Restylane Downtime and Recovery

When undergoing Restylane injections, downtime should be quite minimal.  There can be swelling which lasts a day or so, depending on where the product is injected.  If an area like the lip is injected, it can take up to a few days for swelling to resolve. Other areas may show little or no swelling. However, it is always possible to develop a bruise, especially if you are using NSAIDs (aspirin, motrin, etc) or blood thinners, and a bruise can often take several days to resolve.  

I normally encourage people to have a filler done at the end of their day so they can go home and not be self conscious of the small temporary red bumps that form for a few hours. There can be slight bruising, and very rarely significant bruising, so you shouldn't do it within a few days to even a week of an important social function or business meeting if the discoloration of a bruise would be a problem. The right makeup, or makeup applied by a specialist can hide brusing, but it shouldn't be applied immediately after the injections.

The answer to the question depends on where the product is being injected. In most cases, when Restylane is injected in the nasolabial folds (smile lines) or marionette lines (chin), our patients will not have any downtime. When injecting the lips, there can be some significant swelling depending on how much product is injected and to which area of the lip (border vs. body).
Finally, under eye injections for hollowness and dark circles is the most likely area for bruising. It happens infrequently for our patients, but when it does occur, you do not want to have any social engagements that evening and probably not for at least a week afterward.