With the emergence of modern techniques, equipment, and procedures, dermal fillers have emerged as one of the most effective skin treatments in the market. Of these fillers, lip fillers are arguably the most common type. This is because you can use them to increase lip volume, achieve your desired look, and significantly boost your self esteem.
However, despite their ever-rising popularity, there's a lot of misinformation about lip fillers. Therefore, it's crucial to perform thorough research on the treatment before committing to it.
If you're considering lip fillers to achieve full lips, you probably have a lot of questions about what the treatment entails, how lip fillers work, and any complications that you should be aware of. But you don't have to worry, because in this article, we will explore the concept of lip fillers and everything you need to know about them.
What Are Lip Fillers?
Simply put, lip fillers are a type of cosmetic substance used to restore or increase lip volume when they are injected directly.. This makes the lips appear fuller and more well-rounded.
There is a wide range of injectables that can achieve this effect, but hyaluronic acid is the most common as it has less safety concerns. Moreover, hyaluronic acid fillers achieve quicker and more effective results almost immediately after application. They are also not permanent, so they are a good fit if you're looking for a solid fix with little commitment.
Types of Lip Fillers
- Hyaluronic acid fillers - The skin naturally contains a synthetic material made up of sugar in its innermost membrane. This gel, known as hyaluronic acid gives the skin its characteristic plumpness in various body parts, and even more noticeable on the lips. Therefore, hyaluronic acid lip fillersare the most complete and suitable fillers for the lips, as they provide instant results, are easily absorbed by the skin tissue, and even completely reversible using hyaluronidase.
- Collagen fillers - Collagen is an essential skin protein that plays a crucial role in establishing and restoring the skin firmness. Therefore, collagen lip fillers work by boosting the protein's levels around the lips. However, the results may take longer to show and may trigger allergies, hence why this type of fillers has not enjoyed much success.
- Fat injections - A good skin expert knows the importance of combining fat injections with almost every cosmetic procedure, including filling the lips. However, the results of using fat injections on the lips are unpredictable, as they can easily cause unusual swelling. Furthermore, fat injections are harder to reverse and may not hold with the numerous amount of facial movement and eating the lips take part in.
- Silicone fillers - If you're concerned about dry and rigid lips, silicone fillers are perfect for you. They work by making the lips augmented and more defined. However, they can easily cause permanent disfigurement and do not produce natural looking results.
- Teosyal products - Teosyal products such as Redensity and RHA-2 move better on the skin and do not affect facial expressions as they are lighter than other most products.
- Restylane - Are you looking to enhance the projection and roundness of your lips? Then you've got to try restylane and refyn, which are easy to inject and effectively raise the corners of the lips.
- Juvéderm - Juvederm increases the lips' plumpness and raises the vermilion - the red part of the lips - to give you beautiful, sturdy lips. It is widely preferred as a lip filler, although you can dilute it and use it as a remedy for fine lines.
- Radiesse and Sculptra - These fillers are mostly used for augmentation in other body parts, but when used on the lips, they can easily cause lumps and do not produce results as excellent as other fillers
How Lip Fillers Work?
In three words? They increase volume. This helps give your lips a nice shape and definition to achieve that beautiful smile you’re looking for. You can achieve this by having your doctor inject the substance in your lips, but the treatment is not as straightforward as it sounds. So, let's look at the work that goes into successfully filling your lips.
Preparing to get Lip Fillers
As with any other cosmetic procedure, the process of getting lip fillers begins with consulting a qualified and experienced skin expert. During this stage, you should explain your expectations to the practitioner and let them educate you on how lip fillers work and likely outcomes. Therefore, ensure you provide accurate information to help them determine whether you are eligible to get lip fillers. Every detail counts, even your age, as some countries have age restrictions. In the U.S., the FDA only approves lip fillers for individuals aged 22 and above.
During the Procedure
On the scheduled treatment day, your practitioner will begin by applying an anesthetic to numb the lips. This usually comes in the form of a cream containing lidocaine, although some cosmetic doctors prefer an injection similar to the one dentists use for numbing. These are all the same, as they both minimize pain and increase comfort during the procedure.
When the topical anesthetic is fully settled, your practitioner will use a lip filler microcannula or a thin needle to insert the filler into select sections or your entire lips. This is because they may need to apply the filler in the corners of your mouth, the vermilion border, or the cupid's bow to achieve fully balanced lips.
Despite the numbing, you may feel a little pinching as the needle should go as deep as 2.5mm into the lip skin. However, your doctor should use an ice pack to relieve any immediate swelling during the procedure, which takes between an hour and two hours, with numbing time included.
After Getting Lip Fillers
Immediately after the procedure, your doctor should gently massage the lips to spread the filler and prevent lumps and if there's still swelling, they will continue icing the lips. If there are no noticeable side effects such as bleeding or nausea after 15 minutes, you should be ready to go home or resume your day's activities. However, ensure you get detailed instructions from your doctor so that you know what to do in case you experience the side effects.
How Much Lip Filler is Enough?
The lips are a prominent feature of the face, so you have to consider every tiny detail of the procedure before filling them. This includes the amount or volume of lip filler that your doctor uses. And while it may feel like it's part of the doctor's jurisdiction, you should also have a say.
That said, there are various factors that go into deciding the amount of lip filler to inject, including facial structure, current lip size, and desired results. Putting these into consideration will go a long way to ensure that the lips are in proportion with the rest of your face for natural looking results.
Although a one-size-fits-all approach doesn't apply here, skin experts recommend injecting between 0.5ml and 1ml of lip filler for optimum results.
