How To Use Fillers And Injectables For The Most Natural Look

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Deciding whether or not to have fillers or any treatment is a personal choice. Some prefer to do nothing while others go to the other extreme; it’s a very personal choice, and it’s your right to do what you like! If you’re thinking about having fillers or botox for natural-looking results but are nervous that instead, it might be too much, then you’ve come to the right place. We spoke to one of New York’s leading dermatologists, and author of Beyond beautiful, Dr. Doris Day, to get the low down on how to use fillers and in-office treatments for the most natural facial rejuvenation.

Dr. Day’s mantra is very much less is more; if you do too much, you can end up not looking like yourself, and actually looking older. Dr. Day told us that “Sometimes filler needs to be added in areas that are unexpected, like along the jawline or in the chin to give balance to the face. When done well everyone will tell you that you look great, but they won’t know what you’ve done,” which is exactly the goal!

Doris told us that due to the advances in cosmetic treatments, that the “best approach is to start relatively younger, with smaller treatments over time to avoid falling behind and needing surgery or more invasive treatments later.” But before you consider any treatment at all, Doris believes “it’s important to start by seeing what you like about yourself. Is it your eye color, the way your hair frames your face, your skin tone, your nose, your chin or any other features? If we only see flaws, then we’ll go from more flawed to less flawed instead of from beautiful to more beautiful!”

Botox

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Botox is a neurotoxin that relaxes your muscles by blocking local nerve impulses to specific muscles in your face – temporarily! In English, that means Botox prevents you from having full control of your facial expressions, and it typically lasts for around four to six months. Dr. Day told us that there’s little use for Botox in the mid area of the face, but that you can “use Botox to lift and open the eyes, gently arch the brows, and soften the crow’s feet.” And for the lower section of your face, she told us “it’s great for softening the lines around the mouth, and when done right along the lip line it can help make the lips look plumper, both at rest and especially with smiling. When done along the jawline and neck it can give a nice lift and smoothening of this area as well. This needs to be done very carefully in order to avoid an uneven smile, and should be done only by trained aesthetic physicians.” Find out more about Botox here.

Fillers

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Doris told us that after botox, a hyaluronic acid filler can be used to reflate the face and that you can also “use fillers in every part of the face to restore and enhance natural proportions. We can add filler into the forehead, temples, nose, lips, cheeks, chin, and around the eyes. The goal is to understand proportions as well as the balance of light and shadow to create a natural, youthful, and lasting effect.”

The rules:

Everyone’s face is different and has “their own best balance” so even if two people have the same problem area, they may need to be treated in different ways due to the unique structure of their face. Here’re Doris’ top tips for looking like your most natural, beautiful self:

Go slow: “It is important to go slowly and not aim to overcorrect in one visit. If you go slowly and allow the product to settle you may find you need fewer treatments and the results look better and last longer.”

“Another example is if you put too much filler in the lips in one visit, especially if the lips start out relatively small and flat, then the product will end up pushing up and giving a ‘duck lip’ look.”

Understand the cause of the issue: “If you chase lines and try to fill areas that seem hollow without understanding the true source of the volume loss, you risk looking unnatural. For example, if you put filler under the eyes without first addressing the mid-face, not only will you need more filler to get results, but some of that filler will push the lower eyelid up, which will make the eyes look smaller. Not good.”

“I usually start by using fillers in the midface. This helps restore the cheeks and often helps undereye circles and hollowing, without injecting product there; or it makes it so I need less product there to improve the area.”

One thing that’s essential is to find a specialist who understands the balance and the proportion of the face. Make sure you read reviews and find out about the expert you’re seeing to understand what their approach to cosmetic enhancement is. After all, for your face, it’s worth a little research!