Non Surgical Neck Tightening and Rejuvenation
How many times have you looked at a picture of a celebrity and thought their face looks good, but their neck doesn’t quite match??? Ignoring the neck is one of the commonest mistakes people make when having cosmetic treatments and an instant give away that you’ve been having some work done on your face! But with a busy life not many people are wanting the down time associated with surgery which is where non surgical neck tightening offers a solution.
Our necks always give away our age, even more so when the face is looking pretty good! When you think about it, necks are exposed to as much sun and environmental pollution as our faces. That spritz of alcohol-based perfume on your neck might smell divine, but it’s not doing wonders for your skin quality! And do you honestly put SPF on your neck every single day of the year? (Hat’s off to you if you do!) And yet, our neck typically gets just as much sun as our face. And with sun exposure comes sun damage…pigmentation, sun spots, redness, broken veins, wrinkles and rough skin texture. The list goes on and on!
With more and more time spent on our mobile phones and devices these days, horizontal neck lines are also becoming common. So much so, they now have their name: tech neck! These lines get deeper and deeper as we age and no amount of face and neck yoga exercises will get rid of them.
Sagging and ageing of the neck is a common issue that plagues both men and women, yet 95% of the time, the focus is solely on the face. However, the ageing process leads to overactive neck muscles and the steady loss of collagen and elastin creating neck bands, drooping skin and the dreaded “turkey neck.” The sagging process leads to the loss of the youthful neck angle, the emergence of jowls and a loss of jawline definition. Given the aim of cosmetic treatments should really be a global improvement, it’s important that we don’t neglect the neck!
So should I just give up now?
Thankfully, there is a solution to get your neck back on track and up to speed with your face. The trick is to think of the face and neck as one continuous treatment zone (arguably the décolletage should also be included, but that chat is for another day!) and every treatment that we do on the face, should be considered for the neck as well.
The 3 main areas to address with neck laxity are:
- Collagen Stimulators– to stimulate the collagen loss with aging
- Ultrasound Skin Tightening– to tighten the underlaying skin tissue
- Laser Skin tightening– which both stimulates collagen but also improves texture and skin quality
Although these are the 3 broad treatments for skin tightening of the neck, there are several more treatments that are used to support the main these treatments.
- Collagen stimulator injections such as Sculptra to create collagen, firm and regenerate the underlying skin structure;
- Ultherapy to tighten and lift the underlying loose tissue;
- Broad Band Light and Halo Laser Resurfacing to improve pigment, redness and skin texture;
- Fat dissolving injections to reduce double chins;
- Anti wrinkle injections to reduce neck bands;
- Skincare to restore the skin’s firmness, improve tone and texture and protect from future sun damage.
Where do I start?… Collagen Stimulators
Collagen stimulator injections are a great starting point. They are best thought of as fertiliser for the skin and kickstart the rejuvenation process by stimulating your skin to produce more collagen to give the skin strength, more elastin to give the skin stretch and more blood vessels to make skin healthier. Collagen stimulator injections, also referred to as biostimulators, contain tiny particles that interact with fibroblasts (the cells in your body that produce collagen, elastin and a whole bunch of skin goodies) and over a period of a few months, produces more collagen. This gradually creates strength to the skin which improves sagging. It also firms the skin to reduce looseness, which in turn reduces that crinkly skin appearance. After a collagen stimulator injection treatment the neck also feels smoother, tighter and more rejuvenated. Sometimes this is sufficient and gets your neck back on track with your face; or it creates the perfect starting point for the next treatment. Pre-treating the neck skin with collagen stimulator injections prior to Ultherapy or laser treatment is ideal to amplify the results and achieve outstanding improvements.
The collagen stimulator injectables are a pretty straightforward too. As a liquid injectable, additional local anaesthetic can be added to make the process as pain free as possible. Typically, cannulas are used during collagen stimulator treatment to deliver the product under the neck skin surface. Cannulas have the advantage of being safer, less likely to create swelling and less likely to leave behind bruises…meaning you can get back to normal life as quick as possible with little to no downtime. It’s important to massage the neck skin for a few days to ensure a smooth and even result and then the rest is up to your body to start producing fresh new collagen. Depending on the starting condition of the neck skin, typically 1-2 sessions may be required along with a maintenance treatment every 1-2 years.
Knowing who is the right injector for collagen stimulator injections
The most natural results come from a thorough assessment of the underlying problem and a structured and comprehensive treatment plan. But it also all has to blend and connect together properly with the surrounding tissue. A neck that doesn’t match the face isn’t going to show off the best version of yourself. Making sure cosmetic zones blend seamlessly in to each other is the key to looking natural and fresh. No point repapering the lounge walls and buying a new couch and leaving the old carpet! An experienced and skilled injector will understand this and be able to guide and treat you to the point of reaching your goals. As straight forward as collagen stimulating treatments are does not make them simple for the injector. It’s imperative to have injectors that are highly experienced and able to deliver outstanding results.
More information about Collagen Stimulator Injections can be found here
Ultherapy Ultrasound Skin Tightening
Ultherapy is a non-invasive procedure that uses ultrasound energy to stimulate collagen production in the skin. During the procedure, a device is placed on the skin and delivers focused ultrasound energy to the deeper layers of the skin, triggering a natural healing response that stimulates collagen production. Over time, this increased collagen production can help to lift and – tighten the skin, reducing the appearance of wrinkles and sagging. Ultherapy is available as a treatment for both women and men with mild to moderate skin laxity of the neck . Ultherapy lifts tissue in this hard to treat area by stimulating the growth of new collagen deep within the skin without surgery or downtime. Tighter, lifted skin is revealed over the course of 2-3 months and will continue to improve up to 6 months and full results are usually seen by then.
More information about Ultherapy Treatments can be found here
Laser Skin Tightening
Laser Skin Tightening. Laser skin tightening is another non-invasive procedure that uses laser energy to heat the deeper layers of the skin, stimulating collagen production and tightening the skin. This procedure is typically performed using a handheld device that delivers laser energy to the skin. As the skin is heated, collagen fibers contract and tighten, resulting in a firmer, more lifted appearance. Our more popular laser is the Halo laser.
This is a hybrid laser and this technology has revolutionised laser resurfacing treatments by drastically changing the treatment process and more specifically, the experience post treatment or ‘downtime’ involved. The downtime required with the Halo treatment is significantly reduced when compared to any other platform within the same category of laser whilst still achieving the results generated by more aggressive ablative lasers. Achieve a brighter and more refreshed look with a Halo Laser treatment and benefit from effects such as skin tightening, the evening out of skin tone and texture, a reduction of pigmentation and sun damage and brighter glowing skin. Due to the Halo treatment’s improved safety, treating areas other than the face with resurfacing treatments has become much easier and treating the neck will result in a rejuvenated neck with tighter skin. Then there is Broadband light (BBL).BBL is an accurate and effective treatment.It affects skin cells, making them act younger and is proven to be an age-defying treatment that can “flip the genetic switch” with regular treatments. This maintenance treatment can delay the signs and causes of ageing, such as skin laxity, wrinkles and result in more healthy-looking skin with a clearer and smoother complexion. BBL treatment has minimal to no downtime, so you can receive quick and comfortable treatments to fit in your busy schedule. To correct, maintain and see continuous anti-ageing improvement in your skin, we recommend BBL’s 4 sessions a year, depending on age and skin condition then a couple of maintenance sessions 6 months after.
More information about Broadband Light can be found here
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