Nasolabial Folds--What's Worked and How Long Did It Take?
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » Skincare Tools & Do-It-Yourself Skincare

free skin care · Tue Mar 09, 2010 4:11 pm

Hermosa, I think we're married to the same guy!

free skin care · Wed Mar 10, 2010 5:53 am

Well I'm not married to him! My husband hates me getting anything done - I have to be so sneaky about it but he always notices if I walk in the door and my face is puffy or swollen - plus I usually bruise so that's a dead give away.

As for finding a competent injector - it's like searching for the Holy Grail! I don't think any of them know what they're doing - they get five minutes training and then are let loose on us. (I'm not talking about doctors here - just those wretched nurses). I guess the best way to go is to ask how many times they've performed the procedure and ask to see some before and afters that they themselves have done.

free skin care · Wed Mar 10, 2010 6:58 am

Makes me glad I am divorced ladies Wink

My ex would have freaked if I would have done the things I've done to my face still married to him...

Even though we're divorced, he still thinks I'm crazy about my skin and will make comments...only difference now is what he says doesn't mean squat and it's in one ear and directly out the other!! Bad Grin

Tue May 18, 2010 7:33 pm

Hello everyone. This is the first time for me on this board and I have been trying to read through everything as I found it doing a google search on the folds by the nose and also on facial fat and it lead me right to here...Everyone seems to know so much about the best things for the skin so I am going to post a picture and hopefully you can help me out. I have no problems getting PS if it will be the best thing. Honestly I think i was just cursed with a fat face, and horrible bone structure, so I look like a 5 year old with a weight problem, and im actually within an okay weight range, and even when I was 10 pounds lighter it didnt matter. I still had the fat cheeks, and also the folds...its almost like my upper cheek fat blends with my lower area fat and so i have sorta a mid cheek pocket right where the fold is. Its wierd, and I dont see alot of faces like mine. I dont get comments like, oh your beautiful, I get comments like oh your baby face...so its kinda annoying at this point as i am 27 years old.
its also worse on the right side, as this side is bigger and the fold is bigger while the left has a dimple which actually seems to help everything out and creates more structure. this site is not letting me post a picture though as I have just tried.

free skin care · Tue May 18, 2010 8:04 pm

Welcome! You cannot post a link to anything when you are new; you need to have some minimum number of posts. Given your description and your age, facial exercises may help you, so you might want to start reading up on those.

free skin care · Tue May 18, 2010 8:58 pm

whatisperfect wrote:

Hello everyone. This is the first time for me on this board and I have been trying to read through everything as I found it doing a google search on the folds by the nose and also on facial fat and it lead me right to here...Everyone seems to know so much about the best things for the skin so I am going to post a picture and hopefully you can help me out. I have no problems getting PS if it will be the best thing. Honestly I think i was just cursed with a fat face, and horrible bone structure, so I look like a 5 year old with a weight problem, and im actually within an okay weight range, and even when I was 10 pounds lighter it didnt matter. I still had the fat cheeks, and also the folds...its almost like my upper cheek fat blends with my lower area fat and so i have sorta a mid cheek pocket right where the fold is. Its wierd, and I don't see alot of faces like mine. I don't get comments like, oh your beautiful, I get comments like oh your baby face...so its kinda annoying at this point as i am 27 years old.
its also worse on the right side, as this side is bigger and the fold is bigger while the left has a dimple which actually seems to help everything out and creates more structure. this site is not letting me post a picture though as I have just tried.

Actually you will be thrilled at 50 for having the nice fat padded face....now I realize that doesn't help you at 27. I suggest that you try facial exercises to sculpt your face, I think you might get some definition that would give you more shape.

