Has your favorite celebrity become unrecognizable in some photos? Most celebs are proud and truthful of the cosmetic work they get done. However, too many cosmetic treatments like filler can lead to an overly puffy, chipmunk effect called pillow face.
What is pillow face? Pillow face describes the puffiness of an individual’s face after over-injecting filler or fat into the skin. Its main purpose is to create a more plump look where volume is initially lost, but over-filling can look puffy or pillowy.
Fillers are common, accessible, and non-surgical services. They enhance specific areas of the face to look fuller and more youthful.
Adding more filler to your face than needed can be extremely tempting, but it can harm your skin and appearance in the long run. Also, visiting a trusted doctor or injector is crucial to ensure you get a safely executed filler service.
Pillow face can be challenging to conquer when you already have it and will most likely require dissolving or some restructuring. However, you can take multiple preventive steps to minimize the appearance of pillow face.
What Is Pillow Face?
Pillow face is the name given to an overly-filled face. It describes a puffy or swollen appearance that is cushy and resembles a pillow.
Overfilling is one of the risks of filler, and it can occur by accident or by an untrained physician.
However, pillow face can also occur if a patient wants to inject a lot of filler at frequent intervals. Filler results tend to last 6-12 months on average. Pillow face can indicate if an individual has gone overboard injecting filler or fat into the face.
What Are Fillers?
Cleveland Clinic states, “Dermal filler injections are a type of nonsurgical cosmetic procedure.
Dermal fillers plump up wrinkles, smooth lines, and restore volume in your face. Your healthcare provider injects these substances just under your skin.”
Fillers are a less invasive way to achieve a more youthful and plump appearance. It fills in areas that have low volume and usually require little to no downtime. Fillers are becoming more accessible to everyday people, not just your favorite celebrities.
Who Are The Ideal Candidates For Fillers?
Fillers were initially created for more mature skin types or those lacking volume. It’s great to give plumpness and structure to the lips and cheeks.
However, younger women have hopped on the filler train and have quickly gone overboard.
Younger women are less likely to have a loss of volume within the face, so filler can create the opposite effect.
Instead of turning back the clock, it can make a more mature appearance. Overfilling a face that doesn’t have volume or elasticity concerns can also lead to a pillow face result.
How Does Pillow Face Occur?
This most common way pillow face occurs is due to over-injecting. Some individuals over-inject filler to tender areas like the lips, cheeks, or under the eyes. However, other methods involve injecting transferred fat to create a similar plumped outcome.
An easy way to avoid pillow face is to seek treatment from a well-experienced medical provider or injector. This trained professional should set realistic expectations and ensure that they will keep the integrity of your skin.
Side Effects Of Filler
All cosmetic treatments have their risks. Thankfully, fillers are a generally safe and well-tolerated treatment, especially when in the hands of a well-trained medical professional. However, it’s wise to be aware of the potential side effects.
You may feel swollen or in pain right after your filler service, which is usually normal. Also, there are more long-term side effects to be aware of, like migration or overly filled skin which can lead to pillow face.
Swelling
A common side effect of fillers is swelling.
So please don’t fret if your lips or cheeks look way larger than the agreed-upon size after your injections. Swelling is an average effect that takes at least a few days to go down before seeing your actual results.
However, it would help if you had an in-depth consultation with your provider about all potential side effects, including how long swelling should last. The initial swelling may give a false appearance of pillow face.
Migration
Another risk of filler is migration.
Overfilling can lead to migration and pillow face down the road. Migration will occur when the skin is too stretched out and can’t offer the filler enough support, so it will slowly move elsewhere. It’s common for lip filler to migrate.
Migration can occur when the wrong type of filler is injected and isn’t injected at the correct depth or placement underneath the skin. A well-trained medical professor can help you minimize the risk of migration upon injection.
Stretched Skin
Finally, filler can stretch out the skin, which can lead to a pillow face effect or migration. Overfilling the face creates a rounded, puffy effect, as if the face may pop. Stretched-out skin can be tricky to treat once it’s already present.
The skin needs to accommodate the filler, so it stretches out, but a lack of support can lead to migration. So, you can look lumpier in some places, which doesn’t help the pillow face effect.
How To Avoid Pillow Face
The easiest way to avoid pillow face is to inject filler or fat into the desired areas correctly the first time. It can take much more effort to fix pillow face rather than prevent it. So, always start by consulting with a well-trained injector.
Also, try taking a less is more approach when injecting filler or fat. Of course, you can always add more if needed, but it can be challenging to take it away once it’s already injected.
Less Is More With Filler
Candidates who are young or are new to filler may not need to add a lot of filler into their face at their first injection. It’s crucial to add a small amount, see how your results develop and reassess if needed.
Overfilling is the easiest way to achieve pillow face or promote migration. By thinking less is more, you can control the result of your filler and are more likely to obtain a flattering result.
See An Experienced Injector
Conduct extensive research on filler providers in your area. It’s crucial to see an experienced and top-rated injector to ensure you don’t receive a botched job. An experienced injector will care for your skin and create natural results.
They can help you avoid a puffy pillow face or migration once you’ve had filler for a couple of months. A well-trained filler professional will help set realistic expectations for your skin’s characteristics and keep the overall integrity of your face.
