Getting work done - advice?

[alpenguin]

Is it possible to get work done / face lift without looking like a blow up sex
doll?

I’m mid-late 40s and thinking of having something done to fix my marionette lines and jowls. The least invasive, I’ve read, was to get some fillers at cheekbones and top lip as what I’m not liking about ageing isn’t drastic enough to warrant a facelift yet. I just want to look a bit more like me again and not my gran. When I see photos of cheekbones and top lips it always looks so shiny and prominent and false. I never really had prominent cheekbones in the first place so I’d worry it looked jaggy and awful. I guess loads of people get Botox too and that inability to move looks so alien to me. I don’t want that and I don’t mind having some wrinkles. I just hate seeing deputy dawg looking back at me from the mirror. (Showing my age there)

How do I even go about looking into this? I can’t get personal recommendations as I don’t know anyone who’s had ‘good’ work done and I’m not sure I trust online reviews.

Where are you based? I have some good recommendations in London...

Thanks I’m in Scotland. Ha! as far from London as you could get.

The ‘need’ for a facelift isn’t dependent on age but on how you’re aging.
Sagging won’t ever be resolved by filler. Filler just fills. It doesn’t lift and anyone who says it does is lying to you. Eventually you end up with a pillow face. Young faces aren’t big and full. They’re petite and refined. The tweaking culture is going to die a death soon because it actually only works for young faces to enhance cheekbones etc. It also never goes away. It’s proven to still be there years after it should have dissipated.

If you have the money choose surgery. Perhaps a small eyelid surgery would make a huge difference. You may be fixating on the wrong part of your face.

Look at lip lifts too. An elongated philtrum will look far worse with filler. Victoria beckham has done this and created the duck look.

Hmmm Opine, if OP has never had any work done then dipping a toe in with botox and filler is probably a better first step than straight to surgery! I'm mid-40s and had botox since mid 30s - the impact on frown lines around my eyes and forehead has been incredible. At 40, I started slowly with small amounts of filler to lessen marionette lines and plump lips. Filler in cheeks can often give that "pillowy" look but I had good results with profhilo (expensive - doesn't work for everyone) which made my skin look glowy and fuller. Opine is right that filler is proven to "stick around" but in my experience it hasn't moved - so the results actually last a lot longer. I will be exploring mini neck lift/face lift around 50 I should think but I've been super happy with the results of cosmetic tweaks so far. I think OP that finding someone really good (Tatler used to do a yearly guide?) and expecting to spend at the higher end at first - might be a good bet. Look up Alice Hart-Davis "Guide to Tweakments" - she's a great source on this stuff and there might be some recos for Scotland. Best of luck!

I am pretty sceptical about fillers. I am aware that some people get subtle, barely noticeable and natural fillers. But they seem to be the minority.

anyhow, what you need will depend on your personal situation (facial structure, how you’re aging etc). A good plastic surgeon can recommend appropriate procedures, explain the pros and cons etc.

And getting a 2nd opinion is obviously also always a good option!

But I’ll probably be in your situation in a few years, so definitely watching this thread with interest.

Hi shorty please share? 🙏

I highly recommend Rita Rakus (she’s in knightsbridge) and her team. I haven’t been anywhere else in UK - i’m now based in California so see her only once a year.

I got a nice subtle lift with filler. It's a different firmer filler to that used to fill lips and lines, and needs to go very deep near the bone to achieve the lift without too much volumising. Where it goes wrong is when less skilled practitioners just whack it into the cheeks.
My advice though is just go to a good cosmetic doctor. That way just like with any other doctor, you don't tell them what treatment you want, just what 'the problem' is and they will diagnose and prescribe. When you know the treatment they recommend you can do a little more research on that before deciding.

Fillers and botox is a good place to start but you do really need to find someone who knows what they're doing. Majority of places are just not good enough. Not sure where you are in Scotland but the Consultant Clinic have a place in Glasgow, look them up on Instagram - their work is really good. It's not cheap but all their procedures are done by doctors (no nurses, dentists or non-medics which is so common in the UK! Although I've had great work done by one particular nurse) so you know you're in good hands, and they'll really help you to decide what will look best on your face

Thank you. Reply much appreciated. The fact that you still see her having moved to Cali speaks volumes…

Hi OP @alpenguin I am in Scotland too and you absolutely can get subtle fillers and botox to enhance your natural face. Where are you? Feel free to PM me.

Thank you! I’ll check them out. I’m really wary of someone not properly trained having at it with my face 😂