Wed May 19, 2010 12:32 pm

I am actually looking into a mid cheek or lateral cheek lift. I dont really know much about either but I am going to start researching it. From what I have read on these folds, it is many times found in younger people just because of the excess fat they have on the face esp, the fat pads, which can be lifted up. I just dont feel confident doing facial exercises when I am not sure if i am doing them right and if its going to improve as much as I want. I am for the quick fixes esp bc I know that I do have a very full face and it would be hard for some exercises to really do much. I have never seen anyone with such a full face as I have, esp. someone who is not even close to being overweight. It is almost as if I carry all of my excess fat in my cheeks.

free skin care · Sat May 22, 2010 2:19 pm

WIP, you should try the Tanaka massage. It's been created for Asian faces which tend to be more padded than western so will probably suit you very well. And it's easy.
There's a thread dedicated to it.

Sun May 23, 2010 6:03 am

I usually only read this thread, but since I have experienced some improvement in the last couple of weeks in this area, so maybe this will help someone...
I've just turned 27 and I have developed pretty noticeable NL folds a year ago. I believe these were caused by the sudden weight loss I had at that time (I've dropped 5-6 kg in less than a month). I've tried everything since then, from expensive Shiseido and La Mer cosmetics, vitamin supplements, massages and face exercises. I've even considered some fillers, but their expiration period has discouraged me. Finally, 3 things have helped me eventually: exercises, single needle dermarolling (although it's not rolling any more Smile

)and protein intake.
I've been doing Ageless cheek and neck exercises for a month and I'm amazed with results! I've tried FE before, but the program was too time consuming, so I have focused only on the area of interest, which did not result with any improvements (that infamous spot training:)). However, FE eye exercises I like better, so in the future I plan to alternate these two programs. Also, I finish my exercises with Tanaka massage which also helps me relax after a "workout" Smile

.

Although my cheeks have lifted, I was still left with one ugly smile line on my left side (my right side didn't sag as much as the left, so there was no line present). Last Friday I've pricked this line with the 2.5 mm single needle I ordered from owndoc. After just one treatment, I can really see smoothing of the line! I didn't even prick that much since it hurt a lot, and I was too tired to hassle with emla cream. I couldn't believe that this much can be accomplished with just one treatment!

Finally, Sean from FE kindly suggested me to try to incease my protein portions, since these seemed to be rather low based on my daily diet, so I started eating more eggs (I couldn't find any suitable protein supplement in this student town that I'm living). I don't know if this had any effect, but I've introduced this dietary change together with other things at the same time...

I hope this might help some of you who are below thirty and have this problem. I used to be so devastated reading in the literature that this problem appear only after age of 35, and I have started developing them almost 10 years in advance.
I must admit that now I'm kinda grateful for this NL problem Smile

. Since then I have introduced so many positive changes in my daily routine (suncream for start Smile

) and learned so much about skin and how to prevent some aging problems in time Smile

.

free skin care · Mon May 24, 2010 1:38 pm

ABB wrote:

Last Friday I've pricked this line with the 2.5 mm single needle I ordered from owndoc. After just one treatment, I can really see smoothing of the line! I didn't even prick that much since it hurt a lot, and I was too tired to hassle with emla cream. I couldn't believe that this much can be accomplished with just one treatment!

Thanks ABB for such an informative and positive post. It's always uplifting to read posts like yours where you've seen improvements.

Can I just mention one thing; needling (and deep dermarolling), if done correctly will always produce inflammation and swelling. This is part of the procedure to produce collagen to 'repair' the aged or scarred skin. The collagen takes 6 weeks to produce; although this could possibly be less in someone younger such as yourself.
Having said that, if one week later the parenthesis line is still no longer there then you've had an amazing result which I would fully believe as I've had good results with rolling/needling myself, which I've been doing since Oct 09.

Wed May 26, 2010 10:41 am

This is Miranda wrote:

Can I just mention one thing; needling (and deep dermarolling), if done correctly will always produce inflammation and swelling. This is part of the procedure to produce collagen to 'repair' the aged or scarred skin. The collagen takes 6 weeks to produce; although this could possibly be less in someone younger such as yourself.
Having said that, if one week later the parenthesis line is still no longer there then you've had an amazing result which I would fully believe as I've had good results with rolling/needling myself, which I've been doing since Oct 09.

