This is what it’s like to have a Vampire Facial

So many of us many recall the very dramatic Keeping up with the Kardashians episode where Kim made a little visit to her dermatologist for that infamous Vampire Facial.

We know Mrs West has a flair for the dramatics – so was her very outlandish reaction to the process warranted?

YOU’s Shanaaz Prince decided to try out the rather ghoulish-sounding treatment for herself. Here’s the lowdown…

I consider myself to have an average pain threshold. So while I’m not a sissy, I also have my limits.

I will however, admit that going into Dr Reza Mia’s Houghton office, known as the Anti-Aging Art Practice a non-surgical medical aesthetic wellness centre, I was a little bit nervous – especially when I was told that only a light numbing cream would be put on my face before the procedure.

So how does the whole process work?

The Vampire Facial is a name trademarked by an American doctor to describe ‘platelet-rich plasma injections’, as the procedure is called here.

“We use platelet-rich plasma injections to stimulate the skin and hair through platelet derived growth factors,” Dr Mia explained.

“This allows us to treat a wide range of patient presenting complaints such as dull, dry skin, fine lines, thinning skin, saggy skin, hair loss, pigmentation marks and uneven skin tone.

“The patient’s blood is taken and processed in a centrifuge with activating factors. This allows us to separate the red cells, the platelet poor plasma and the portion we are really after, the platelet-rich plasma.

“The collagen induction is the primary effect that we are looking for when it comes to the face and stimulation of the hair follicles in the head.”

So as I sat on the white chair, numbing cream on my face and having downed a Panado and some water, Dr Elfreida Fourie from the practice drew my blood, which was put in little tubes and into a centrifuge. After 20 minutes, it was ready to be injected!

Down my seat went and up my nerves spiked – but, honestly, it wasn’t that bad.

I will admit though, I may look calm in the video, but there were some moments where I clenched my fists and curled my toes. It wasn’t intense pain, but having injections in your face is certainly no picnic.

Dr Mia and Dr Fourie both slowly injected the platelet-rich plasma into my face, focussing on my forehead, cheeks, chin and neck.

While in high school, I was involved in a car accident which left me with some scarring on my left cheek, my chin and on the left side of my forehead. These places were more painful than the rest, as a result of my scar tissue which had hardened over the years.

At one point, Dr Mia warned: “This part will feel a bit like a sewing machine going over your face”. She wasn’t kidding! It suddenly felt as though a super-fast sewing machine was moving across my face – more uncomfortable than painful, to be honest.

A few minutes later, it was done! I was left a little anxious and swollen, with a face full of blood. I felt rather like a pin cushion.

The doctors advised me not to wash my face until the next morning, to allow the plasma to work its way through my skin. When I did give it a wash the next day, I felt relieved to be clean of all the blood, but I was left with a number of tiny bruises on my face and under my eyes.

But bruising is a general side effect of the treatment, I was told. Thankfully, it disappeared in a few days, as the doctors had promised.

Was it all worth it?

I had to wait a whole six weeks for the results! It seemed to drag by, but when the period had passed, my skin did feel smoother. Considering that I have a dry skin – especially being a coastal girl now living in dry Johannesburg – my skin was noticeably more moisturised.

Also, the sites around my scars are much softer! My scars are still there but the actual areas around my scars are softer to touch.

Apparently the change was evident to my friends and colleagues too! I’ve received compliments from many people about my skin looking fresh and glowing.

While my visit was purely experimental and I’d only been for one session, follow-up sessions are advised for better results.