Last week I sat in Allergan’s Annual Medical Meeting
A room filled with clinicians, A beautiful venue and an overview of what is to come #beautydecoded . The announcement of a marketing and educational programme to the consumer( #beautydecoded) is the work of Allergan. Allergan being the pharmaceutical company responsible for the production of Botox and Dermal fillers such as Juvederm, Voluma and Volift . Below are simply my thoughts as an injector and a mum
So, the first thing I think about is the word beauty. Is beauty really the correct word?
To me, beauty once meant eyelashes, nails, beautiful hair, and in the latter years Fake Bake, hair extensions & having a house full of teenage girls, now contouring, brushes & of course, Huda Beauty.
So, is it now a theatre packed full of doctors, dentists, nurses & other ‘injectable practitioners’ & here Allergen, the multi-million-pound company – talk about their efforts into safe beauty, education & the consumer & their title ‘Beauty Decoded’?
My God, I thought, ‘#Beauty Decoded’, is this really now beauty? To me, it is a medical treatment, a treatment that produces a physical change in lips, cheeks, chins & skin. It was indeed, when I requested Botox, never a beauty treatment. I remember when, at 32 (nearly 17 years ago) looking in a mirror, staring at my reflection thinking, “You look tired. You look far older than your years” but, having had 5 children, worked 24/7 from even as young as 10, at school, at work, at university, then opening a dental practice, the face that was staring back at me was evidence of just that – hard work.
Cutting a long story short, I confided in my Mum – Botox was about. It was new & it was expensive. The story goes – I board a plane to Manchester, went to the Bowden Clinic & at the cost of some £700 – received just that my first Botox shot.That Elixir of youth –and my years of tiredness began to disappear. But, did I think of it as a beauty treatment? Never, it was a little like my breast implants, a medical procedure that I would never have told anyone about(although they probably guessed ) – and NEVER a beauty treatment.
So, roll on 17 years & we have a marketing campaign, a multi-billion-pound pharmaceutical company inspiring me with #Beauty Decoded’ which I sit & embrace. Times certainly have changed.
Add to this my houseful of Millennials, my kids are as kids and, as I probably was, a pain in the arse. They want, I give, they want, I give again, from designer phones, belts, handbags, trips away – I give them what my Mum could never give me but, in many ways, she gave me what her mother could never give her.

So, I am returning with my new thoughts of #Juvedermit #smoothit, #plumpit – my beauty concept has undoubtedly been Beauty Decoded. I suppose I’m a bit of an Icon to my kids and their friends – A Mum who does fillers, braces, veneers, composite bonding, lip injections, cheek fillers and so much more. A Mum who says,” It is as it is.” However, rather than replying to them, “You’re far too young. It’s not really what you see.” I shall be explaining to them what, where, how & most importantly, safety.
The injectable treatments have entered the beauty arena & are here to stay. They are wanted by the old, the young, by every race & culture. They are a treatment modality that has become the social norm & now, it is my time to appreciate as an injector & most of all, a Mum. At some time in my life, my kids are going to have these treatments; however much I try to stop them.

Now, to all who know me, I have already succumbed to my kids. A small lip enhancement here, a little bit cheeky on one or two, tiny laser treatment to remove acne scars & of course, the obligatory Invisalign orthodontics & the pursuit of the perfect smile in all of them except JJ, but he is only 6 years old!
To me, it was always a medical treatment but, to them, it was definitely & will still be a beauty treatment, a treatment to perfect the imperfect self or, a treatment to improve what God gave us naturally.

So, Allergan, I applaud you. I think that your #Beautydecoded done correctly is essential. It should educate, it should empower. It should tell, show & do & most of all, it should endeavour to keep my babies as safe as they can be in a world where beauty meets medicine. You know my thoughts on the regulation of this industry and this industry, person and suppliers providing these treatments should be accountable. That’s another post in itself.
If done Allergan correctly,#juvedermuk you will help many more know the real risks these “beauty treatments” .However some 17 years ago my first treatment was done in a professional environment, by a professional for the right reason ……my cosmetic medical needs – I was after all 32 years of age and not a young 20 something surrounded in a world of beautiful images, constant messages of how my life should be, I was just me.
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