What's it really like to have dermal fillers?

If you've been following me on Instagram you may have already seen my stories sharing my progress on my non-surgical facelift journey, yesterday was the day of my appointment, I had Juvederm dermal fillers injected into my face at the Queensway Skin Clinic in Jesmond  and though it's too early to really reveal the final results I thought it might be handy to discuss how it really was, what happens at the appointment and how you're going to feel afterwards.

I don't think anyone should go ahead with this procedure without serious thought, you are after all about to have needles and catheters inserted in your face and whilst Dr Uzma Olbrich and her team are amazing, you should know that there are risks, I read through the consent forms three or four times so that I knew exactly the treatments I was about to undertake, let's just say, the decision to  alter with your face should never be taken lightly.  Thankfully Dr Uzma and her team made sure I was so well informed both at the first consultation and then again before any needles were inserted in my face.

So, I arrived at the practice and the first thing they did was take some photos with a macro ring flash, this helps the practitioner really see where the issues are and also it's a good record of your face before the treatment.  After the photos comes 15- 20 mins of sitting with a good cup of coffee whilst waiting for the numbing cream to work on your face.  This makes treatment much more comfortable although you should note that they are sticking cannulas and needles in your face so it's not completely pain free, I actually found it to be uncomfortable more than painful if that makes sense.

So after drawing on your face to mark out the treatment areas the first needles are inserted, you'll find they use a mix of needles and cannulas so they can direct the Juvederm gel into the right areas, I had a mix of Juvederm Voluma which is a non surgical cheek filler and I also had some Juvederm Volift which is lifting like the name suggests.

I would say the only really uncomfortable bit was on either side of my nose, V ouchie but it was the last bit and bearable, probably not quite as bad as an eyebrow wax really and I'm not hard as nails just in case you are wondering.  In fact I hate needles so I closed my eyes throughout.

The whole treatment probably lasted around 45 mins and the effects of dermal fillers can be immediate though I have to be honest, I couldn't tell any difference at all apart from the swelling and redness.

What Happens Next?

Afterwards you're advised to take it easy for the rest of the day and because there's local anaesthetic in the fillers you're face feels pretty weird, it feels tight and not quite your own and it's a challenge not to touch your skin for 6 hours.  You're also told to wear no makeup for the next 12 hours and it was a blessed relief to cover up my rosacea today.  You also can't lie down for 6 hours and I can't have a facial or massage for at least 2 weeks.  Today my face feels a little tender and a bit bumpy in places but that's just the swelling going down and the fillers settling.  The next 2-3 weeks is really going to be where the magic happens.  Firstly the fillers will settle and they'll also send signals to my own collagen to start producing again and my face should regain a fuller texture.  

I have to admit that I can't really see a difference at all, it is sensitively done though and I'm going back in 3 weeks when we'll decide if I need a top up  but when the work is complete (I know, I sound like I'm having building work done) I'm promised I'll look rested, younger and like I've had a really good holiday.

I'm not sure what I really expected straight after, I have joked that I would wake up looking like Amanda Holden but sadly I'm still me.  If I can look in the mirror in 3 weeks though and see myself how my face looked in my late 30's when I didn't feel the need to use filters then they'll have done their job.

I think it's very hard when you are having stuff like this done, you check in the mirror every few hours to see if the magic has happened yet but really I think it's only going to be in a few weeks that I'll look at one of the photos I took just after and be able to see any big changes or big to me, not big, it's supposed to be subtle after all.

I am being given a non-surgical facelift in exchange for telling my story and I'm so grateful to Doctor Uzma and all of her team for helping me reach my true potential and helping me to look into the mirror and see the best version of myself which at 44 isn't a bad thing at all.