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Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

When did you first notice your face had aged?

131 replies

Fakeplastictrees55 · 29/03/2023 06:43

Until around 29/30 I was frequently asked if I was 'studying' and if I 'lived with my parents' that sort of thing. Once at 27 and once at 29 I was told "You look like you're still in high school."

Anyway now about to turn 32 and I've had nasolabial folds and smile lines appear what feels like overnight. It actually makes you question your face and whether they'd always been there and you just didn't notice them.
Also lost a lot of fat in my face despite not losing body weight. When I look at myself at 27/28 I had an incredibly round face and now just touching my face I can feel there's much less fat.

I still look 'young', it's just the first time I've noticed what feels like a definite shift in my face. I'm doing everything 'right' except for too much sugar which I really need to stop!

OP posts:
Fakeplastictrees55 · 29/03/2023 16:39

They're the lines that go from your nose to your mouth

OP posts:
daisy46 · 29/03/2023 17:45

WhoStoleMyTiddyOggy · 29/03/2023 06:49

Menopause for me. At 47 I looked 37. At 48 I looked like an old hag!

yes, @48

Peppadog · 29/03/2023 17:57

At 30 I got ID'd at a festival during the day time. I also did jury service and befriended an 18 year old as we were sat together on the jury. It was only after 2 weeks that our age came up and she was flabbergasted as she thought I was her age.
I got pregnant later that year and a year after having my first child my face had totally aged, I no longer could pass for a teen.
Now I'm late 30s and I barely look young at all. I probably get away with being 34-35 if I'm lucky. Depressing.

BookishBabe · 29/03/2023 18:26

I'm 31 next month, and personally within the last year.
I said to some at work the other day, I looked 25 last year and I look 35 this year.
I've got 2 skin tags on my eye lids and not have some spikey dark hairs on my chin.
Its all downhill from here.

ALongHardWinter · 29/03/2023 18:46

I never really noticed it until about 2 years ago when I was 57. I looked in the mirror and thought 'Omg I've turned into my mum!'.

Robyn847 · 29/03/2023 19:03
  1. I was going down the escalator in Boots with a massive mirror alongside, and there was a sudden whopper of a crease in a line under my eye which had literally appeared overnight. I was distraught when I reached the close-up mirrors on the make up section and it wouldn't go away. Its all been downhill since then.
BitchBrigade · 29/03/2023 19:05

I look fine until I smile then the massive crows feet appear. No wrinkles or aging anywhere else and beautiful, spot free glowy skin elsewhere. My face looks 20's but my eyes are 50 if I smile!!!

Saving for Botox. It's ridiculous.

sueelleker · 29/03/2023 19:26

After my cataract operation last year! Before that, I was very short-sighted, so my glasses hid half my face; and without my glasses I couldn't see anyway! Now my face is naked, and I'm still getting used to it. (I'm 68 btw)

FrostyFifi · 29/03/2023 20:04

@BitchBrigade how old are you out of interest? I actually love faces that have all their lines around the eyes, I think they look friendly and beautiful.

BitchBrigade · 29/03/2023 20:12

FrostyFifi · 29/03/2023 20:04

@BitchBrigade how old are you out of interest? I actually love faces that have all their lines around the eyes, I think they look friendly and beautiful.

Not at all! I am 36. I do look at myself sometimes and feel I pull it off and try to own it. I do smile a lot roo which probably contributes to the issue 😁

FabFitFifties · 29/03/2023 20:15

I'm 54, in the last 6 months I've developed a tiny area of crepey (? spelling) under my left eye - I sleep on that side. It's not always visable, but I'm not impressed! The thing that has aged me, in my opinion, is the loss of quite a lot of eyebrow due to FFA. I'm dark haired and had quite substantial eyebrows. I've got some grey hairs in the last year too - very annoying as the females in my family don't usually go grey. My aim is to grow old gracefully, though if FFA doesn't burn out I'll likely wear a wig.

Clarabe1 · 29/03/2023 20:21

Menopause! Up to age 46 I was feeling a little bit smug. I don’t think I am Marilyn Monroe or anything but I thought I looked pretty good for my age. I am 49 now, nearly 50 and the aging that has occurred since menopause started as been quite shocking. The volume in my face has gone, my eyelids are crepey, waist has thickened, etc, etc. I thought HRT would help but nah I look everyday of my age. I just try my best to look the best I can and get on with it! Bloody depressing though. Thankfully my eyesight has gone as well so I can’t see myself clearly.

