Help! My face is collapsing…

[DollyPinkDaydream]

…what should I do?

lighthearted, but whilst have always taken a keen interest in my appearance I’ve been lucky enough to never really need make up (not a stunner by any means, but have reasonably good genes meaning a bit of vaseline for lip gloss and eyeliner rendered me passable). However, recent photos of me at parties have been horrifying!

i’m late forties, combination skin (but now leaning towards dry) and a runner (which I have read is terrible for making you jowl-y). Also still love a good dance and drink into the wee small hours, which doesn’t help either my skin, or my paranoia that I am starting to stand out as an old hag! Have watched a load of tik toks and you tube vids on contouring for the more mature woman and have had a bash with some sticks and powders, but it seems to makes all my lines worse.

Final point I suppose is that I am pretty time poor so don’t have hours every morning to put on a full face of slap…I really need a slick 10-15 minutes routine tops if possible!

Not averse to a spot of chemical enhancement, but would prefer not to if possibly. What can I do to help my look as young as I still feel? All advice and product recommendations welcomed please 🙏

Smile a lot. Not on public transport though.

Enjoy your day.

Acceptance. You're not going to look like you used to. You can make lifestyle changes that improve how you look and function.

You run and eat a mostly unprocessed diet. That's good, just make sure you're getting plenty of protein.

I would say cutting back on alcohol will do wonders for your health as a whole and that improves your look. You're at the age where your liver isn't metabolizing it as well as when you were younger.

Good Sleep is vital to how you look and function.

Do your hair. Great hair really is a look maker and you can get away with less makeup.

I have a skincare routine. Vitamin C and peptides and sunscreen in the AM, alternate retinol and niacinamide moisturizer in the PM. I use a salicylic acid cleanser at night, water in the morning. Find what works for your skin and stick with it. Use samples to see what agrees with your skin.

My secret weapon for glowy skin is Glossier's Futuredew. It's like a blurring filter.

That’s interesting, I thought fillers only helped jowls by lifting them through adding volume in cheeks but did you have them in the lower face too? I thought that adding volume in the lower face wasn’t helpful? Glad you’re happy with the results, was it expensive?

The ones in Morrisons and the Co Op are brutal.

Same, I am getting one too.

I had fillers in my jowls and my cheeks, it’s about £300 each time I get it done. Sometimes I have jowls, upper lip lines or jowls and one small line near one side of my mouth or jowls and cheeks.

You can, you really can

I’m hankering after Co2 laser.
Its brutal, and the downtime can be a few weeks, but the results are AMAZING!
I’m currently watching a lady on TikTok, she’s coming into her 3rd week since having it done, it’s taken 20 years off her.
Sadly, I fear I will never have enough money for such a treatment.

My eyelids were one adorned with beautiful make up, now my eyes are hooded and my eyebrows which were once shaped to perfection and now a crappy grey and barely there

Haven't read the whole thread so apologies if you've been asked, but do you mind sharing your facial exercises?

She's a middle-aged woman, not a vampire!

Soon there will be another marker of wealth, all the old povos like me who cannot afford botox filler and lifts will have faces that give our lack of money away

Would you mind sharing what tanning drops do you use? I am needing more, but the ones I buy from the Body Shop are discontinued, so would appreciate a recommendation.

I would recommend Collagen. Nutrition Geeks is my go to and I make a point never to run out. It is miraculous. 2 tablespoons in my black coffee every morning. Folk have commented on my glow - I am almost 55.

I always wear make-up when I am at work or go out. Always have done (Horrendous acne when I was younger so was super conscious and developed a habit of making up every day). It now turns out it seems to have helped my skin as the oiliness has prevented dry skin now (and possibly SPF, but I do love the sun and expose my face and body when I can, for a time, before applying sun screen).

Fillers are the only way - sadly the downside of running and staying skinny is that you also get minimal facial fat and 'maturing' skin then has little to hold it up. There's very little evidence that ingesting collagen makes it go to your face / skin. And don't use tanning drops if you have dry skin as it'll make it worse. Elizabeth Arden ceramide capsules (the oily ones) are great, though.

My DM was Eleanor Rigby (wearing a face that she keeps in a jar by the door). I swore I'd never be like her. And I'm not. I'm 58 and still go out totally makeup free. It's liberating. This is me, good or bad.
I must add that I've almost always worn glasses, which have protected my eyes from sun damage. I have no visible wrinkles around my eyes, which give an allusion of youth! I have my 11's which appeared in menopause. I've always had a fringe, which disguise them though. I have a few lines creeping from my mouth, but what the heck, I'm approaching 60.
I still dye my hair, which I think is a major cracker to disguise aging. However, I've decided this Xmas I'm going to embrace the grey!
I'm looking forward to this new chapter in my life.

Fillers are the only way - sadly the downside of running and staying skinny is that you also get minimal facial fat and 'maturing' skin then has little to hold it up.

So, "runner's face"... which according to this thread does not exist.

PRP was really good for me. Twice a year… I found it painful though…

Filler. Not too much, and go to a proper plastic surgeon. Mine is a genuine miracle worker, and no, you can’t tell.

People will pile on the thread and say you absolutely can, but if the job is done properly you absolutely can’t.

Botox as well. Tretinoin, factor 50, and a face oil at night. I make my own, but just Vit E oil would be great if you’re not a faffer.

Other than that, don’t drink alcohol (my skin improved massively once I stopped) and don’t get too thin. Plenty of weight bearing exercise helps to keep the scaffolding strong.

I'm not sure that someone saying this makes it a fact? The truth is that it's a complicated formula based on lifestyle, genetics, bone structure, skin thickness and quality, sun exposure. I would guess some people get 'runner's face' but clearly some don't. It's neither a universal experience nor a given.

It's good for your knees or at least not bad - obviously not if you are doing hundreds of miles or running on an injury but your body benefits from the impact. Runners have low body fat will have slimmer faces, but 99.9% of them would have the face they have regardless of whether they run or not.

I didn't say it was a universal experience. But clearly it is an observable and remarked upon phenomenon or there wouldn't be a term for it.

"Runner’s face is a condition that causes sagging of facial skin, deepening of wrinkles, and hollow cheeks. The prominent appearance of the bones in the face makes a runner look gaunt and can present advanced signs of aging well before their time."

"Runner’s face is a term used to describe the characteristic skin changes in the face that lifelong runners may experience over time, such as leathery, saggy-looking skin, premature wrinkles, sunken eyes, and an overall gaunt appearance."

Both quotes from runners' websites.

@randomrandomer , it's probably not something that will affect someone who goes out jogging and does Parkrun, but it is something likely to regular lifelong runners who run long distances.

Same as it ever was - there will always be things that some people can afford that I can’t.
It depends on your priorities I suppose.

Yes, I understand what it is. But I know a lot of runners and only one that I can think of has that look and she does ultramarathons, including lots of training in hot/sunny countries. Your average runner, as @YYYDlilah says, who logs 20k a week and uses SPF is unlikely to develop this.

I also think it's worth pointing out that being lean to the point you have very little fat in your face and worrying about your face bouncing up and down like unrestrained breasts, which was the earlier comparison on this thread, are two very different things.

never mind balaclava season soon

This wins it!