How To Minimize Puffiness After Filler
What can you do if your face is slightly puffy or pillowy after filler? You can control puffiness by combining at-home habits and consulting with your injector. For example, you may stop filler treatments or focus on at-home skincare.
Your injector may also recommend alternative in-office treatments or advise against adding more filler to your face. Each patient will have a different experience, so it’s essential to discuss the best treatment for your scenario with your provider.
Avoid Injecting More Filler
First, you’ll want to avoid injecting any more filler into your desired areas. Adding more filler can worsen matters, especially in areas where the skin is more likely to be thinner, like the lips or under the eyes. It can quickly stretch out these places.
Stretched-out skin can open a floodgate of issues like pillow face or migration. Filler can naturally degrade within the body over time if you’re patient. Also, discuss with your injector the possibility of dissolving your filler if you have pillow face.
Invest In At-Home Devices
At-home microcurrent devices are increasing in popularity and can potentially help decrease a puffy appearance. Some sculpting devices are designed to create structure within the face and achieve a more slimmed outcome.
Red light therapy devices are also more common and can help reduce puffy skin. However, don’t include any at-home devices in your routine until discussing with your doctor the safety of using these devices at home or with your filler.
These devices may help slim down the face without frequently visiting a medical clinic.
Explore Other Alternatives To Filler
You may also explore other alternative treatments to filler. So, if you’re not willing to consistently use a device at home, try in-office remedies. You can see with your doctor if you can benefit from microcurrent and red light therapy.
You may decide you want to try other treatments like PDO Threads or get a few chemical peels. Again, consulting with your provider will ensure you get a beneficial treatment that reduces filler puffiness and is suitable for your skin’s needs.
Have An Effective Skincare Routine
You may want to preserve your fillers or skin at home with an effective skincare routine. For example, applying SPF daily can protect the skin from the sun’s harmful rays and even reduce the risk of wrinkles, discoloration, and scars.
Also, your dermatologist or doctor may prescribe a retinoid to use at night to promote skin cell renewal and a youthful complexion. This product can also combat various signs of aging and create an even skin tone.
The most significant factor is you’re consistent with your skincare routine.
Sleep Elevated Or On Your Back
Lastly, an easy way to reduce puffiness is by sleeping elevated or on your back. This will reduce the chances of your face getting disturbed in your sleep. Sleeping on your side or stomach can create unpleasant results that may also affect your filler.
Also, sleeping elevated will keep blood circulating instead of having various fluids settle into the skin. Adding an extra pillow to your bed may help create a slimmer effect to combat pillow face.
Is Pillow Face Permanent?
Pillow face may not always be permanent. We mentioned how filler will slowly get broken down and degraded by the body. Some fillers contain hyaluronic acid, which is already naturally found in our bodies to create a youthful effect.
Also, you may discuss with your provider getting your filler dissolved. This means you can remove excess filler from the face, but it may take time to recover from this process and achieve your desired look.
Do People Get Pillow Face On Purpose?
You can easily get carried away with filler, but more doesn’t always mean better. For example, some people may accidentally achieve a pillow face by injecting filler into the skin frequently without being aware of its effect on their skin.
Others may want a lot of filler right off the bat to create an overly plumped effect. So, there may be a few individuals who enjoy the pillow face effect, but it often comes with its side effects, and is more beneficial to avoid getting that pillow face outcome.
How To Fix Pillow Face
So how can you remedy pillow face? First, you’ll want to contact your medical provider for the best treatment for your case. Next, you may discuss multiple pathways to remedy pillow face into a look that is more desirable to you.
Treating pillow face involves dissolving filler or turning to alternative treatments.
Consult With A Medical Provider
Consulting with an experienced provider will help determine the safest treatment for your face and skin.
Not every individual is trying to achieve the same look or goal, and your health history may also play an important factor when deciding on treatment.
A medical provider will guide you on the safe and effective path to recovery and help you maintain the integrity of your skin which is crucial when dealing with an overly filled pillow face.
Dissolve Filler
You may decide that dissolving your filler is the best choice. Dissolving your filler will remove most of the filler, but not all of it. Also, it may reveal how stretched out the skin is once it’s dissolved. It can take time to achieve your desired results.
Your provider will recommend avoiding filler for some time until it’s recovered to handle another injection if you want to add volume back into the face lightly.
Alternative Treatment
Finally, you may discuss with your doctor an alternative treatment. For example, you may try something more severe like PDO Threads if you’re an ideal candidate or something less invasive like microcurrent treatments.
You can wait until your filler disappears on its own, but this is the most time-consuming process of them all.
Wrap-Up
Pillow face is a unique term to describe an overly-filled face. You can inject the face with filler or transferred fat to compensate for the loss of volume in the face. Fillers are ideal for mature skin or skin lacking elasticity, unlike younger individuals.
The best way to avoid the pillow face effect is by not over-filling the face. Overfilling will result in long-term and unwanted effects like pillow face and migration. This can lead to lumpy, textured skin, an overly stretched-out face, or an overall puffy appearance.
You can reduce puffiness after filler by sleeping elevated, having a skincare routine, or discussing alternative treatments with your doctor. It will be wise to take a less is more approach when injecting filler or fat into the skin.
Finally, you can treat pillow face by dissolving your filler, seeking alternative treatments, or waiting for the filler to degrade alone. Always consult with a doctor before making a decision on filler.
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