Courteney Cox Said She Looked Fake – How to Avoid This

I enjoyed this interview with Courteney Cox written in New Beauty Magazine. At 53 she feels beautiful inside and out; and she certainly is. It is unfortunate that she describes her results from filler injections as appearing fake. In her interview, Courteney states: “Well, what would end up happening is that you go to a doctor who would say, “You look great, but what would help is a little injection here or filler there.” So you walk out and you don’t look so bad and you think, no one noticed—it’s good. Then somebody tells you about another doctor: “This person’s amazing. They do this person who looks so natural.” You meet them and they say, “You should just do this.” The next thing you know, you’re layered and layered and layered. You have no idea because it’s gradual until you go, “Oh sh*t, this doesn’t look right.” And it’s worse in pictures than in real life. I have one friend who was like, “Whoa, no more!” I thought, I haven’t done anything in six months. I didn’t realize.”

I’ve never treated Courteney Cox, but I understand how this layering effect could happen; as not all fillers are the same, nor are all physicians solely dedicated to providing cosmetic injectables. The proper cosmetic fillers need to be chosen to avoid the layering effects and the un-natural results. Courteney Cox’s experience is consistent with hyaluronic acid (HA) based fillers, especially since she reported that they were dissolved. Cox attributes her not-natural results to “layering” of fillers by many “different physicians”. However, before we identify “layering” as the cause of her unnatural results, we need to fully understand the science of facial aging and the science of fillers.

During the aging process we naturally lose the supportive foundation under the skin, causing our skin to sag and fold differently and, eventually, wrinkle. Cosmetic fillers can be injected to restore this lost foundation and restore the natural shape of the face. These treatments, when done correctly by a dedicated physician specialist, should result in a naturally youthful and rested appearance. Hyaluronic acid based fillers are a common type chosen by physicians because they are among the easiest to learn to work with and dissolve easily. On the other hand, the challenge is that hyaluronic acid (HA) fillers may appear well immediately after they are injected but, over time, they typically attract water, which may cause the face to appear round and puffy. This effect is cumulative and, with each additional syringe of filler applied, the face appears more round and puffy.

The aesthetic secret to a natural appearance lies in injecting the correct filter, in the proper amount, and in the proper area of the face. The aesthetic results are truly dependent on the injector and not only the products used. At Verve, to avoid the effects Cox has described, I typically choose and rely more on the firmer fillers such as Radiesse or Sculptra rather than the HA type fillers such as Juvederm, Restylane and Voluma. Using these firmer fillers, along with very limited amounts of the HA type fillers, provides a more natural result. Many of my clients at our New York City and Bergen County, NJ studios get the best results with a full-face filler enhancement with as little as once a year treatment.

For the most natural results from fillers, it is best to receive injections only from an expert physician whose practice is solely dedicated to cosmetic injectables, with strong aesthetic skills, and a lot of experience. Equally important is to avoid getting “layered ” by receiving injections from many different practitioners especially, if they rely solely on the hyaluronic acid type fillers.