Overstuffed Syndrome: Why it Happens and How to Avoid it

By Kate Dee, MD

I will never give someone ducky lips. I simply do not believe that ducky lips make people look beautiful. How is it that we see more and more people looking overstuffed with fillers? Giant ducky lips, huge cheeks, a lower face that doesn’t really move when they talk. These things do not look natural and often are so distracting, one spends more time thinking about why this person looks so odd than listening to what they are saying. So why does this happen?

As you age, you lose volume in your face. When we are kids, we have fat pads that round out the face and give us a baby-face look. As you get older, you lose those fat pads over time. Eventually, you get hollows and areas that look scooped out. Fillers are one solution that can help replace volume. And when done well, they can really make you look younger. Fillers are a great tool, but they are not the only tool.

The big process that contributes just as much to aging is the thinning of the skin. After around age 30, the cells in your dermis that make collagen and elastin go dormant. Your body breaks those down at 1-2% per year, so after that, your skin is slowly thinning out. As it thins, it is no longer thick and springy, and it starts to sag. Here’s the problem: many injectors use fillers to prop up this sagging skin. It is like adding a few tent poles under stretched-out tent fabric. The results can be dramatic, and they are instant (although temporary). But what happens over time as your skin continues to thin out? You need more and more filler to prop it up.

If the only tool you have is filler, you end up chasing this increasing problem of sagging skin with more and more filler. Eventually, you look ridiculous and you still have not addressed the real problem - a loss of collagen and thinning skin. Places that do not offer other tools, or have an approach more focused on creating repeat filler customers, are missing the opportunity to address the whole problem, and they are overstuffing people in the process.

At Glow, we believe in preserving your natural beauty. We use a combination of approaches to tighten skin and replace volume that makes you look like you, just a bit younger. Yes, we still offer filler - it is a great tool! But we also focus on building your collagen with tools like Infini, LaseMD, Exilis Ultra, PRP and microneedling, and Sculptra, a non-filler injectable that also builds collagen. Check out this blog post about “How to keep your skin thick and springy.” Taking great care of your skin is also critical to keep it looking young and healthy. At Glow, we are looking at the big picture for the long-term. By educating our clients and using our natural approach to beauty, we hope we are helping you to feel great about your skin.