than not smiling?