Silhouette Soft thread lift - best money I've ever spent on myself!

This review has taken me some time to write because, in the interest of total transparency, in the first days and weeks after my procedure I wasn't convinced that the procedure was worth it. Although I have always looked young for my age (good genetics and healthy lifestyle), like a lot of people, there are parts of my face and body that I am not happy with and no amount of diet or exercise can fix these issues.
I've never had a strong jawline and whilst that hasn't particularly bothered me, I had noticed that my neckline was beginning to noticeably sag once I hit my 50th birthday (in January 2018). My weight has yo-yoed most of my life and I have always exercised a LOT. I believe that this combination contributed to a loss of elasticity in the skin underneath my chin. A passing comment in early 2019 by my boyfriend about my 'turkey neck' caused a massive nosedive to my already fragile self-image.
I'm on a limited income so plastic surgery isn't an option and, as someone who has always felt pride around my natural beauty (apologies if this sounds like I have a massive ego - I can assure you that this is NOT the case - it's just that the very few things that I have going for me I focus on and don't really want to mess with), I didn't want to have any sort of surgical intervention where there was any possibility that I might not end up looking like myself at the end of it. I didn't want that 'done' look.
I scoured the internet educating myself on relatively affordable, non-invasive options for tightening my jaw and neckline. I seriously considered having Ultraformer treatment (3D SkinLift) at a London medical spa where I was already undergoing a course of IPL sessions for hyper pigmentation but the testimonials for thread lifting were too compelling to ignore. I booked an initial consultation on Harley Street with another doctor who had numerous celebrity endorsements on his website and *literally* whilst walking to this first appointment, I accidentally came upon a scathing negative review about a botched plastic surgery job he had done on a patient. I was already feeling nervous about the whole thing anyway so I immediately rang his office and cancelled my appointment citing a last minute work meeting.
Still convinced that thread lifting was right for me, I went back to the drawing board to try and find another practitioner. After doing quite a bit of digging around I came upon River Aesthetics. I loved that the practice consisted of two female doctors both former GP's who now specialized in non-invasive aesthetic procedures and I decided to book in a consultation with Dr Manning. 
During this consultation, Dr Manning took plenty of time to get to know me and to understand my concerns. She patiently listened whilst I explained *all* of my hang-ups about my appearance and how much my self-confidence was suffering having entered my 50's. After examining my skin and its elasticity, it was decided that I was a good candidate for Silhouette Soft threads. She explained exactly how they worked, described the treatment in full as well as what I could reasonably expect as an outcome. She sent me away with literature to read and told me to think about it.
I felt so good after leaving her office and I knew that if I were going to go ahead, she was the only person I would trust to perform this procedure on me. Let's not forget that whilst this is non-invasive, it still involves YOUR FACE. Sure, the threads dissolve eventually but it's not worth thinking about how long you might have to live with the consequences of a badly done thread lift.
Six weeks after that initial consultation, I had my Silhouette Soft thread treatment. The lag was partly due to the time I spent considering the procedure but also because Dr Manning is only in London on Monday's which meant that I had to wait.
Dr Manning had warned me that the most uncomfortable part of the procedure would be the multiple injections in my face in order to numb me. In fact, I found this part to be the *least* uncomfortable. I had read multiple reviews about thread lifting and every review I came upon said that the procedure was not painful and that they were happily chatting away throughout. I have to say that I was *not* happily chatting away throughout. I found the sensation of the threads being inserted underneath my skin unsettling and the feeling of the cones being flattened by her fingertips was uncomfortable. Dr Manning described it as like popping bubble wrap underneath the skin - just to give you an indication. Once all the threads are in place, you are still not done! Dr Manning then has to physically lift the threads which feels like an odd tugging sensation. I have an overactive imagination so this probably doesn't help and I made sure to keep my eyes closed throughout the entire procedure. 
Once Dr Manning snips the ends of the threads, you are done. Everything I had read said that it's a 30 minute procedure but in total, my visit took nearly an hour. It is also said that you can return to work immediately afterwards but I had noticeable swelling in my face (I looked very puffy) and I would not have felt comfortable going back to the office. For me, this is not a lunchtime facelift.
I hadn't brought anyone with me to the appointment so one of the lovely women who work in the office was my official hand holder. Warm and cheerful, she was happy to let me crush her hands with my anxious, gorilla grip. She tried to keep me distracted by telling me about her recent holiday and also told me throughout how well the procedure was going. I would like to clarify again at this point that although it wasn't painful as such, it was uncomfortable and I sweat through the back of my shirt by the time it was all done. I would strongly recommend bringing a non-squeamish friend with you but if you can't get anyone to accompany you, Dr Manning will make sure that you have a member of staff there for moral support.
I was given a bag to take away that had paracetamol, chocolate, some beauty supplements and a neck pillow. You have to sleep on your back for the first 3 nights at a minimum and you can't do any high impact exercise for two weeks. 
I was in the minority of patients that experience bruising though it was very minimal and as I am olive skinned, you couldn't really see it. My face was tender to the touch for a few days 
afterwards which meant that on the first few days, ‘washing’ my face was a very simple splash of warm water over my skin. Over the coming weeks, I was experiencing a sort of tugging sensation underneath my skin and occasionally I’d feel a sharp pang/stab in my face? I rang the office a few times when I felt nervous and wanted to check that this was all within the realm of normal. Every person that I spoke to at River Aesthetics was extremely kind, patient and reassuring. I knew that I could see Dr Manning again if I felt it necessary but I decided to wait it out.
My procedure was 30th September 2019 and I have since had two routine follow-ups (28 Oct 2019 and 6th Jan 2020) with Dr Manning so that she could check progress. By my January consultation I was absolutely over the moon with my results. I do still have a slight sag underneath my chin but I personally feel that this is within my tolerance of what I expected as a reasonable outcome. This is not an invasive plastic surgery procedure but rather a non-invasive procedure done under local anesthetic in a doctor’s office within an hour.
You need to be realistic about what can be achieved given that fact. I couldn’t be happier with the improvement not just to my jawline but to the quality and appearance of the skin over my entire face. My skin is radiant, plump and more youthful looking and I feel that I look better this year than I did last year. I get so many compliments on how good I look and it’s just one of those things that people can’t put their finger on. This is exactly what I wanted!
Although, as I have mentioned several times, I didn’t find this the most comfortable of procedures, I would without hesitation have it done again. If I am still a good candidate in a year to 18 months time, I will do it again and I wouldn’t go to anyone but Dr Manning. I have taken lots of photos throughout this process and will try to trawl through them and upload here. I realise that this is a very long review but I know that I would have wanted to read someone like this when I was researching so I hope it helps. I'm happy to answer any questions!