12 October 2020

We tried a vampire facial. This is what happened.

| Ryan Johnstone
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If you keep up with the Kardashians, you may have heard of a vampire facial. Made famous by Kim in 2013 on an episode of Kourtney and Kim Take Miami, the facial is a non-surgical alternative to a traditional face lift.

While there are a few cosmetic clinics in Canberra that offer the facial, I knew that the doctors at Esteem Cosmetic Studio in Manuka would take good care of me.

A few friends have various treatments there and they all have raved about Dr Matthew Holman. After filling out my new patient form I was introduced to Dr Matthew Holman (pictured below), Esteem’s facial rejuvenation and anti ageing specialist.

dr matthew

The process involves taking blood just as you would in a normal blood test, but it is then placed in a centrifuge to separate the platelet-rich plasma (PRP) from the rest of the blood. The PRP is then reinjected back into areas of the face to gradually encourage an increase in collagen. In relation to the image below the top yellowish layer was the one used for the injections.

vampire facial 2

The injections took up about 45 minutes, and hurt less than expected. Although my face was covered liberally with numbing cream prior to the injections, some of the more sensitive areas of my face seemed less affected by the cream than others, which caused very brief discomfort.

After the treatment I was then taken to a dark room where I layer under a bright red light. This was the omnilux machine which I laid under for the next 20 minutes to finish off the process. The omnilux skin rejuvenation treatment uses a red and near infrared light which has a significant effect on periorbital wrinkles, it helps to reduce pore size, improve skin tone and texture, and give a vibrant, healthier-looking skin.

There are a few things they ask you not to do in the hours afterwards to ensure maximum results, including; avoiding prolonged exposure to sunlight, rigorous exercise, and excessive amounts of alcohol.

I was told swelling will be present for the next day or so but can be controlled with icing the area, although swelling didn’t seem to be too noticeable on me.

Results can seen about three weeks after the procedure and it’s recommended to do it a few more times, four to six weeks apart (depending on your skin) to ensure maximum results. Being 21 and having good skin to begin with, results might not been so obvious so soon, so for now I’ll leave you with photos from before & after the procedure.

vampire facial 3

As you can see the only visible signs were the small pricks on my face which were almost completely gone by the next day.

If you’re more information on facials, you might also like to read our articles on the best facial specialists, best microblading specialists, best eyelash extensions salons, best beauty salons, best waxing salons, best hair salons and best nail salons our city has to offer.

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Yes, a different guinea pig would have made more sense -one where you could see a difference!

grunge_hippy9:55 pm 24 Aug 15

one question…. why?

Surely at 21 you don’t need it. I get the whole science experiment part, but get someone who might actually need “rejuvenating” and you can see a difference before and after.

I can see a “during” and an “after” shot, but not a “before” shot…

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