We all need somewhere we feel safe

Emma Thompson

In this post I’ll be discussing safety in facial aesthetics. From finding a practitioner to consultation to treatment. Hopefully this will provide some guidance to an often confusing and worrying industry.

Practitioner

Not all aesthetics practitioners are the same. Shock. It is so important to find the best person for your treatment. Make sure you so your research! Here are some top tips for finding your soul mate practitioner.

• Social Media: This is the natural first step! Take a look through previous work that a practitioner has performed and see if the style and results are what you are looking for. Some practitioners perform more subtle and muted results and others provide the more obvious results. There is no right or wrong option for this, it is entirely what results you are looking for as a patient.
• Who are they? I think it’s so important to know who the person is ‘behind the treatment’. I always chat to my patients via digital consultation prior to booking any treatment in as it gives a chance to make sure that you can talk about treatment, but also to meet me and make you feel more comfortable if you decide to go ahead with treatment.
• What qualifications do they have? Aesthetic medicine is so much more than a ‘beauty treatment’. Yes, we do make people more beautiful, but the treatment of injecting product into tissues is medicine. The understanding of anatomy as a dentist is essential and transferable to facial aesthetics.

Consultation

The consultation is the keystone of any treatment plan. At Ametrine we offer digital and also face to face consultations prior to treatment. During the consultation we will discuss treatment options, outcome of treatment, method of treatment, anaesthesia options and potential complications. It is essential to discuss this prior to treatment as this forms consent.

• Digital Consultation: We offer these on every Monday evening and every other Friday Morning. These consultations focus on your concerns and treatment desires. We gather as much information as possible via Zoom. (Zoom/ teams/ google meet face IS REAL). We take a £10 deposit for the consultation of which we donate £5 of this to Newcastle Cat and Dog Shelter.

• Face to Face Consultation: When a digital consultation isn’t appropriate in some cases we recommend a face to face consultation. Treatment such as tear troughs depends on careful assessment of skin quality and anatomy that often can only be assessed face to face. In addition for treatment plans that are complex and progressive, we may suggest a face to face consultation to discuss a plan in detail and demonstrate what we can achieve.

We will also follow up any consultation with an email outlining the cost of treatment, options for treatments, what to do before treatment and what to do after treatment.

Medical History: A medical history should be taken and checked prior to any appointment or treatment. A medical history is important to ensure we can identify any contraindications to treatment or anything that may increase risks of complications of treatment. A few examples can be:

• Pregnancy/ breastfeeding: providing any injectable treatment to expectant mothers or new mums holds too much risk.
• Immune System conditions: When injecting the skin this increases the risk of infection, and also the risk of an immune response. If your immune system is weakened, this may affect how you respond to treatment.
• Blood thinning treatment: During injectable treatment one risk is bleeding and bruising, if you take medication or have a condition that increases bleeding, some treatments may be inappropriate for you.
• Allergies: Even if it’s to dogs we need to know! If you become poorly during an appointment any health care professional is trained how to manage an allergic reaction.

Before Treatment

Safety in treatment starts before you walk into the studio. This is to reduce complications and ensure that your treatment goes as smoothly as possible.

• No Alcohol 24 hours Before: Alcohol thins the blood, therefore with any injectable treatment this increases the risk of bleeding and bruising. Also we will not treat you if you have had any alcohol in the 6 hours prior to treatment as this may affect your ability to give valid consent.
• No NSAIDS 24 Hours Before: Medication such as Ibuprofen and Asprin also thins the blood so avoiding taking these prior to treatment as this will increase bleeding and bruising risk.
• Arnica: Arnica tablets can help to reduce the risk of bruising after treatment.
• COVID Vaccine: There is research that shows that having injectable treatment too close to the covid vaccine can cause post-treatment inflammation and swelling.
• Makeup: Avoid wearing make up before your appointment. This is for a number of reasons: 1/ The practitioner can assess your face appropriately, diagnose and treatment plan accordingly. 2/ Ensure that the treatment area is clean of bacteria. 3/ Spot any complications; if you’re wearing some really good foundation and bronzer, it is so much more difficult to spot any problems such as paleness or bruising or irritations.
• Eat something: Some patients become quite worried and stressed before their appointment (by the way if this is you TELL US!) and forget to eat. This naturally lowers the blood glucose and increases the risk of feeling poorly during treatment. Go and treat yourself to a lush big bagel from King Baby Bagels before you come to see us.
• Give yourself time: Make sure that you give yourself bags of time to get to your appointment. You don’t want to be rushing round, increasing your blood pressure which in turn can lead to complications!
• Drink Water: Being hydrated is the key to good skin anyway!
• Take normal medicine: As we will have already checked during a consultation that you are appropriate for treatment, make sure you take all your normal meds before you come to see us!