Yes, I am aware of the swelling, and I didn't say that the line is gone completely (sorry if I was unclear) but it is smoother than before.

There are always some good days and some bad ones (when my left fold is more visible than usual). But my right one is almost gone completely! It also depends how do I sleep at night. I still haven't learned to sleep on my back (I've tried most of the tricks that I've found on web, but nothing helped Sad

)). Also, I stopped looking at myself in the mirror each time I go to the bathroom Very Happy

. I know it sounds silly, but if I wouldn't see any progress, this would discourage me. Instead, I've decided to "examine" progress at the end of each month and meanwhile just stick to the routine.

free skin care · Wed May 26, 2010 2:08 pm

Sometimes you just need to find a mirror that is always flattering and only look in that one! I have a confidence-draining habit of looking at my reflection in car/shop windows which is always horrific. I'm making a conscious effort to stop. My bathroom mirror on the other hand is, for some reason, flattering.

Also re. sleeping on back, I've always done that but it never helped me. I clamp my mouth at night which has developed my ( ) lines round my mouth.

But I'm really sorry to hear that you're already experiencing this at your age.... really it shouldn't start to go wrong until your late 30s / early 40's. But as you say, the positive thing is that you're embarking on skincare research now rather than leaving it til said age-group. You'll probably stop everything in it's tracks and look wonderful when you're older. Smile

free skin care · Wed Jun 16, 2010 6:30 am

Anyone tried Facial Flex?? The plastic and rubber band thing that goes in your mouth?
I've just invested in one and after a grand total of two day's use..... I like it. Smile

free skin care · Wed Jun 16, 2010 5:09 pm

I've always been on the fence about that gadget but will love to hear how it works out for you Miranda. thanks!

free skin care · Wed Jun 16, 2010 6:16 pm

Sister sweets, would it not be the same just to add pressure with our fingers (round our outer lip corners???)
Just a thought, may be wrong.

free skin care · Thu Jun 17, 2010 4:07 am

ATester, I've been doing the finger thing you suggest regularly for 6 years and I have to say, the Facial Flex is so much more intense. If you like the fingers in mouth exercise (what's the name for it??), you'll love FF for taking it a step further. And I'm not even using the harder bands.
Also I feel the FF hits the cheeks more.
Loving this little gadget; will let you know if there is any detrimental build up from it (as you all probably know by now, my orbi oris (mouth muscle) has a tendency to overbuild and become monkey-like).

free skin care · Fri Jun 18, 2010 4:18 pm

Keliu back there....lol, I know all about sneaking around with little needle marks next to my nose. Don has become very adept at recognizing them. I get so frustrated with trying to get the trench on the left side of my mose to match that on the right. I sleep on my back so it is just a structural thing. The problem I'm having is that my injector seems to create parallel lines of injectable in the fold so that the actual groove looks striated. Does anyone else have that problem?

The Flex thing sounds interesting so I'll keep checking back here to see what's happening with that.

free skin care · Sat Jun 26, 2010 9:17 am

Facial Flex: still working at this and I notice I can curl my top lip better. It was getting kind of stiff and not raising as high whilst smiling or talking but this has very much improved.
Also I'm getting dimples in a semi-horizontal line under my cheeks when I smile rather than the vertical ones that deepen my parenthesis lines. Jury's out as too whether this is actually a good thing or not; I don't want horizontal lines as well as vertical! But thinking about it, it seems the corners of my mouth are peaking upwards more rather than just sideways when I smile. This must be a good thing because Eva Fraser told me as you get older, it's harder to lift the corners of your mouth into a smile.

At the moment I'm going through a good phase with my face; could be the Tanaka massage or Facial Flex or both.

