How to Stop Blushing – My Story

My worst memories of school were moments of excessive blushing.  It’s a self-fulfilling cycle that made periods of my formative years extremely difficult.

For example, once I started blushing, it would consume my mind and then whenever called upon I would blush profusely.  I ended up being ridiculed by classmates.

What happened?

I actually had to change schools.  It was probably the worst part of my life.  But, once I changed schools, it was a fresh start which gave me a leg up for figuring out how to stop blushing.

I spent many days and hours trying to figure out how to stop blushing.  The following is what worked for me to stop blushing.

How to stop blushing – my story

For me, my excessive facial blushing was a confidence thing.  It certainly wasn’t a physical condition.  I had low confidence and low self-esteem.  The slightest amount of attention would result in severe blushing.

First step for me

I removed myself from the environment that was intolerable … which was the school I attended.  My blushing resulted in me being bullied which made matters worse.

Now, I appreciate simply removing yourself from your environments isn’t possible.  However, it was one step for me to figuring out how to stop blushing.  I was young at the time and didn’t have access to tools and resources to stop blushing in that environment.

Second step for how I stopped blushing

For me achieving some successes helped a great deal with addressing my facial blushing.  I know this sounds trite, but my self-esteem was pretty low during the worst blushing period of my life.  I set out to achieve some small goals which involved fitness goals.  I expanded this into yoga (which resulted in my discovering meditation – see the next step).

Third step for how to stop blushing

I started some serious personal development work to bolster my self-esteem and confidence.  This didn’t happen overnight.  I worked hard on it.

I read many books on self-esteem, panic attacks, and anxiety.  I focused on the self-help oriented books because I figured a positive approach would be best.  This worked tremendously well.  I complemented my reading with meditation and hypnosis.  In fact, in addition to the many exercises prescribed by various books, the two best practices I started to help with my self esteem were meditation and hypnotherapy.  Actually, what really helped with my final stage for stopping blushing were these downloads which are really a series of directed meditations.  I continue with meditation and directed meditations to this day.

 Fourth step

I continue with various self-help regimens including exercise, enjoying my work, and surrounding myself with great people.  I’m also very goal oriented to this day.  I realize that achieving goals is an external success factor, but it works for me.  I suggest to start with small and easily achievable goals to start bolstering your esteem.

Fifth step for how to stop blushing

This will sound a little new-agey, but I spend a great deal of time focusing on the concept of acceptance.  When I was blushing profusely it was due to low self esteem, which fundamentally is not accepting oneself.  I didn’t come to accept myself over night, but over the course of a few years doing what I set out above, acceptance became easier and easier.  Now it’s one of my core meditations.

Am I cured?

No.  I still have the rare moment of embarrassment.  I suspect I always will.  However, my life is immeasurably improved compared to what it was years ago when blushing dominated my life.  I’m fairly regimented in my ongoing treatment of blushing to keep it at bay … which treatment primarily consists of achieving small goals regularly, meditating, self-hypnosis, self-help reading, and exercise.

Facial blushing is akin to panic attacks and anxiety.  When it happens it can totally consume your mind and ruin your life (it certainly was ruining my life for some time).  In fact, when I was afflicted with a blushing episode my brain would freeze.  I wouldn’t be able to respond to anything.  This made me more self-concious and fuelled my blushing face.

Once I learned how to reduce my blushing episodes, and then how to stop blushing pretty much altogether (I occasionally blush, but it’s rare and not terribly bad), my life improved dramatically.

Disclaimer: please note that what is set out above is what worked for me to figure out how to stop blushing.  I attribute low self-esteem and lack of acceptance as the foundation of my previous blushing condition.  This may or may not be the case for you.  There are other causes of blushing, some psychological and some physical. 

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Treatments for Facial Blushing

Facial blushing is defined by the free Dictionary as “to become red in the face, especially from modesty, embarrassment, or shame; flush.”

If you blush easily, you probably hate it.  Excessive blushing is a difficult condition to live with for two reasons:

  1. It’s involuntary; and
  2. The fear of blushing (Erythrophobi) can result in being more vulnerable to blushing.

What results is the fear of blushing results in more frequent blushing which fuels the fear.

What causes facial blushing?

Embarrassment and shame is the predominant emotional cause.  Acute embarrassment or shame releases adrenaline.  The adrenaline dilates blood vessels in your face resulting in more blood flowing to your face.  The end result is a red face.

The trouble is the release of adrenaline is involuntary.

Treatments for Facial Blushing

There are a variety of treatments for facial blushing.

