Dermal Fillers: Can You Feel Fillers in Your Face?

Usually not once swelling has settled.

Adjustment and Expansion of the Skin

In the fascinating area of non-surgical facial rejuvenation techniques, a lot of patients ask the dermal fillers specialist regarding the physical sensation of dermal fillers in the face. The moment the biological gel, like hyaluronic acid, is injected into a certain part of the face, it occupies space mechanically and stretches the adjacent dermal matrix. From an objective medical point of view, feeling the filler just after the procedure is quite commonplace since your tissues are getting accustomed to the extra space the filler created and responding to the injection as a stimulus.

Most patients complain about having a feeling of tightness, pressure, or firmness in the injection spots during this short period of adaptation. Mainly due to the body's inflammatory reaction and to the swelling, which is temporary but localized. In time, if the swelling decreases and the tissue surrounding the injected product relaxes, the sensation of touching the injected spots will fade completely, and you will feel a biological integration of the filler into your tissue.

Compatibility and the Process of Maturation

Dermal filler that has been injected very skillfully should completely blend in undetectably within the facial structure. A large portion of high-end fillers consists of hyaluronic acid synthesized by human cells. Upon injection, this hydrophilic gel draws water from your tissues, causing the product to become a little softer and wider to perfectly match your natural collagen and elastin fibers.

The biochemical process of filler maturation happens within two weeks, leading to a situation where previously separate and palpable filler turns into a biological extension of your facial tissue. At this point, when touching your skin, smiling, or moving your face in general, you literally should have no idea that a foreign object is inside your tissue, as your facial contours will look natural and your touch will be very different from before you started with filler.

Variations by Injection Depth and Filler Density

The sensitivity of touch is largely dependent on how compact the filler product is and on the depth at which the filler is introduced into your face. Denser and more cohesive fillers are selected for such work as shaping a jawline or making a chin or cheekbones stand out. Since they are placed at the lowest level and in contact with the periosteum (bone), practitioners of this art use such strong gels that are basically a type of hard material. These fillers, under a thick muscle layer and fat layers, will mimic exactly the texture of our natural bone, which we don't feel unless we hit it quite hard or touch the inside.

On the flip side of the spectrum, fillers that are very soft and pliable in structure and that are applied at a much lesser level are used mainly during treatment of areas that are constantly in motion and of a much more subtle nature, like, for instance, the lips or the under-eye lines (tear troughs). Such soft gels integrate well even though squeezing or pressing the area too hard may lead the feeler to detect it as the subtle resistance of a sponge. However, under normal circumstances—kissing, talking, washing the face—the skin feel of these very superficial fillers should be perfect, soft in texture and no different at all from natural lip tissue.

Preserving Structural Integrity and Post-Procedural Boundaries  

If you happen to be a very meticulous person expecting to have your face transformed in a perfect way through aesthetic treatment, then you need not only to understand the importance of post-treatment guidance but also to strictly follow it. The freshly injected dermal filler is very soft, and in order for the filler to take up its final position inside your face, it must have complete mechanical protection for a period of time, which is considered to be the first critical 48-72 hours after the injection. As hyaluronic acid bonds with your tissue, there is a high probability that you may push it in the wrong direction if you happen to apply very strong pressure and then see lumping or distortion of facial contours and a rather unnatural appearance. If you have the right professional and follow his/her instructions to the letter, these situations can be prevented.

After the injection, do not massage your face, go to a beauty parlor for an eyelash waxing or facial treatment, or do facial dermaplaning, nor lie face-down onto a pillow, unless there is a very strong reason. Intense cardio, sauna sessions, and hot yoga are absolutely contraindicated in the first 72 hours following the injection since they may cause the blood vessels to expand, which could result in excessive swelling. 

LIN Europe Clinic

When you choose LIN Europe Clinic, you choose a top-level global medical resort that offers you unmatched quality medical services. We offer facial aesthetics, high-tech structural rejuvenation techniques, and all non-surgical methods with the highest clinical standards and deep understanding, empathy, and patient-centered care that is rarely found today among doctors of medicine. It takes highly specialized knowledge and precision to perform an injection of dermal filler so that the filler is placed exactly where it is needed, and to understand how the filler reacts with the surrounding tissues of the face at the right depth to produce the desired volume and tissue adaptation. It is all very complicated, and we make it our business to offer the patient a safe and pleasant environment that is backed up by solid medical evidence and the latest scientific knowledge.

Putting your health and beauty issues into the hands of specialist doctors working at our beautiful location in Istanbul will not only bring back a healthy facial expression and a glow that will take your breath away but also, at least for some time, will free you from the worry of getting it wrong. When you trust us, our team of expert cosmetic surgeons is there for you, taking great care of the details of your appearance and making sure the result looks perfect even for a layperson, without using any makeup.