I found a blog with a lovely looking lady testing out the FF and photo'ing her progress.
You may want to check it out - I'm quite stunned by her results.

http://www.natural-living-for-women.com/facial-flex.html

Sat Jun 26, 2010 7:58 pm

Hi there,
I was wondering if anyone could tell me where to find the second edition of Flex Effect. I just purchased the DVD (closeout), but the book seems to be unavailable. I've tried Amazon and EBay. I would really like to get my hands on the book if possible.

free skin care · Thu Jul 15, 2010 12:58 pm

A quick update; I'm one month in on the Facial Flex - it's been used nearly every morning and night and, for the last 2/3 weeks, with the no. 3 hard bands.
The apples of my cheeks are rounder and the gauntness under my cheek bones are more filled. However my masseter muscles are also slightly increased which although not hugely detrimental (especially given the two good points above) is something I will have to monitor.
These are relatively big changes for such a small period of time and I feel really positive about my face shape at the moment.
As far as the NL's are concerned, I haven't seen the changes there as I have on the other areas but I think they have marginally improved simply for the reason that I'm not so focussed on them.
Even if the FF doesn't work the NL directly, at least it's filling out the other muscles that will give a NL smoothing effect.

So I'm still positive on the Facial Flex - visible results, minimal effort and quick to do.

free skin care · Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:05 pm

Earlier, I think it may have been Bren...

Said you bled a lot when getting fillers. I saw you use Vit E cream and I'm going to assume you probably take a supplement. This is a natural blood thinner, so that could be why. It is advised not to take Vit E supplements if one is on anticoagulants because that would thin the blood too much. Just saying, incase you overlooked that.

Also, weight loss definitely made my NLF's appear. I was about 120 lbs, and I became a vegan and was 95-100 lbs. Looked nasty when I saw pics of myself after the fact. Now I'm 125 (strict vegan for only 10 months) and battling these DAMN NLF's!!! I did tanaka, but I got lazy and wouldn't do it everyday. It seemed to help at first. Tempted to go for restylane.

free skin care · Mon Jul 26, 2010 2:19 pm

Hey Sandra D. Congrats on becoming a vegan and the associated healthy weight loss.

My NL's look way better since I lost ten pounds (now 124 at 5' 8"). It all depends on your facial structure I guess. I have Juvéderm Ultra in there and it seems to be lasting for a heck of a long time. Smile

Wed Sep 29, 2010 6:46 pm

First of all, sorry for any mistakes in my English since it's not my primary language. Also, sorry for bringing back an old thread but it's a really urgent matter. I've searched everywhere on the internet but couldn't find any answers, so this forum is my last hope!

I'm only 16-years old and already have big nasolabial folds on my face. Here's my story: since I was a child I always had big chubby cheeks on my face, witch really annoyed me. Last year I did some research about those chubby cheeks and how to remove them, and I ended up finding a website saying I could reduce them by doing "facial exercises". I started doing them the same day and when I woke up the next morning I saw some "lines" forming on my face, right on the nasolabial area. I thought it was a sign that the exercises were working indeed, so I kept doing them. I did these exercises for about one year, when the lines in my face had become really big. That's when I realized how stupid I was. My cheeks hadn't reduced at all and instead there was a big nasolabial fold area in my face.

I found some exercises that supposedly would reduce the NL area, but they just got worse. I stopped doing the exercises for about 3 months now, but the fold stays there...

Please, is there anyone who can help me?! These Nasolabial folds REALLY annoy me. I can't even look to other people anymore!!! Here are some photos (open and click to enlarge):
[img]img190.imageshack.us/img190/9610/imagem0121e.jpg [img]
[img]img834.imageshack.us/img834/3792/imagem0125n.jpg[img]
[img]img689.imageshack.us/img689/9044/imagem0130b.jpg[img]

I don't even care about my cheeks anymore, all I want is my face to be back as it was before, when I hadn't these lines! Someone help me please!! I'm DESPERATE!!

free skin care · Thu Sep 30, 2010 12:25 am

Henrytnk wrote:

First of all, sorry for any mistakes in my English since it's not my primary language. Also, sorry for bringing back an old thread but it's a really urgent matter. I've searched everywhere on the internet but couldn't find any answers, so this forum is my last hope!

