Back to School Time Means Mom Time: How to Freshen Your Face with Fillers

You’ve shopped for school supplies and new clothes for your kids and they’re ready to be launched in a new year at school. Now it’s time to think about taking care of yourself. The back-to-school transition is a great time to freshen your face with dermal fillers.
When you reconnect with other parents this fall, wouldn’t it be nice to hear them comment on how young and rested you look? Dermal fillers can do that for you, softening and smoothing age lines and wrinkles and restoring volume where it is gradually being lost. In the hands of an expert like Josh Waltzman, M.D., in Long Beach, CA, the improvements will be so subtle your friends will likely notice that you look great, but won’t be able to pinpoint the change.

How Can Dermal Fillers Improve My Face?

As we age, our skin gradually loses its strength and elasticity. Lines and creases form and deepen, especially in the forehead and around the eyes, nose, and mouth. We also lose volume in some areas of our face, including the cheeks and below the eyes. Dermal fillers can address each of these signs of aging.

Filling and smoothing facial lines and wrinkles.

Fillers artfully injected just below facial lines and wrinkles can soften and smooth them to make them far less noticeable. Fillers can be used in this way to minimize deep forehead lines, nasolabial folds (the creases that run from the sides of the nose to the corners of the mouth), and marionette lines (the folds that extend from the corners of the mouth straight down to the chin).
Adding volume to the cheeks and under the eyes. As we age, many of us lose tissue volume in our cheeks and beneath our eyes. Fillers that add bulk can restore a younger look in these areas. When applied in the cheeks, fillers give a younger, fresher look. When applied under the eyes, fillers can replace a tired look with one that appears more alert.

Firming up loosening, sagging skin.

In addition to adding volume where it is starting to be lost, fillers can firm up loosening, sagging facial skin in its early stages. They do this by restoring the bulk of the underlying tissue, giving the skin more substance to stretch over, and, with some fillers, by stimulating the production of collagen. Collagen is an important compound that keeps our skin supple and flexible when we are young. As we age, collagen production tends to drop, and some fillers can help to reverse this trend.

Plumping lips.

The lips are another part of the face where we tend to lose volume as we age. Skillfully applied, fillers can restore a younger, plumper look to the lips in a subtle, barely noticeable way.

What Are Dermal Fillers Made Of?

Different dermal fillers are used for different cosmetic purposes. All are essentially gel-like substances that add volume just below the skin. Some are designed to erase tiny lines and wrinkles while others are used to build up areas where more volume is needed.
Dr. Waltzman uses an array of fillers for specific facial improvements. These include:

  • Fillers made from hyaluronic acid, a substance that occurs naturally in the body. These bind moisture to keep skin plump and hydrated, and can stimulate the production of collagen. Fillers made from hyaluronic acid include the Juvéderm® and Restylane® injectables.
  • Autologous filler, also called fat transfer or fat grafting. This filler technique harvests fat from elsewhere on the body using a gentle liposuction technique, then purifies it for injection into the face. Some of these transferred fat cells remain in place and establish a blood supply, creating a filler that lasts indefinitely.
  • Non-hyaluronic acid fillers. These include fillers made from calcium hydroxylapatite, another naturally occurring substance, found primarily in the bones. Calcium hydroxylapatite fillers, such as Radiesse®, provide substantive bulk. They also stimulate the production of collagen for a longer-lasting effect. Biocompatible synthetic fillers made from Poly-L-lactic acid and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) may also be used. Sculptra® Aesthetic is an FDA-approved Poly-L-lactic acid filler. Bellafill® is an FDA-approved PMMA filler.

Give yourself the gift of a fresher, younger-looking face this fall. Dr. Waltzman will be happy to answer your questions and to offer his recommendations on the application of fillers to enhance your natural beauty. Contact our office in Long Beach, CA, today at (562) 448-6100 to schedule a personal consultation.