Sculptra - It's All About the Doctor Who Does It - Larchmont Village, CA

Cons - none really, except some swelling that takes a good 5 or so days to go down. No one noticed until I pointed it out, but I was aware of it and wouldn't do it less than a week before I had to do anything special. Pros - it's so subtle no one notices except you. It also last much longer than the other fillers, and I prefer the idea of a filler that stimulates my skin to rejuvenate itself over time instead of plumping it up with something artificial. I've had Sculptra twice now. First time was in April 2010. I woke up one morning and thought I'd slept funny, I had a deep pock mark on one side of my face around the naso labial fold area. After a few days of it not disappearing with a shock I realized my naivety. A pillow crease? No - it was the beginning of a deep line on one side of my face and the beginnings of the dreaded 'parentheses' marks around my nose / mouth. It was age! (I was 38 at the time). What bothered me most was that it didn't really look like a line, it was like a deep pock mark, and one side only. (I've since realized that side of my mouth and cheek move much more than my left). I did a lot of research online and found that a doctor who trained other doctors in Sculptra use in Aids patients was conveniently extremely close to my home. I went to see her and two years later I don't regret it for a second. I just had a second lot done this December. So it was almost two years before I felt the need to address it again. I did have the most enormous bruise on my face the first time. I mean I looked like a battered wife and had to hide at home for several days. It's possible a vein was hit, or I've also since found out green tea makes you more prone to bruising and I drink at least 3 cups of green tea a day. This December I made a point of no green tea for a week beforehand and I just had swelling, no bruising. For all the people who have had bad experiences, my heart goes out to you. But blame the user not the tool. In other words the problem is not Sculptra - it's who injected it into you. You have to find a doctor who is experienced with Scupltra specifically and ask to see their own before and after photos. It's not good enough to see the promotional ones, you want to see what they have done personally in their clinic. I was able to see many photos of patients my doctor had worked on and after reading up on her on and doing a lot of research I felt safe in her hands, but honestly I wouldn't let anyone else touch my face. So if you haven't done it yet, please, please find a good, experienced doctor. Scupltra is absolutely worth it and a remarkable product, you just have to be in the right hands. Below are photos of the line before I had Sculptra. I just had IPL today so when my face has calmed down (!) I'll take a photo of what it looks like now.