Your First Lip Filler Appointment: What Actually Happens

Most nerves about lip filler come from not knowing what the hour looks like. So here is the whole thing, start to finish.

Before you arrive

Skip alcohol for 24 hours, and if it is medically safe for you, skip aspirin, ibuprofen and fish oil for a few days. All of them thin the blood slightly and make bruising more likely. Arrive with clean lips, no lipstick.

If you have a wedding, a holiday or photographs coming up, tell us when you book. We will schedule you at least two weeks ahead of it.

The consultation

We start by talking, not injecting. What bothers you, what you want more of, what you definitely do not want. Bring photographs if you have a look in mind, including ones you dislike. Knowing what you want to avoid is as useful as knowing what you want.

We look at your lips at rest and when you smile, and at how they sit against the rest of your face. Lips that suit one face can look wrong on another, which is why we plan around your proportions rather than a trend.

Numbing

A strong topical numbing cream goes on for fifteen to twenty minutes. Most filler also contains lidocaine, so the area keeps numbing as we work. Patients typically describe pressure rather than pain.

The treatment itself

Usually fifteen to twenty minutes. We work in small amounts, stopping often to have you sit up and look in the mirror. This is deliberate. Lips look different lying down, and you should be part of the decision as we go.

Most first-time patients start with half a syringe to one syringe. We would almost always rather do less and add later than overfill and dissolve.

Immediately after

You will be swollen. Expect your lips to look larger than the final result, sometimes noticeably, and possibly a little uneven for a few days. That is normal and not the outcome.

Bruising is possible, particularly at the corners. Ice gently, sleep with your head slightly elevated, skip the gym for 24 hours, and avoid straws and very hot drinks for a day.

Days two to fourteen

Swelling peaks around day two, then drops sharply. By day seven you are seeing close to the real result, and by week two it has fully settled.

We will see you at two weeks if you want to adjust. Many patients add a small amount then, once everything has settled, and that is a completely normal way to build a result you love.