Thinking about facial fillers? Here’s what you need to know first

Promotional feature with Juvéderm

GoodtoKnow’s Jenni McKnight has always been curious about facial fillers, so she booked herself a consultation at The Glasshouse Clinic in Clapham, south-west London to find out more… 

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder - but what happens when your perception of beauty is skewed?

With the rise of beauty influencers on social media and make-up and skincare brands trying to sell you lotions and potions that aim to give you blemish-free, poreless, smooth skin - is it any wonder that some people may feel like what they once thought was attractive is no longer the case?

Now it seems all we want to do is perfect our selfie and look like we've been blessed with an Instagram filter on our skin all the time.

But what if there was a way that you could forgo tweaking your make-up and editing your photos? What if you could achieve a more attractive you?

One way to achieve a natural-looking enhancement, without going through painful and pricey nips and tucks, is with Juvéderm facial fillers - gels made from hyaluronic acid, a naturally occurring substance present in the skin - which can be injected beneath the skin to shape and contour your facial features.

Now before you panic about having your face prodded with needles, here me out. Facial fillers are not as scary as you may think. All it takes is some research and a consultation with a qualified practitioner and your mind should be put at ease.

That's what happened for me anyway. Since I hit my thirties, I've noticed that my smile lines are becoming more prominent,something I had never noticed before but now I can't help but stare at them with a deep loathing every time I look in a mirror.

I had never really thought about facial fillers before, but I'm always searching for new ways to improve my appearance.

And as it turns out, I'm not the only one. In a survey conducted by Allergan, the makers of Juvéderm, 38% of the women surveyed said they were considering facial filler treatment, which suggests an estimated 5,000,000 women.

So I decided to get GoodtoKnow readers, and my own, questions answered by a qualified practitioner with a consultation at The Glasshouse Clinic in Clapham, south-west London.

Who was my consultation with?

I met with the very lovely Alison Telfer, head practitioner and owner of The Glasshouse Clinic. Alison has been working in the world of cosmetic medicine for over a decade and trained under the very best facial aesthetic and laser experts in Harley Street and at the Royal College of Physicians.

What we discussed

I wanted to know what could be done about my nasolabial folds or smile lines to you and me. I came away from the consultation feeling that they were really subtle, but that now could be the perfect time to start taking action, since they wouldn't need a lot of treatment.

How does the consultation process work?

When you call the clinic to arrange your consultation you'll be asked by a friendly receptionist what you'd like to discuss during your 20-30 minute consultation. On arrival you'll fill out a pretty standard health questionnaire and then will meet with your specialist.

What usually happens is then you'll go through what concerns you have, what treatment you're considering and what you want to understand. Your practitioner will then explain how the face ages and how volume restoration, fillers, would help.

How long would the treatment take to work?

The best news is that once filler is in, the results are instant. But as Alison told me, ‘You put them in and they look great but over a period of a few weeks they look better and better. That's simply because they integrate into the tissue, and really become part of the skin.'

My fear about having fillers though was that once they started to wear off my skin would suddenly look saggy or flat. But Alison reassured me that this wasn't the case, ‘People are often fearful that when they've had treatment they're going to look worse afterwards, they're not,' she said. ‘What will happen is over a 12 month period you will simply go back to where you started and people very often forget what that looks like. That's why we always take before and after photographs.'

How long do Juvéderm fillers last?

All fillers vary; what works for me may not work for you. But you can expect it to last approximately up to 9-24 months depending on the treatment chosen. The length of time it lasts depends on your body and how long it takes it to break down and process the filler.

What's the recovery time?

Having fillers is not as traumatic as you may have thought - any bruising should disappear in about a week.

When should I start having fillers?

An important first step to answering this question is to seek advice from an expert medical aesthetic practitioner, who can talk through what you hope to achieve with filler treatment.

What should I look for in a practitioner?

Ideally, you should know the qualifications of the practitioner you're considering and how long they've been practicing. Maybe ask them to show you before and after photos of people they've treated. Look at how long the clinic has been open, and ask lots of questions so you know exactly what they can offer you. The key thing to remember is that taking the step and having a consultation shouldn't come with any obligation to have treatment. If you're curious about filler treatment, having a consultation is a great way to decide whether it's right for you.

How I felt during the consultation

I'll admit I was very nervous ahead of my consultation. I thought it would be like that episode of Sex And The City when Samantha went for a boob job consultation - only for the surgeon to draw all over her body in red pen to highlight just how much work she would actually need done to look better. I didn't want red pen all over my face!

During the consultation, the answers to my questions were explained thoroughly and I left believing I had all the information I needed to make an informed decision. Best of all, I didn't feel pressured into having anything done unless I wanted to.

You can find an expert aesthetic and clinic near you at juvederm.co.uk

(UK/0043/2018l, Date of Preparation: March 2018)

Image one credit: © Allergan

Images 2, 3, 4 credit: 'Stock Imagery'