What to Expect After Getting Lip Fillers
Right after your treatment, you may have lips bigger than you expected, but that is a result of swelling, which is normal. Your upper lip may even lack definition and end up hanging over your lower lip. This could get worse by the next morning, but it is expected on day 2 of lip fillers and will go away within 48 hours. Otherwise, you may have to contact your healthcare provider.
Lip Filler Aftercare
After filling your lips, your healthcare provider should send you home with tips on how to take care of your skin for faster, effective outcomes and to avoid complications. These include.
- Avoid makeup on your lips for at least 24 hours after injection. The ingredients of your beauty products may not react well to the newly injected filler.
- Avoid high temperature environments like saunas and steam rooms as this could worsen the swelling and make the lips even more sensitive.
- Stay hydrated. Water naturally helps the body to heal faster, and it may be just what you need to also keep the skin around the lips moisturized.
- Avoid intense exercise for at least 48 hours. This is because increased blood pressure may pronounce the swelling and worsen the bruising on the lips. However, light workouts like walking are highly recommended to enhance regular blood circulation.
- Before taking any medication, check with your doctor to ensure that they are safe. Drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen may hinder the healing process.
- Avoid smoking, kissing, using straws, and other activities that may require you to pucker your lips. This will lead to uneven distribution of the filler and cause lumps.
- Avoid alcohol 2-3 days before and after getting lip fillers. Alcohol acts as a blood thinner, increasing the likelihood of swelling and bruising.
Following these tips and recommendations could inconvenience your lifestyle, but if the result is faster healing and fuller lips after getting fillers, it is worth it.
Side Effects of Lip Fillers
Before jumping into the lip filler trend, it's crucial to understand the complications that you may encounter. These are not meant to scare you, but are simply part of the consultation procedure to help you manage your expectations. Here are some of the most common risks associated with lip fillers.
Swelling and Bruising
Having already mentioned it previously, you already know to expect swelling as soon as the filler is injected. Along with the bruising, they are caused by the needle as it punctures through the skin. However, they are not serious and applying a cold compress should get rid of them within 48 hours.
Cold Sores
If you have a history of cold sores, getting lip fillers could reactivate them. Therefore, it's crucial to let your practitioner in on your medical history so they can advise appropriately and employ the necessary preventative measures.
Allergies
Allergic reactions to lip filler materials are rare but severe. If you experience fever, redness, and irritation that persist beyond the specified recovery period, contact your healthcare provider for further guidance.
Necrosis
In rare cases, filler material disrupts blood flow to the area around the lips, resulting in tissue death, commonly known as necrosis. The symptoms of this side effect include chronic pain, blisters, and darkening around the lips and you will require urgent medical attention to treat it.
Asymmetry
After the fillers settle, you may notice a slight difference in the volume of the upper and lower lip. This would be the result of poor filler injection or lack of proper aftercare, so it's crucial to choose a skilled and experienced doctor to perform the procedure and guide you through aftercare.
Migration
When injected, lip fillers don't have the mechanism to anchor themselves to the injection site. This means that they may migrate, usually towards the nose, causing irregular results. To counter this, avoid excessive lip movement, keep the head elevated, and don't sleep on your stomach until the filler has settled and lips healed.
Benefits of Lip Fillers
Lip fillers come with numerous benefits, including;
1. Confidence Boost
Most people with asymmetrical and thin lips feel overly self-conscious of their appearance. However, lip fillers fill the lips and define them, leading to a new, improved look that will significantly boost your self-esteem.
2. Ease of Customization
Different individuals may have different concerns about their lips, hence varying expectations when getting lip fillers. Luckily, lip fillers handle all these concerns effectively as the results of the procedure are customizable. Whether you want one lip to look fuller or just a subtle enhancement, lip fillers are your best cosmetic choice to achieve customized results.
3. Little Downtime
Getting lip filler is an 'in and out' treatment. This means that the procedure is short, and you'll require very little time to recover. Therefore, after filling your lips, you can go home and be ready to go out the next day if the side effects are not severe. Speaking of side effects, these also go away 3-5 days after injecting the lip filler, so you don't have so much downtime.
4. Immediate Results
Unlike most cosmetic procedures that take weeks or even months to produce results, lip filler results show within days. In fact, if you use juvederm lip fillers, the results are almost instant as you'll experience minimal swelling.
5. Long-Lasting Results
If you want long-lasting improvement on your lips' appearance, lip fillers are the perfect way to achieve that. Besides giving you desirable results, lip fillers also keep your lips looking full and balanced for up to a year.
When Can I Redo my Lips?
Despite the efficiency of lip fillers in restoring volume to your lips, they are temporary. This means that they eventually wear off and you have to get another filler injection after some time. However, there is no specific period after which you can redo your lips. Instead, it depends on the type of filler you got initially, how much of it your doctor administered, and how fast it dissolved.
At least 9 months after getting your lip filler, consult with a skin expert who will assess your lips' condition and determine whether you are due for another procedure. If you choose not to get the filler again, your lips will revert to their original state as the body continues to break down the filler, but you will not experience any side effects.
Ready to Get Your Filler?
Getting lip fillers is a personal choice, and we hope that this comprehensive guide helps you in making that decision. Lip fillers are generally safer and more effective than other invasive cosmetic procedures, and consulting with a skin expert is the first and arguably most important part in the process of getting your lip filler.
At Diaminy we also offer the newest and most advanced products for lip filling, including hyaluronic acid and microcannula for lip injection. These, coupled with our latest resources and industry news are you unbeatable starter pack as you dive into the world of lip fillers.
Reach out to us today if you have any queries and concerns about all things cosmetics, and we will answer them all to put your mind at ease.