1.  Stop being embarrassed

This is easier said than done.  However, if it’s embarrassment that causes the adrenaline release which causes the red face, then if you prevent embarrassment, then blushing won’t result.  Embarrassment is a form of shame.  Now, there are instances when anyone would be embarrassed – when we put our foot in our mouth for example.  However, the problem is some people, typically sensitive people, are particularly vulnerable to feeling embarrassed and shame.

How can you prevent embarrassment?

Wikipedia defines embarrassment as  “an emotional state experienced upon having a socially or professionally unacceptable act or condition witnessed by or revealed to others … caused by unwanted attention to private matters or personal flaws or mishaps.”

Embarrassment arises out of expectations we place on ourselves.  The adrenaline response is akin to anxiety.  Fundamentally embarrassment, like anxiety, is fear-based.  In order to stop being emotional embarrassed, you must reduce expectations and accept the situation.

Ironically, fear of blushing can lead to doing things that are embarrassing because you don’t think clearly when bombarded with fear.

At the heart of being too easily embarrassed is not accepting who you are.  You believe you don’t measure up.  It’s very low self esteem.  The good news is you can overcome it with treatment that addresses low self esteem and anxiety.  What you must do is pursue a course of treatment that improves your self esteem so you accept who you are.  Until you accept who you are and improve esteem, you are vulnerable to embarrassment and ensuing red face.  Treatments addressing anxiety and panic attacks may work for people who predominantly suffer from facial blushing.

2.  Find some success to treat facial blushing

This is not a documented or scientific treatment for facial blushing.  However, in my experience, achieving some success – it doesn’t matter in what – significantly helped me to overcome excessive blushing. I still embarrass, but not nearly as often, nor to the degree I did years ago.  I attribute it to building my self esteem by fulfilling goals I set for myself.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a major success like some guru or empire builder, but I managed to achieve some simple goals I set for myself.  Those achievements built my esteem.

3.  Undergo surgery as treatment for facial blushing

There is a surgery that cuts the nerves controlling blushing at the spine.  This is obviously a radical option, but living in constant fear of blushing and shame, resulting in a massive loss of confidence and enjoyment of life, may warrant surgery.

Most people opt for a psychological approach to treatments for facial blushing.  Excessive blushing is a very tough condition to live with.  In my view, building up your esteem will radically reduce your vulnerability to embarrassment which will of course reduce your blushing.

4.  Hypnosis for facial blushing treatment

There are hypnosis downloads specifically for facial downloads.  I’ve purchased numerous hypnosis downloads from here (I regularly meditate and listen to hypnosis audio files because they improve my life).  They are top notch and worth giving a try.  Note, although there is a specific audio for facial blushing treatment, you might prefer a self-confidence oriented audio (or try both).

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Blushing Surgery to Stop Blushing

The surgery to stop blushing is called Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy or ETS.

If you can’t stop blushing, ETS is an option

Stop blushing surgery is invasive, but if you simply can’t stop blushing and suffer excessive blushing, even after doing everything you can to reduce or eliminate your anxiety as an approach to stop blushing, then surgery to stop blushing may be an option for you.

ETS works by destroying your sympathetic nerve usually in the upper thoracic region.  It is a permanent change to your sympathetic nervouse system.

Side effects to blushing surgery

Unfortunately, most surgeries, even if successful, have side effects.  The stop blushing side effects are as follows:

  • Standard surgery risks – bleeding and infection.
  • Sweating increases in your abdomen and back.  This is known as compensentary sweating.  It can be severe.
  • It’s remote, but possible that stop blushing surgery can result in Horner’s Syndrome.  Horner’s Syndrome Symptoms include (on the affected side of face) drooping of upper eyelid, slight elevation of lower eyelid, and/or constricted pupil.  Sometimes there is flushing on the affected side which is obviously the condition sought be eliminated with ETS.1
  • Intolerence to heat.
  • ETS has been banned in Sweden and Taiwan (on patients under age 20).2

ETS is something you want to do as a last resort given the invasiveness, permanency, and risks involved.  Alternatives to surgery to stop blushing include

Some doctors don’t recommend ETS as a surgical option to stop blushing and that ETS should only be for sweaty hands and feet.  Do your research before deciding to have ETS surgery to stop blushing.

1.  Wikipedia “Horner’s Syndrom”

2.  Wikipedia “Endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy”

This article is for information purposes only and is not intended, nor is it, medical or health advice.  If you have specific questions, talk to your doctor.

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