I Don’t Blush and Tell

Imagine a person, someone you like, coming towards you and asking about how you have been. If this isn’t something that you find relatable then maybe try putting yourself in a situation wherein you are talking to your friend and the professor suddenly calls your name and asks you to answer a given question. Something common in all of these scenarios is the gushing of your blood to your cheeks. Blushing to be precise is universal among human beings yet a mysterious phenomenon, which sets the perfect stage for science to explore it further.

A blush is an involuntary and uncontrollable reddening of cheeks due to psychological reasons. It is stimulated by emotional stress associated with passion, embarrassment, shyness or even fear. Research says that it often occurs due to increased capillary blood flow in the blush region. Evidence shows that the blushing region is anatomically different from the other regions of the body. It is believed to have a greater number of vessels per unit volume and capillary loops per unit area compared to other skin areas. Furthermore, the cheek's blood veins have a larger diameter and are closer to the surface, and tissue fluid lessens their visibility.

Charles Darwin described blushing as “the most peculiar and most human of all expressions” in Chapter 13 of his 1872 The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. Studies have shown that the more anxious we feel about blushing, the more neurologically aroused we become, hence we blush more and this cycle keeps on going. Blushing, though universally recognized, its interpretation varies across cultures also. 

Blushing is also triggered when someone feels like they have become the center of attraction, or even in times when they are ashamed of something. Additionally, blushing may happen swiftly when someone feels inferior to others around them, whether in a social or professional sense. However, there might be severe cases like those of Erythrophobia. It is the intense fear of blushing, often driven by anxiety about being embarrassed or judged in social situations. It can often lead to significant stress and avoidance of social interactions.

The question here is have you ever thought about what your blushes say about you? Or do you even get to know that you are blushing when you answer back to your crush? Maybe next time you feel your cheeks warm up, consider whether they show genuine emotion or remind you of our shared human experiences.