HoneyPotBee · 29/03/2023 20:34

Around 42

DIYandEatCake · 29/03/2023 21:09

I’m 42 and over the last year have really noticed the wrinkles on my face. I look decidedly middle aged and it’s a shock (I still feel 20-something in my head). I’ve started getting random aches and pains too - nothing serious but enough to make me feel old.

ThePoshUns · 29/03/2023 21:12

49

Mumof1andacat · 29/03/2023 21:13

Around 30. Managing motherhood (he was 2 then) house, work and home took its toll and continues too....

HappyAxolotl · 29/03/2023 21:18

I'm 42 and have aged dramatically in the last year, but I've been badly unwell for over a year now as well as having a lot of other worries. My skin looks papery and dull and I always look tired. Plus I've lost weight due to the illness and I look too thin. I hope that as I recover some of the damage will undo.

Luredbyapomegranate · 29/03/2023 21:21

I had a zoom meeting with 3 guys I’ve worked with for 12 or 15 years, and I did think fucking hell we’re all looking SO OLD. And they are all a good decade younger than me. My boss on the other hand (who is more than a decade older) still looks pretty youthful - he cycles for a couple hours a day which helps I suspect, along with holding onto his hair.

I realised I was really getting old in last couple years when I saw myself in shop windows and saw my Mum. I used to resemble my Dad - I had his good bone structure. I’m really hoping weight loss will bring it back, but worried it will give me saggy jowls..

Jeevesnotwooster · 29/03/2023 21:27

Yesterday. I'm 51 and have spent the past 3 nights on a camp bed next to DD who is in hospital. Booking a facial for next week!

Zooeyzo · 29/03/2023 21:30

Some people are luckier. I looked around 20 even at 36 then i had my dc looked late 20s. Then my dc2 came and he has sen and I've honestly aged overnight from the stress. But I still only look early 30s now I'm mid 40 and that's because both my parents look very young. Bone structure helps as well. I always had a very angular face with sharp cheekbones and jaw and this helps.

TokyoStories · 29/03/2023 21:40

Last year (31). I must still look young as I get ID’d for booze sometimes, but my face has lost some volume and it takes a while for the lines in my forehead to settle down after moving my eyebrows. My eyes are getting quite baggy too. I’ve had a really stressful couple of years which I think have taken their toll on me. Noticing more and more greys. Can’t be bothered with the faff and expense of Botox/fillers. It’s just delaying the inevitable and I’d be hyper-alert to any sign of the wrinkles coming back/volume diminishing. It would be like watching yourself get old over and over again, which would make me miserable.

Largeflaskoftea · 29/03/2023 21:50

FabFitFifties · 29/03/2023 20:15

I'm 54, in the last 6 months I've developed a tiny area of crepey (? spelling) under my left eye - I sleep on that side. It's not always visable, but I'm not impressed! The thing that has aged me, in my opinion, is the loss of quite a lot of eyebrow due to FFA. I'm dark haired and had quite substantial eyebrows. I've got some grey hairs in the last year too - very annoying as the females in my family don't usually go grey. My aim is to grow old gracefully, though if FFA doesn't burn out I'll likely wear a wig.

Oh I hear you! I also have FFA and was just about coping with the receding hairline (I have some grey hair too, which I don’t really mind, but I think I’d actually be a lot greyer if I had a full head of hair!).

But when, after a few years, I noticed my eyebrows falling out, it really hit me hard. I had such cracking eyebrows and I feel naked without them - like there’s no definition to my face. I’ve thought about wearing glasses with clear lenses (I don’t need them except for reading) to help hide (the lack of) them. I don’t want to go down the micro blading/tinting route.

Twopoodlesarebetterthanone · 29/03/2023 21:51

Late 40's

Carsarelife · 29/03/2023 21:52

About 46. I'm 50 now. I'd had a baby at 43 and decided that's what had aged me. I feel in photos I looked the same from 30-46 really.
My peak was 40-43

Evergreen82738 · 29/03/2023 21:56

Just after the birth of my baby and dealing with four months of colic. The stress of motherhood and a feisty strong willed baby and toddler shows on my figure (now obese with stress eating) and face. Also put dye on my blonde highlights as I have no time for the maintenance of highlights. I seriously have aged a decade in two years!