PRP, aka the vampire facelift is now being used as a dark circles treatment – Holly Stevens, 36 went to Dr Kambiz Golchin to try it
I have always had dark circles under my eyes, which means I always look tired. I’ve had dark circles ever since I can remember. I don’t think it’s actually a tiredness thing, annoyingly that’s just how I am and how my eyes look.
Of course, lack of sleep does make my dark circles worse and all the sleepless nights since having a baby a year ago haven’t helped.
People would often say I looked tired, whenever I would see my mum and I wasn’t wearing make up she would always ask ‘are you feeling alright?’, ‘are you sick?’ I was starting to look really haunted, like a heroin addict.
I felt like I looked far more tired and a lot older than I actually was.
Every morning I would put on concealer to cover up my dark circles, but there’s only so much you can cover and when my dark circles were at their worst, I looked far more tired and a lot older than I actually was.
Besides concealer, I have also tried fillers in the teardrop under my eyes. I had this done twice before I had my baby, and since then the filler has worn off as it only lasts around nine months.
Time to try under-eye PRP
In December, I was about to get tear drop fillers for the third time – you have to wait until you’ve stopped breastfeeding which I had – but instead Dr Golchin suggested I try PRP (platelet rich plasma) for under the eyes.
In the past, celebrities such as Kim Kardashian-West, model beauty Bar Refaeli and British actor Rupert Everett are some who have all undergone the grim looking facial treatment called PRP, otherwise known as the ‘vampire facelift’.
Collagen plays a key role in the appearance and health of our skin and PRP treatment is one that helps to stimulate collagen and improve tone and elasticity in the skin, the theory being the platelets in blood also contain proteins that help wounds to heal.
PRP stands for platelet rich plasma and is a process in which your blood is extracted from a part of your body such as the ar, then spun around in a PRP machine. The platelet-rich plasma is then removed from it and re-injected into the skin or placed on top of the skin.
By injecting the platelet rich plasma under the eyes, it gives the skin under the eye the vital nutrition it needs. Once injected into your skin, the platelets help promote your own collagen to grow and regenerate tissue, causing increased smoothness and tightening of the skin.
Dr Golchin explained that PRP is a great option as it lasts longer, almost double the amount of time that filler lasts, and is completely natural, due to the treatment using all your own cells and blood platelets.
I was particularly scared of the needle, especially as it would be going in under my eyes.
The procedure involves two to three applications but you’ll see results as good, if not better than you would from fillers.
I am up for trying anything, but I was nervous as I didn’t know of anyone who had had this treatment before. It’s a new treatment and Mr Golchin is the only one doing PRP under the eyes.
I was anxious about the blood extraction, even though I have given blood before and have had many vaccinations, and I was particularly scared of the needle, especially as it would be going in under my eyes.
During the procedure, Dr Golchin took about a vile full of blood out of my arm. This blood was then spun around in the PRP machine, which causes the platelets to sit at the top. These platelets are then extracted using a syringe and injected into your under eye area.
Dr Golchin then gently patted my under eye area so that the blood spread evenly under the eye. The whole procedure from start to finish was probably less than an hour.
It was slightly uncomfortable, but it wasn’t painful.
Although it looks painful, the procedure is actually pain-free, thanks to the numbing cream they had applied an hour before and the blood extraction.
It was slightly uncomfortable, but it wasn’t painful. You know when you have an anesthetic done to have your tooth taken out, and you can feel the tooth coming out but it doesn’t hurt?
I can sort of compare it to that. It felt like someone was doing something underneath my eye, but it didn’t feel like what the treatment looks like if that makes sense.
The procedure and the results were exactly what I was expecting – in fact the results were even better than I thought they would be.
Goodbye tired eyes
You see results instantly, but ever so slightly, and then it gets better and better as time goes on, and you see the full results two months after the treatment.
Just like any procedure, a nose job for example, you’ll see instant results but it still gets better and better until you see the full results six months later.
I looked far more rested which is exactly what I wanted from the treatment
With this under eye PRP treatment you don’t have to worry about avoiding sunlight, wearing big glasses to cover your face or taking any time off work due to a swollen or bruised face, you can go about your daily life without hiding away.
I met a friend for breakfast the very next day after the treatment, and my under eye area was slightly puffy, but so slightly, nobody even noticed, not even my boyfriend.
About 20 hours later, the puffiness had completely gone down, it was certainly gone by midday the next day so to be precise, the puffiness had disappeared after just 18 hours.
I didn’t get any specific compliments after the treatment because I still looked exactly like me just a less tired version. Technically I just looked how I did normally, only this time I wasn’t covering up my dark circles with concealer.
Even though others didn’t notice, I felt like I looked and felt so much fresher. I looked far more rested which is exactly what I wanted from the treatment – especially after having my baby and all those sleepless nights.
For my birthday recently, I was away in Portugal with my friends, for the first time in a while I didn’t feel or think I looked 36, I felt I looked much younger and fresher. And I wasn’t constantly having to think about applying concealer to my under eye area.
I now feel so much better and more confident in my own skin. Especially on a summer holidays when I’m not wearing any make up.
Longer lasting, natural, and brilliant results – I will definitely be getting this treatment again.
For more information on under eye PRP, contact Mr Kambiz Golchin: 07555002002, hello@kambizgolchin.com or visit his website kambizgolchin.com
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