PDO Threads
Are you down with PDO? Threads that is!
Lockdown last year was rough (for many reasons) but staring at myself for hours at a time on Zoom calls really gave me the opportunity to nitpick everything - each line, pore, and movement my face makes. It started to make me a little bit crazy and as it turns out I wasn’t the only one! One of the busiest injectors I know was telling me that March 2021 was her biggest month in neurotoxins and fillers in her career to date! Even a few males in my life are starting to come around to wrinkle reduction after this major shift in the way we work.
So, after looking at myself for hours, days, and then weeks, followed by endlessly scrolling through social media I came across PDO Threads. I then contacted the practitioner directly to ask questions about this new procedure. I have to admit, I didn’t put my usual research in before deciding to take the plunge, but honestly, after being in lockdown for 2 months I just wanted to try it.
For starters, PDO threads (Polydioxanone) are biodegradable polyester sutures.
They are one of three types of sutures commonly used in thread lift procedures, and of the three types have been around the longest. They generally last 6-12 months.
A thread lift is a procedure that uses dissolvable sutures to lift and tighten your skin. Outside of the lift and tightening you get from the threads themselves, the presence of the threads in the skin also stimulates collagen production. Collagen is a protein that gives your skin structure and elasticity. As we age, we lose collagen and this is a major cause of aging.
PDO threads are an alternative to a facelift, as they provide the same lifting feature, but a thread lift procedure can be performed in a doctor's office in about an hour or less, and does not require anesthesia. This is, however, a temporary solution that will have to be maintained anywhere between every 6 – 15 months depending on which of the 3 threads types are used for your lift.
While PDO Thread lifts have a lower risk of complications than facial surgery, it does still come with its own set of possible complications such as, visible sutures, pain, minor bruising, infection, snapping of threads, hematoma, inflammation, dimpling, hair loss, facial asymmetry, protrusion, extrusion, and migration of threads, gland injury, damage to blood vessels, facial nerve damage, and facial paralysis.
PDO Threads can lift most parts of your face that are showing signs of aging, but the most common areas of treatment are around the cheeks, jaw, neck, and eyes. Though I personally have a friend who used this procedure to help lift her lips similar to a lip flip. Thread lifts are subtle and often used in conjunction with other anti-aging products or procedures.
Now that we have gotten through all that, I’ll tell you about my personal experience. I used the PDO Thread lift because I was concerned about the jowling I was experiencing, that downward pulling in between your lips and your chin, that’s the spot that I couldn’t stop looking at on all my zoom calls! It was driving me crazy, so that combined with no eyelash extensions, no facials, no hair color, no hair extensions, and wearing sweatpants daily for months prompted me to drive to another county that was more open than my own to get this procedure done, and it definitely did what it was supposed to do!
Here’s where it gets a little more complicated though…
I had three threads inserted on each side of my face, and I’m just going to be completely upfront and honest with all of you, it hurt like you would not believe! I have a very high tolerance for pain and the practitioner who did this procedure told me that I did better than most and handled it like a champ, but in hindsight, I don’t know how I made it through.
Before I went in the procedure was explained to me, I didn’t need to prep other than eliminating any medications or supplements such as blood thinners because this can increase bruises, that the recovery would be minimal, and that I should restrict movement in the area for 1-2 weeks following the procedure for example opening my mouth extra wide like a yawn or biting into an apple. I was told it would take about 30 minutes and cost around $600-$900.
A cannula was inserted first into my upper cheek area and then threads were slid down my face one at a time (3 on each side). This part was the killer! You can be numbed throughout, as the end of the cannula has a numbing agent and when the pressure and pain become too intense more numbing could be pushed through. However, the less numbing you have the better and longer the result, so I did my best to only get numbing when I couldn’t take the pain anymore. Once I got through the actual procedure itself and before the swelling set in, I already loved the results and the immediate improvement.
I personally had pain, soreness, and swelling for 3 full weeks following the procedure. I had some slight bruising for about 5 days after, but it wasn’t horrible. I am also fairly certain that maybe one of the barbs was touching a nerve or a nerve was hit during the insertion of the threads cause if I had any pressure regardless of how minimal the touch was to one spot on my lower face it would send a hot searing pain up my face for about 6 months post procedure.
Once the swelling and bruising subsided I was able to get the full effect and I was incredibly happy and impressed with the improvement in lift and tightening when my face was at rest. I even had a friend mention that something looked different about me but she wasn’t sure what it was, which is what most of us hope for when we make these little improvements, but there was one thing that I didn’t like…
Rewind to February 2020 pre-lockdown when I signed up for Mother’s Day photos, which were cancelled, but we did get the opportunity to take them when the world reopened slightly. Well, when I got the photos back, there was something that changed how I felt about the PDO Threads.
The threads completely changed the look of my smile.
I like my smile, I’m happy with my smile. It’s so much of who I am because I’m a very happy smiley person! When I realized this, it made me realize that this was not a procedure I would ever do again. The pictures didn’t look like me, and I did not like that.
Now, if that was the only downfall, I would maybe see if there was a way to position the threads differently and give it another go, but as the months progressed several other possible complications from the list above arose.
Here is a list of the cons and why I wouldn’t do PDO Threads again:
The pain of having the actual procedure
The intense pain and swelling for 3 weeks after
It changed my smile too much
The nerve pain if anything touched a specific spot on my face that happen a few too many times
As the months went by I began to have dimpling in my chin
The threads didn’t dissolve at the same rate and I now have a crooked smile
I can actually feel the threads when I run my tongue inside my cheek
The Pros of PDO Threads:
Effective in lift and tightening
Eliminated the look of jowls
I think I had some collagen stimulation because the area looks better than prior but I now have weird creasing and movements that I hope will go away once the threads dissolve
So, no I will not be doing this procedure with the PDO Threads again, and that’s not to say that you shouldn’t try them for yourself. I think that I had a few things working against me that you should take into consideration.
I think my age for this particular area was a factor, I think maybe doing the thread lift in this lower area of the face is better suited for someone in an older age bracket. I also do not have a lot of facial fat, which I think contributed to the dimpling, and feeling the threads inside my mouth.
It is worth mentioning that my friend who had the lip flip with the threads was happy with the results, however I imagine that area is very painful. I spoke with another woman who was 2-3 decades older than myself and she was very happy with the results, but felt they dissolved too quickly. I personally am having the opposite, it’s been 11 months and one side of my face is still lifted the other has fallen slightly, and at this point I’d love for them to dissolve. The dissolving process isn’t a pretty one at least for me!
While the PDO Thread Lift wasn’t for me, and it may or may not be for you, I hope that you have the information needed to help you make the best decision for yourself. I think if something is bothering you and correcting the issue will help you feel more confident then by all means look into your options.
PDO Thread Lifts are only one option for help with jowls, lip flips, and sagging eye skin there are many other options to consider as well, but by doing your research at least you have the information necessary to ask the right questions and make the best choice.
If you have any other questions about my experience or PDO Thread Lifts, drop me an email!
Peace, Love, and Staying Lifted in all the right places,
XX,
Jenna
