Not many people know that I've dabbled in fillers (okay, I've only had tear-trough fillers, but still, little known fact) and I promised myself I would do a blog post about it, but never did. Back in 2019 (August, to be exact), I went to a local med-spa/clinic and got under-eye fillers for the first time as I have hollows under my eyes that I wanted a bit plumper.
The clinic itself was packed (message me if you're in the DMV and want the name), full of people who were obviously pros and veterans in the cosmetic work world, I was definitely nervous because I didn't know what to expect. Skipping past the doctor interaction, I'll go into the details about how it went down: The nurse applied numbing cream on the area where she would put the needle and we waited for it to set in. This was a weird feeling as it wasn't COMPLETELY numb, it just felt relaxed and fuzzy, not sure how to describe it. The doctor came in and explained to me that they were going to puncture my cheek to get to the area in which they would inject the Restylane. I requested that they split up one vial between both eyes to start, as I was still apprehensive about the whole process. The nurse held my hand and they used the blunt needle to enter the space under my eye (more like my upper cheek) and then they inserted the sharper smaller needle containing the Restylane. This process actually wasn't crazy painful, just uncomfortable. Apparently, I had a stubborn muscle on the left side of my face that wasn't willing to cooperate with the needle...OUCH. I had minimal bleeding, but TONS of swelling, I looked like I got beat up or like I had an allergic reaction. The doctor moved the Restylane around under the skin to shape it the way she wanted. After this eye was done, I was allowed to take a look, I saw immediate results which I was happy about momentarily, but I was still bracing myself for the second shot. I knew what to anticipate with the second eye, but it was much easier since this side wasn't trying to fight the needle. After doing the same thing to my right eye that she did to the other, she thanked me for my time and whisked out of the room! This whole procedure took a lunch break and I was on my way. For the aftercare, they gave me a sheet advising me to purchase "Arnicare" cream for the swelling, which is this weird-smelling clear gel that cools and naturally brings down swelling anywhere; this stuff is a lifesaver, I keep it on me to this day for any weird swelling or bruising. She also suggested that I sleep sitting up for the next few nights. Luckily, my then boyfriend (now fiancé) had a super comfortable couch I could sit up in for the next couple of nights. The swelling took a couple of days to go down and I looked TERRIBLE, I highly suggest taking some time off or working from home during the healing time. After a couple of days I was back to normal and LOVED my under eyes, they were brighter, smoother, and fuller. I enjoyed them for a couple of weeks before I got a random bruise right on the place where they injection was. I knew that the doctor had told me this was possible, but after it stayed for almost TWO WEEKS, I panicked and called her. She sent me a prescription for lightening cream, which, WTF? No chance I was putting that junk on my skin, so I stuck to Arnicare for another week and over time it disappeared! Present day: I knew that the Restylane would disappear after about 6 months due to my body's absorption rate, but I'm really grateful for this experience. In hindsight, I'm happy I tried it because to be honest, once they wore off I still loved how I looked anyways! It was an exciting experience that enhanced my under-eye fullness and brightness, but what I'm really happy about are the lasting effects, as I see fillers as a method of prevention. When your body slows collagen production, fillers can help to stimulate that growth even after your body absorbs it! According to board-certified dermatologist Ava Shambam: "Think of the fibroblasts like your hand—they have these dendrites [branched, treelike structures] and when there's nothing for them to hold on to, they kind of crumple down and don't do anything...The theory is that when you inject new hyaluronic acid, all of a sudden they can grab on to it and it activates collagen. I was surprised by it and didn't understand it at first, but the results persisted well after the skin metabolized the product and collagen formation occurred unequivocally."
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