Wondering if a new trending facial is actually worth your cash, or if fillers are for you? Our ‘I Tried’ franchise trials and tests all the latest treatments to provide honest, frills-free recommendations.
Over the years, I’ve heard my mum mention all sorts of beauty treatments, most of which sound scary (like fractional CO2) or confusing, such as ‘mesotherapy’. The word itself doesn’t reveal much, yet, when my dermatologist recently recommended it for my under-eyes, I went into investigative journalist mode.
Initially, I had considered tear-trough fillers to combat dark circles, but quickly decided it wasn’t suitable for me. I am not in a position to worry about the upkeep of fillers (both financially and timewise) so mesotherapy, a non-invasive, injectable treatment, with no downtime, sounded like the perfect alternative.
At our consultation, my doctor mentioned that the darkness under my eyes was mostly down to the terrible trio of stress, not getting enough sleep and ageing (which comes with skin thinning and reduced collagen production). Although I love using eye creams, I knew I needed something more drastic to make a difference to my eyes.
To note, mesotherapy can be used across the face depending on your needs, which should be thoroughly discussed with your doctor before the session.
What is mesotherapy?
It’s a non-invasive, non-surgical technique that features injections of a potent mix of peptides, vitamins – like vitamin C – and hyaluronic acid. There isn’t a standard ‘cocktail’ for everyone, your doctor will decide what ingredients they will use.
It doesn’t work like fillers, so it doesn’t plump the skin per se. Instead, it helps the skin increase its own collagen and hyaluronic acid production, due to the small injections that cause a ‘micro-injury’. Overall, the treatment offers rejuvenation and nourishment thanks to the ingredients included.
I only did mesotherapy for my under-eyes to combat tiredness and dark circles, and to hydrate and plump the skin, but it can also be used across the face and on the body for other concerns.
How many mesotherapy sessions should you have?
Your doctor will advise how many sessions you need – I had three spread out across three months.
The great thing about mesotherapy is that you will see a difference after the first session and the skin will look even smoother and plumper as time goes by.
Under-eye mesotherapy: My experience
The most essential part of the process is finding a doctor you can trust. Once I arrived at my chosen clinic, they applied a thick layer of numbing cream across my face (I was also getting microneedling done at the same session), and I was advised that there might be bruising after the mesotherapy.
The skin of the under-eye area is thin and sensitive and as the needle goes through, it could go through a vein and create bruising. There isn’t much to do to avoid it (though I hear eating pineapple a few days before the session might help…) but a heavy-duty concealer (like Tarte’s Shape Tape Concealer, £27, Sephora) and a daily application of Arnica Cream, £8, Boots, does the trick.
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After my first treatment, I did indeed bruise quite badly. The following sessions were better, and the small marks the needle left behind looked a bit like freckles. With mesotherapy, there is no downtime in general, which is fantastic. However, if you have a big event coming up, don’t leave the treatment until the last minute, in case of bruising.
Even though I do well with pain and needles, I was slightly freaked out about having a needle so close to my eyes. The doctor made a few injections under the eye area, which look like little dots up-close, filling up the whole region.
In some parts, I could feel a small sharp pinch, but generally it wasn’t painful. The treatment finished a few minutes later and the doctor applied a hydrogel mask over my eyes to calm the area down, finishing off with and a layer of sunscreen.
The week post-treatment I was focused on fuss-free, calming and reparative products to help the skin heal (especially on my face where I also had microneedling done). Of course, sunscreen with a factor 50 is essential post-treatment (as it is always!), but I am quite religious with my application anyway, so that was easy.
We repeated the same process for the second and third treatment, spaced one month apart each time.
Under-eye Mesotherapy: The verdict
Once the bruising went down, I could clearly see my under-eyes were looking plumper and smoother.
My work schedule hadn’t changed, and it wasn’t like I was getting more shuteye, so it was definitely down to the mesotherapy.
Surprisingly, there haven’t been many papers that assess the efficacy of mesotherapy in skin rejuvenation and in fact, one study concluded there wasn’t a big improvement for the candidates involved. However, I’m very happy with the results, can see a big difference and will certainly repeat this process in a few months to keep the effects going.
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ABG Lab have also launched an innovative quad of Mesotherapy treatments in the UK including Mesosculpt to sculpt and refine a targeted area of your body. Mesosculpt works by injecting peptides to break down the fat cells whilst increasing the metabolism in the remaining cells. Our Creative Director Annie visited The Harley Street Skin Clinic to test out the treatment with amazing results shown below.
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