5 Things You Need to Know About Lip Injections!

Suzanne Trott: Hey, I'm Suzanne Trott, board-certified plastic surgeon here in Beverly Hills. I specialize in breast and body contouring and those minimally invasive things that we do to our faces.

One of the most common things that we do is lip enhancement with injections, lip filler. Those are the street names. These are the five things you've got to know if you're considering lip injections. Basically, how to avoid everybody's worst fear when they go in to get their lips injected, winding up with duck lips.

The truth is that most plastic surgeons can do a really good job with lip injections, and they look really natural. It's just that you don't know about the good ones because they're that good. And that's the goal, to have work done without looking like you've been worked on. Let's just say I have this friend who's also a plastic surgeon. Well, she decided to do her lip injections herself, but she hadn't done all her homework beforehand. She thought she knew everything. Actually, I didn't, honestly. It was just like, well, I did. I guess I thought I knew everything.

And guess what she wound up with. Duck lips. They were huge. An entire syringe of filler was in there. It was really bad. You couldn't even see her upper teeth. I felt sorry for her.

Fortunately, a bag of ice and a day later, her lips had gone down to normal. After seeing that, I'm confident that any duck lip situation can be reversed, but still better not to have them in the first place, right? So, as your girlfriend who just happens to be a plastic surgeon, I am here to give you the scoop on how to avoid that happening to you.

Number one. Know your lip anatomy. I'm not saying you have to get out a book and study it. Just know what they should look like. For example, youthful lips are full only in the center, not all over. Also, this may seem counterintuitive, but the bottom lip should always be bigger than the top lip. Make sure whoever's doing this, a doctor, a registered nurse, or nurse practitioner ... Make sure they're on the same page as you.

Number two. As we age, our upper lip lengthens and sags. Believe me, I know. It's a bummer. You cannot put too much filler in a long upper lip. It will lead to a crisis situation. Why? Because it will just drag the lip down even more. You won't be able to see your upper teeth. It's not a good look. You actually want your upper teeth to show. That's what makes a mouth look youthful. Too much filler in a long upper lip is by far the number one cause of the duck lip look.

Number three. Only hyaluronic acid should be put in the lips, ever. The big brand names are Juvederm and Restylane. There are others, but these are the main ones. They have numbing medication in them. This is only to help with the injection, and you're only going to be numb for about an hour. So don't worry; you're not going to be numb all day. Personally, I like Juvederm Ultra the best for the lips because it swells the least. Definitely never have Radiesse or silicone put in your lips, ever. Technically, silicone isn't even FDA approved in this country for this procedure. As far as fat injections go, you can do it, but it's not my favorite.

See, this is the thing is that anything that you inject in your lower face, especially in your lips around your mouth where there's a lot of movement, is going to go away faster. And in my experience, you put the fat in and it gets really swollen and bruised and then it goes away pretty quickly. I guess you could talk less, and then it would absorb slower, but, I mean, who's going to do that?

Number four. Be prepared for the swelling that's going to happen the next day, and know how to manage it. So I'm warning you now. Even if you have the littlest amount put in your lips, if this is the first time you've ever had it done, they are going to seem huge to you, especially the next day. It's going to be okay. I promise. Just know that the swelling will go down, but there are things that you can do to speed it up. You can take a break from the gym that day. Don't work out. Doctor's orders. This is a tough one. Don't eat salty food. No sushi. No chips and salsa. Drink water with lemon. Lemon is a natural diuretic. That night, try to sleep with your head elevated on a couple of pillows. And my personal recommendation. When you get up in the morning, do not look in the mirror. Just head straight for the freezer. Get the ice, and ice, ice, ice for 30 minutes before you look at yourself.

Number five. The injections can be removed. If it's been a week or so and your lips are still freaking you out and you hate them, you can always go back to your doctor, and he can get rid of the filler by injecting your lips with hyaluronidase, which will dissolve it. That is the beauty of hyaluronic acid, but chances are, you're going to like what you see, and you're going to want to go back for more.  And that, my friends, is a slippery slope. Just make sure your doctor keeps you in check so things don't get out of hand. 

Those are the five things you need to know before seeking out lip injections. I hope it was helpful, and I look forward to your comments and questions below. Please subscribe to my YouTube channel for future videos on all things plastic surgery. In the meantime, you can visit my blog at lipoqueen.com for more information. Bye.