I'm only 16-years old and already have big nasolabial folds on my face. Here's my story: since I was a child I always had big chubby cheeks on my face, witch really annoyed me. Last year I did some research about those chubby cheeks and how to remove them, and I ended up finding a website saying I could reduce them by doing "facial exercises". I started doing them the same day and when I woke up the next morning I saw some "lines" forming on my face, right on the nasolabial area. I thought it was a sign that the exercises were working indeed, so I kept doing them. I did these exercises for about one year, when the lines in my face had become really big. That's when I realized how stupid I was. My cheeks hadn't reduced at all and instead there was a big nasolabial fold area in my face.

I found some exercises that supposedly would reduce the NL area, but they just got worse. I stopped doing the exercises for about 3 months now, but the fold stays there...

Please, is there anyone who can help me?! These Nasolabial folds REALLY annoy me. I can't even look to other people anymore!!! Here are some photos (open and click to enlarge):
[img]img190.imageshack.us/img190/9610/imagem0121e.jpg [img]
[img]img834.imageshack.us/img834/3792/imagem0125n.jpg[img]
[img]img689.imageshack.us/img689/9044/imagem0130b.jpg[img]

I don't even care about my cheeks anymore, all I want is my face to be back as it was before, when I hadn't these lines! Someone help me please!! I'm DESPERATE!!

hey sorry for my english too (:
l went throw your same experience! what l've understand is not facial exercize to make the NLF but how did you make it...
is not important only what you do for the face, but it is very important also ,what you do not do for it,for instance, if you make check exercises pushing from the lip corner , you will built NL fold, it is natural!
you have to learn to isolate the single muscle, it keep u some week to do it correctly, cause u have to cancel the old body memory,if you keep doing exercise by lip corner you'll make thing worse, l do know this cause l had your same experience, and the only thing who is helping me is to do exercise keeping my lip relax (it is really difficult at the first time , but mind body connection will help you soon)...also during the day you have to control your face, is a sort of meditation, u have to keep attention if your corner lip are relaxed, l'm sure that they are not...check it right now!
it is also very important to stop facial work for 2 days every 5 days, also one month about every 3- 4 month
l've done many different facial exercise, every body respond in a different way, for me what did really the difference was the S.Maria Rounge exercise, l've start only since a month , but l've seen a different since first week, before to start to do this exercise is very, very important to read and to understand completely the first part of the book, cause like l've said it is how you do and what you do not do with your facial muscle, if you will handle S.M: rounge exesercize with out the right mind body connection , you will do things worse...try the preliminary exercises for 2- 3 week and see what will happen
l'm doing this work too and l'm really happy cause it is the first time l can see a difference...l hope it will help U
here in the blog there are person with great experience who will help in a good way, better than me
ps
you would ask to a dentist how he think about to dress on your mouth a relaxing bite, specially when you are practicing some kind of sport, or you are studying or sleeping... but also only to start to relax your mouth muscle, this is the most important thing, the first thing to do before to built facial muscle in the right way
you are young , if you will change your muscle attitude , your face will come back great more than before, you do not have age sign , NL fold are only expression sign, you can improve it so much, don't worry cause u'll be stressed and the line will be worse(:
l cannot see the pictures, but l do know you will work out and will come back so beautiful again!

free skin care · Thu Sep 30, 2010 3:40 am

Hi Henry,

Claudietta has made some very good points. Just to add, if you are Asian, take a look at the Tanaka massage thread here on EDS. This works brilliantly for all races but especially fleshy Asian faces. It will help erase NL's and chubby cheeks.

Also there is a gadget called Facial Flex which I use. This is great for exercising the face although a side effect for me has been a build-up of my jaw. However being male, this will be very much a positive thing for you!

Good luck and please try to enjoy your youth - one day you'll look back with older eyes and see just how lovely you are now.

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