It’s amazing the types of enhancements you can do from a simple visit to the doctor’s these days with no downtime and not much pain. At Halley Medical Aesthetics, I put my faith in Dr. Terence Tan to bring out the best of my facial features as he has such a keen eye and is always able to spot the little differences that will make me look much better.
The first time I met Dr. Tan, he immediately noticed that my nose seems to be too broad for my tiny face. Upon closer inspection, he diagnosed that some of the fillers I used to have seemed to have deviated towards the sides of my nose causing me to have a much wider nose than usual. The last time I had fillers for my nose was almost 2 years ago and with my flatter nose, I had simply assumed that whatever fillers I had was gone or reabsorbed into the body and dispelled. Unfortunately, while most of the fillers has indeed dissipated, the remaining fillers deviated and were making the side of my nose broader. Luckily, Dr. Tan told me it was an easy fix and simply dissolving those remaining fillers with Hyalase would improve the shape and look of my nose tremendously.
Fillers to amp up the nose bridge is not an uncommon aesthetic procedure these days but it was my first time hearing about or doing a reversal. One of the perks about choosing to do face shaping with botox and fillers instead of plastic surgery is that it is reversible. If you don’t like it, you can change it back.
The nurse cleansed my face and Dr. Tan put some numbing cream on my face before we start.
Having a doctor with a good eye for beauty is important. Dr. Tan knows when and where to add what for the best results. Most importantly, he isn’t afraid to subtract when needed as well. According to him, dissolving the fillers from the sides of my nose will slim the nose and make me look like I have a higher nose bridge without even needing to put fillers.
While doing my consultation with Dr. Tan, we also discussed about using some Botox, which is one of the FDA approved methods, to deal with my forehead lines and to give me an immediate brow lift while I slowly wait for the effects of Ultherapy to set in (which could take a few months to see the full effects). Since botox only lasts for a few months, it would wear off just about the right time I can start seeing the positive effects of Ultherapy. If you want to learn more about Ultherapy, you can read my previous article about my experiences with Ultherapy at Halley Medical Aesthetics.
Dr. Tan was very patient in explaining the many uses of Botox and why he recommends it for the stubborn dynamic forehead lines that I have. Dynamic forehead lines are lines you see when you move your forehead muscles. As I am usually rather expressive (or maybe it’s because I’m short and have to look upwards all the time) , I’ve created deep forehead lines over time. By injecting Botox (a neurotoxin that relaxes the muscles underneath the skin that caused those wrinkles) to my forehead in strategic areas, it will weaken the forehead muscles and prevent them from forming those dynamic forehead lines. Although the effect of Botox is temporary and the muscles regain their functions several months later, it would also mean that I’ve effectively prevented further deepening of those creases for a few months which will helps to relax the skin in that area. I think of it like a super effective semi-permanent anti-aging cream to rival off-the-counter luxury brands which could sometimes cost even more but may not be as effective.
Dr. Tan is great at making complicated and seemingly daunting experiences much less tense with his easy humour and fun tricks. Before he began his Botox injections on my skin, he opened up a brand new bottle of Botox and asked me if I could see it.
I couldn’t see ANYTHING! I was really puzzled and almost believed Dr. Tan when he said he could have opened a dud. Turns out, Dr. Tan was just pulling my leg! In a new bottle of Botox, there is so little botox (just a discoloration at the bottom of the bottle), you can hardly even see it. But that is all the Botox you need to weaken your facial muscles. After mixing some liquid to dilute the concentrate Botox, it’s ready for use.
I had never analysed Botox up close before so it was really interesting for me.
Carefully and strategically, Dr. Tan injected little doses of Botox, just under my forehead skin targeting those wrinkle causing muscles! With the numbing cream and ice pack, the whole process was extremely bearable even for someone like me who has a low threshold for pain.
With the remaining Botox, Dr. Tan proceeded to give me a brow lift. It may seem counter-intuitive that paralyzing facial muscles can lift your brow, but this is exactly how Botox works. Our faces have muscles that pull in opposing directions, so what Dr. Tan did was use the Botox to paralyze the muscles that pull downward while leaving the ones that lift the brow untouched. You will need a good and well trusted doctor as it is a delicate procedure. Unlike injecting Botox to the forehead, this requires a lighter touch and the Botox needs to be injected very superficially.
There is no downtime and other than a few little pin prick marks, I left Halley Medical Aesthetics with no signs that anything was done. I left my face bare for the rest of that day as I am comfortable with it but if the little red marks bother you, you can simply cover it up with a little foundation. The Hyalase and Botox both took a couple of days to reach it’s full effect.
Here’s a bare face selfie I took 3 days after. My nose looks slimmer and higher without any fillers just like how Dr. Tan said it would be. The nose tip would probably be nicer with some fillers but I was already so much happier with my face shaping journey at Halley Medical Aesthetics. I couldn’t create any forehead creases even if I tried and my broad brows look more straight rather than droopy at the ends which makes me look more alert.
Thank you Dr. Tan for being so good at what you do! If you want to look for Dr. Tan for a consultation, here’s the address.
Halley Medical Aesthetics
248 River Valley Road #01-01
Singapore 238302
Tel: 6737 8233
http://halley.com.sg
Thanks for reading!