Treatment

When it comes to treatment, there are a number of safety factors to discuss, and this depends on what treatment you’re having. From toxin treatment to peels, there are different aspects to ensure are being managed correctly.

• Skin Preparation: At Ametrine we use Clinisept skin preparation. This is a non irritating skin cleanser that removes any dirt or bacteria from the skin. This is essential to ensure no bacteria is passed from the skin to the underlying tissues during treatment which could cause an infection
• Skin Marking: In 90% of cases skin marking with a white pencil is essential to mark out the anatomy, safe zones for treatment, safe muscles for toxin treatment and symmetry. The white marks guide the practitioner in the safest possible method and technique.
• Occlusions: An occlusion is an occurrence where some dermal filler, which is a gel, is injected into a blood vessel, this can block the blood vessel or travel within the blood vessel which can cause complications. In the case of an occlusion, this can stop the blood supply getting to the place it needs to be and cause the skin to loose it’s oxygen supply and so begin to die.
• Cannula Use: A cannula is a blunt ended tube that treads through the skin of the face. A cannula is mainly used in dermal filler treatment, but also can be used in fat dissolving and other treatments. Cannula treatment decreases risk of an occlusion during dermal filler treatment. Because the cannula is blunt there is more chance of the blood vessels to be pushed to the side rather than punctured. This technique is used more and more often to reduce risk.
• Aspiration: In cases where cannula use isn’t appropriate or needed needle technique will be used, it is essential to try to ensure that product is not injected within a blood vessel. Aspiration relates to pulling back of the plunger of the syringe for 5-10 seconds to check that the tip of the needle is not within a vessel.
• Product Choice: The correct product needs to be used for the correct tissues, if too thick then the tissues look overfilled and hard, if too thin then the product will not make any difference to the tissues. Ensure that your practitioner is using a reputable company and ASK! It is SO important to know what product is being injected into your body, ensuring it has good a scientific base behind it and that if anything were to happen you can get rid of it.
• Emergency Kit: When performing aesthetic medicine it is essential that your practitioner can manage complications appropriately. No practitioner should be injecting dermal filler without having hylase with them.
• Hylase: Or Hyaluronidase is an enzyme that breaks down hyaluronic acid, the main component of most dermal fillers. This can be injected in an emergency situation where there is an occlusion to ensure that the tissue keeps alive (tissue vitality)

Aftercare

Once treatment is completed your practitioner should discuss with you aftercare instructions dependant on what treatment you’ve had. They should also provide you with a way of contacting them should any complications occur. At Ametrine we send out via email aftercare instructions that have an emergency number to call. Patient’s know that they can call this number, leave a voicemail and follow up with a text to alert Bryony they need help.

• Infection: Don’t touch, or wear makeup for 6 hours after treatment to reduce the risk of bacteria getting into the puntures.
• Use Arnica: Using arnica balm can help reduce any swelling or bruising.
• No exercise: 24 hours, this can increase your blood pressure and increase your risk of bruising and swelling. Also in the instance of toxin treatment increasing the temperature of your body can decrease the effectiveness of the treatment.

We hope this blog post has been helpful. If you’d like any more information regarding any of the points raised please contact us for more info!

2020 has been a rollercoaster (to say the least). Prior to Lockdown 1.0 Ametrine Aesthetics was based across three fantastic venues,

• Humphrey and Wilson in Heaton
• Babydoll Beauty in North Shields
• Monroe Beauty in Consett.

