At this point getting work done with dermal fillers part of our culture. It’s getting closer and closer to being a part of the standard beauty routine, same as getting a haircut, a facial etc. Options are plentiful, prices are going down and doing something about your lips or taking care of your Crow’s Feet is much more attainable for regular people than it was, say, just ten years ago (though still not exactly cheap, in all fairness).
On the other hand, some of the stigma of getting work done, if not all of it, is now gone, so the sentence: “Oh, you put filler in your lips” is much more likely to have a positive context when you hear it from your friend’s mouth. However, that normalization of using fillers (same with other beauty interventions) seems to now evolve to a certain amount of social pressure to actually do so. And the above quote is more likely to be the exact opposite: “Why haven’t you gotten a lip augmentation”. It’s paradoxical but it is also very evident. The availability and attainability of filler procedures inevitably affects the beauty standards and once can easily find themselves pressured into subjecting to some sort of facial (or body – more on that later) augmentation procedure.
Today, we’ll try to figure out a couple of things and answer a couple of questions. Primarily: “Do you need dermal fillers?”, but also: “Should you use fillers even if you do not need them?”
Dermal fillers – explained as quickly as possible
At this point, if you’re reading this article, you’re most likely well aware or have at least a sufficient idea what dermal fillers are. Shortest possible answer is, they are products intended to temporarily, semi-permanently or permanently add volume and/or contour to the skin, usually in various parts of the face, with dedicated body products also existing. Based on their specific usage, ingredients and well as differing by local regulations, these are classified anywhere between standard cosmetic product to a Class III medical device.
Although far from exclusively, most commonly fillers are based on Hyaluronic Acid – a natural to the human body substance, which has astonishing skin hydration properties, due to its ability to hold up to 500 times its own weight in water.
That’s the very short of it, but it serves our purposes for today.
So, do I NEED fillers?
No, no you do not. Or at least – probably not.
Question answered. We’re good right? Well… It’s not as simple. To begin with, “need” is probably the wrong word to use. You need food, water, sleep, medicine when you’re ill, etc. Fillers or other beauty products are not necessary for your survival and they are unlikely to be necessary in terms of improving your quality of life.
That being said, they can be absolutely invaluable. While we’d usually think of hyaluronic fillers as something you get work with on a whim, out of some degree of vanity, they can actually be a very powerful too to correct, at least temporarily some form of disfigurement, especially to the face. These can be the result of accidents, trauma, violence, medical interventions or even skin problems (think acne scars, for example). Nobody would blame a person dealing with any of the above in excessive narcissism if they opt for the filler solution. So, when referring to somebody needing such a beauty procedure, this would be the closest fit for the term “need”. Some people like themselves just the way they are. Some, in this situation would like to have some work done. Either is fine, as long as the person feels happy and comfortable.
We can extend this further to people who are sensitive about perceived imperfections about their face. Not being happy with a feature of your face or body can, over time, accumulate enough internal discomfort that could present itself as actual problems – insecurity, low self-esteem, regular bad mood and so on. It’s hardly a laughing matter or something to roll your eyes at. Disturbances to a person’s internal peace can come from all sorts of places.
The above are the two prime examples of instances where you might need filler treatment. Obviously, consulting with a specialist first is virtually mandatory. Including discussing benefits or talking disadvantages.
But what if I still want to?
To which we would respond: as long as you do it because you want it and not because you feel you have to or are somehow otherwise feeling socially pressured to go ahead with it. But let’s start from the basics. Most people that opt to use fillers, fortunately, do not do so out of some sort of necessity. Chances are, you don’t have deformation on your lips or some sort of facial asymmetry. Probably you just feel that your lips would look prettier if they were a bit volumized. Or that your jawline could be ever so slightly more pronounced. Doesn’t mean you look bad or hate your face, just that you think it could look even better. Or maybe you want to combine it with some different sort of treatment to boost effectiveness, i.e., soft filler for wrinkles and skin hydration to amplify the results of some rejuvenating mesotherapy.
Dermal fillers are a great tool to look prettier and younger. There is nothing wrong in using them, in fact it can be encouraged the same way you’d use makeup to underline a certain feature of your face or hide some minor imperfection. But you always have to have a plan.
Planning – the different between disaster and brilliance
It should be obvious but, unfortunately, a lot of people skip the planning part. Probably the worst mistake you can make (and many, many people do just that) is to go into a procedure without a clear idea of what they want. Botched / overdone lip augmentations are probably the most common problem, but virtually any filler application can end up giving you objectively worse results than what you started with. So, you really need to know what you are going for and what sort of end result you want. You’re likely to have a concept when picking clothes and jewelry to wear, makeup to put on or hairstyle to get. In that sense, getting a filler procedure should be viewed as an extension of working on the concept of you, in general (and your looks, more specifically).
Getting big lips for the sake of having big lips is bad planning. Adding as much volume just because it’s considered fashionable is not good justification. Same with contouring or even simple wrinkle removal. Sure, you can fortunately sort most people our with a bit of Hyaluronidase, but then why go through the whole ordeal in the first place.
This is why the role of the doctor or beauty specialist who is treating you is important beyond just procedure, itself. A good beauty or cosmetics professional will give you an honest consultation, talk to you about the specific of your face and give you an honest opinion of what would look good and what wouldn’t. Sometimes, even after giving it a good thought you might have the wrong idea of what end results a hyaluronic acid filler treatment would give you. Sometimes, you need a pro to tell you outright: “Bad idea!”. What works for somebody else is in no way guaranteed to work for you – this goes for everything in life.
Verdict: should I?
Yes, absolutely, one hundred percent, BUT only you gave it a good thought first. Dermal fillers are a true blessing in terms of anti-age treatment and facial feature augmentation. Never before has there been a more convenient way to boost your overall looks in such a mildly invasive manner but with lasting results. But you will only be happy with the end result if you started out with a clear idea of what you wanted to look like, to begin with. Many people set out to achieve somebody else’s look not realizing they should instead go for being the best possible version of themselves instead. And for some, that means using no fillers at all, which is absolutely fine and people should not feel pressured into going this route if they don’t feel comfortable about face fillers and/or like their own looks as it is.
For everybody else, who are curious about fillers there is a plethora of possibilities and options. Pain free, fast and affordable treatment, fillers present the opportunity to easily augment your look. Less than twenty years ago, all of this was mostly possible with expensive and highly invisible plastic surgery. Today, it’s a matter of a simple procedure and a lot of convenience. With the added benefit that you can always change your mind if you don’t like the end result.
Fillers or no fillers? The answer is probably “yes”. Find out what you doing you means and go for it. The point of it all, in the end, is being at peace and comfort with yourself.