It was great running clinics in all of these fantastic salons and studio spaces, but when the opportunity arose to set up our own space, I jumped at the opportunity!

Enter STUDIO IX 🎉

Having been tattooed at the phenomenal Blind Tiger Studio, the space that Studio IX is based is just along the corridor! In fact the studio space was once rented by our fantastic logo designer @weareincahoots.

May 2020 came and the challenge of putting together a studio during lockdown! 😂

I wanted to create a space that made you feel like you could sit, chill and have a coffee or a cocktail. The space needed to be functional as well as have clinical aspects too.

The challenge came when I set about sourcing furniture and fixings for the space. I am passionate about recycling and sustainability, so I aimed to use as much second hand and vintage furniture as I could.

Best Lockdown Buys

Mid Century Teak Cabinet.

I nabbed this baby from a man in Darlington on Facebook Marketplace.

£15

Wicker Vintage Peacock Chair.

I wanted a feature piece for the ‘waiting area’, and this smaller peacock chair fitted perfectly. I found this on Gumtree.

£15

Green Treatment Bed

I couldn’t believe my luck ben I found this guy! The shade of green was exactly what I was looking for the Studio.

£20

I was so pleased with the progress I made over LD1.0, the most challenging part of setting up the studio was climbing the 5 flights of stairs with the majority of the furniture and fixings. That’s my excuse for not working out during LD!

I am always so pleased to hear that patients and clients feel calm and reassured when they visit the clinic. It is integral to Ametrine for anybody to feel welcome our space.

COMING SOON: We are working on our disabled access policy. At present, Carliol studios has a disabled accessible toilet and there is also a lift, however this is code protected. This is hopefully going to be manageable by 2021.

If you have visited our Studio and have had a 10/10 would recommend to a friend experience, pop a little review on our Google page.

This week I have been thinking about ‘wedding season‘ as it would have been three months last year till my wedding.

There have been a number of our clients that PL (pre-lockdown) were building up to the biggest day of their lives- their weddings.

I got married last summer, and around May time was when it all became very real, and I can’t imagine how devastating it must feel to have everything postponed.

We had to place our wedding back one year, and at the time it felt like the worst thing ever, but actually once the decision is made (or made for you), taking a step back and realise what marriage is all about, and focus in on enjoying the experience and the day is integral.

What skin treatment would you recommend before my wedding?

• Micro-needling with PRP

This medical grade treatment penetrates the deeper layer of the skin with thousands of tiny micro channels to stimulate the body’s own repair process. The use of PRP (platelet rich plasma) increases the efficacy of this treatment.

Find Out More

Good for:

• Skin Irregularities
• Scarring – Especially Acne
• Pigmentation
• Fine lines and wrinkles

How soon before my wedding should I have micro-needling with PRP?

Microneedling and PRP therapy can take a little while to show results with sever cases of scarring or pigmentation. So we reccommend 12 weeks prior.

What facial aesthetic treatment would you recommend before my wedding?

• Tear trough augmentation

Getting married can be stressful! I found that my sleep was affected, as well as exercising more, I began to look tired!

Tear trough treatment made me look more awake, alert and bright. (Also the lights from the camera can be a little unforgiving later in the day) . I was so pleased with the results and they have lasted for 9 months!

Find Out More

Good For:

• Loss of volume around the eyes
• Can help with dark circles under the eyes.

How soon before my wedding should I have tear trough augmentation?

• We recommend at least 6 weeks prior to wedding.

What one other treatment would you recommend before my wedding?

• Treatment for Excessive Sweating

My wedding was on August the 10th, and i was really worried about getting super warm, wearing a heavy dress and lots of general running around and getting sweaty. Not so angelic….

I had toxin treatment in my underarms to combat this, and honestly, I was so so pleased with the results! Not a drop of sweat from my underarms! It was amazing, and lasted for about 6 months after treatment.

Find Out More

Good For:

• Sweating under armpits
• Sweating on palms of hands

How soon before my wedding should I have tear trough augmentation?

• We recommend at least 3 weeks prior to wedding.

*Prescription only treatment.

We hope that if you have had to have your wedding rescheduled, you’re remaining positive. To help along the way, sign up below for an exclusive ‘Lockdown Wedding’ Discount.

“A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life” – Coco Chanel

Why did I shave my head?

I have wanted to shave my head since Christmas. I was inspired by meeting one of my clients who was rocking a shaved head. My hair previously was very damaged by bleach and heat damage, I had cut it to a lob, and dyed it peach, but for me it was still really damaged. I yearned for a shaven head!

It was my thirtieth birthday at the end of March, and I finally made the decision to shave. I figured, if I couldnt shave my head when turning thirty and in #lockdown2020, when could I?

Reservations:

• Would I have a weird shape head?
• Would I look like a boy?
• What about my grey hairs?
• Would I get cold ears?
• How long would my hair take to grow back?

At the point where the shavers were approaching my scalp, all the reservations vanished, I no longer cared what people thought. I was shaving my head for me.

I loved it.

Immediate Findings:

• OH MY GOODNESS IT FEELS SO NICE!
• My head shape is fairly round.
• IT FEELS SO NICE
• My ears feel cold.

What have I found since?

It has been one month since I dared the shave. I have found the following since.

1/Aesthetics: Having more bone structure on show, It’s made me thankful for my facial aesthetics.

• Cheek and Tear Trough: These treatments give me more confidence in my appearance, I feel I look more alert and my cheek enhancement gives me lift and definition and provides soft tissue support for my tear troughs.
• Lip Enhancement: My lips were last treated in July last year (!). They have kept their shape and definition, and for me, lips are a part of my appearance that I like to maintain to give me confidence.
• My Nose: My non surgical rhinoplasty was the best treatment I have ever had. I have always hated my nose, I hated to hump in the middle, downward facing nose tip and the size! I could not believe the difference, and such a small amount of filler needed!
• Wrinkle Smoothing: I also had my own wrinkle smoothing treatments at the beginning of March. I have had toxin treatment to treat three areas on my forehead, frown lines, crow’s feet, bunny lines and under my nose to top the tip from pulling down when smiling.

2/Skin Care: My face feels more open and ‘on show’ so I have taken a step with upping my skincare regime. Here are my three favourite products.

• Squalene Cleanser The Ordinary: Beautiful cleanser removes all traces of make up, and squalene infiltrates the pores and emulsifies sebum which can lead to breakouts.

• AHA and BHA Peel The Ordinary: Once a week I lie in the bath and put this on. AHAs penetrate the top layers of the skin and exfoliate to reveal radiance, and BHA goes deeper into the skin to clear the pores.

• Mineral SPF The Ordinary: SPF, wait what? We’re living inside? SPF should be worn every 👏🏻 day👏🏻. The UV rays from the sun have UVA and UVB. UVA is pumped out all year long, and gets through windows! UV is one of the main leading causes of ageing, protect and prevent!

3/ I don’t care what people think: This is generally my motto anyway, but as a woman I think we are under a lot of pressure sometimes to be a certain way. Hair plays a huge role in this. Hair is often considered a symbol of sexuality and beauty. The act of shaving it all off, as a woman, is very exposing. However, I perhaps would feel more judged if #lockdown had ended. As a dentist

What will I do after lockdown?

Don’t get me wrong, I love entirely natural face, no make up and no cares. However, as a practicing dentist, I do feel a pressure to ‘be’ a certain way in a professional arena. When meeting patients for the first time, there is an element of judgement within the first few seconds, this is not a generalisation, this is just what I feel having been treating patients since 2008. So in light of this and all things beauty the following are what I will be doing, once #lockdown is over.

• 1ml Lip Enhancement – Top up the shape, volume and definition.
• Micro-needling– Improvement in skin texture and address areas of open pores.
• Lashes: My vice! I love not having to wear mascara, as I am normally very badly behaved with make-up removal. I visit Monroe Beauty for lashes and a therapy session too.