My field of expertise is Aesthetic Medicine: Skin hygiene and treatment, Rejuvenation of face, skin and body, Wrinkle elimination, Restoration of lost facial plumpness and volume, Face beautification, Correction of facial proportions, etc. These are my everyday tasks but my mission is to achieve the results non-surgically, using the most modern techniques that leave no trace. And somehow, the inevitable wrinkles always come as part of the equation, along the way or at the end of it.
Wrinkles CAN be charming
I can’t disagree when some people argue that wrinkles can sometimes be beautiful. They are reminders of our rich lives, signs of important past events and experiences. Some don’t see wrinkles around their eyes as Crow feet but as beautiful sparkles and evidence of all their happy laughters. To some middle-aged men, wrinkles add to charm, facial definition, manliness and sex appeal.
The mighty wrinkle – London ride reminder
I shall never forget one of the first blogs I’ve written for a Croatian top magazine at the time when I got back from London in 2010. The title of the blog was A car ride with John and it was based on a true story of when I found myself explaining to one of London cabbies what Botox was and why more and more men found it appealing to get rid of wrinkles that way. At the end of my blog, before wrapping it up with my finishing lines of finally getting home to my kids, John was asking for my visit card to make an appointment to get rid of wrinkles and make himself more handsome for his wife.
And I’ll never forget how I got home that night and lifted my eyebrows in excitement when I heard my daughter Hana say: Daddy, you have mighty lines on your forehead! Ingenious way of describing wrinkles that only children have the capacity of!
To some people, wrinkles are almost complimentary as they age so well
Children are often natural-born philosophers and yes, wrinkles can be signs of a happy life filled with laughter and joy so it’s becoming to a lot of people to wear their wrinkles with pride, even consider them beautiful. Who am I to argue with that logic? In fact, I agree that wrinkles suit some men and women better, like gray hair or asymmetrical nose. If those people don’t wish to correct them, so be it. It’s all part of a self-image.
Many famous actresses and singers would be happy to remove the unwanted wrinkles but some, like the absolutely gorgeous Monica Belucci, simply choose to love them and in her case, she can surely pull it off for she looks fantastic nevertheless. So, I’d say, it’s all individual.
Wrinkles are caused by stress, smoking, sun exposure…
Not all wrinkles are caused by aging. Although genetics mainly determine skin structure and texture, many wrinkles are caused by sun exposure, stress, pollutants, dehydration or even sickness… Many wrinkles are not pretty at all for they give us a stern, angry or tired look or just significantly older than we would like it to be. That’s when I think we should intervene. Some may think that they have gone too far in neglecting themselves that way but the modern Aesthetic Medicine offers painless and natural solutions for everybody, no scalpel involved, no long recovery periods.
Botox for wrinkles – the most efficient treatment
When it comes to treating wrinkles with Botox or Hyaluronic dermal fillers, one must make sure the treatment is conducted with utter respect for natural Beauty and proportions of the Face, bearing in mind that we’re looking at a beautiful piece of Art. To intervene in it, one has to have a developed sense of profound Aestheticism. To choose the right doctor to remove those “mighty lines” means to choose a person you can trust to know what is beautiful, attractive or acceptable because, as we know well, sometimes less is more.
A Myth that Botox is a bad thing is fading away quickly
“Botox isn’t plastic surgery”, said the unavoidable Queen of modern social networks, Kim Kardashian. Kim pointed out that one of the reasons for a lot of people (although the number is known to be rapidly decreasing, I must say) to be skeptical of non-surgical treatments of wrinkles on one’s face and body is exactly that they still confuse them with surgical ones that are a lot more invasive. Today we have a number of non-surgical and non-invasive treatments known to improve the skin texture, keep it healthy and reduce wrinkles.
What exactly ARE wrinkles?
To understand what wrinkles really are, first we must understand what kinds of wrinkles are there. Also, we must understand their underlying condition to see why their removal is a sort of hygiene to the skin, prerequisite for a healthy and radiant appearance Aesthetic Medicine helps to preserve.
You can classify wrinkles using the underlying cause:
Gravitational Folds depend on the genetic factor which makes the skin lose its firmness and with age it begins to sag. To some people it’s a slower process, to some faster.
We also have Dynamic expression lines and so called Sleep (Position) wrinkles. Quite often we have wrinkles caused by external factor damage such as pollutants, smoking or UV rays exposure. Skin is our largest organ and if we are not careful and take precautions, the external factors will speed up the aging process and the formation of wrinkles.
How do the wrinkles form? What’s really going on?
Around 80% of the dermis is made of collagen, in a framework of connective tissue that gives the skin its firmness, woven in with the elastin that provides the skin with its ability to stretch and reform. With time, we lose skin’s elasticity, collagen and hyaluronic acid. Aging makes temporary damaging due to external factors permanent. What happens is a sort of fibrosis that unables the wrinkles to even out so the condition becomes permanent. Sleep wrinkles no longer smooth out during the day. Skin is thinning, losing elasticity, hydration and volume. Gravity folds are formed, the skin begins to sag and the wrinkles become deeper and more visible.
What types of wrinkles are there?
Dynamic lines also known as Worry lines often form at the forehead running horizontally across the top of the T-zone. Eye wrinkles or so called Crow feet radiate from the outer corners of the eyes. Nose wrinkles etch the bridge of the nose. Dynamic lines also include Upper Lip lines common with the smokers and Laugh lines (also called nasolabial folds). Wrinkles that form due to the aging process bring about the drooping of the cheeks and creating of an “eleven” between the so called Marionette lines under the lips. Wrinkles also form on the neck.
Which types of wrinkles are we prone to?
Wrinkles can be small and shallow but they can also be deeper and non-elastic, rigid. Some are easier to get rid off with basic treatments, some require combination of aesthetic treatments. Younger patients are known to get rid of wrinkles more easily than the older ones so I most certainly advise to start treatments early enough as a form of prevention and to get better, more natural looking results.
Still, some people are more prone to wrinkling than the others. Why is that? There are many reasons for that. Some just have genetic predisposition for slower aging. If your mother and father don’t have too many wrinkles, good chances are you won’t have them either!
Problematic skin – less wrinkles!
Good news for those who have problematic, oily skin! You are lucky for oily skin is less likely to get many wrinkles. Yet, there is an old saying: in the end, we all get what we deserve. The same principle applies to the skin. We all get skin that we deserve. By that, I speak of so much more than a smart choice of the experienced Aesthetic Medicine doctor.
Before I start describing what else you can do with your wrinkles, let me start with the basics. Here is some advice on prevention of premature wrinkling.
Smoking and sun exposure wrinkles
Don’t smoke. Just don’t. Smoking makes the skin lose its vibrance, shine, elasticity, become gray and wrinkles start appearing, especially above the lips.
Wear sunscreen. Don’t expose yourself to sun too much. UV rays are extremely damaging to the skin, especially UVA rays which are proven to damage skin even through a window glass.
Clean your face regularly because of the pollutants
Clean your face regularly with a mild agent such as Lait Biologique Recherche or something similar. The latest research show the pollutants in the air are one of the biggest factors in premature skin aging so it’s of utmost importance to clean the face of all those pollutants every evening. I personally do it every evening without exception.
Healthy food and vitamins
Start a healthy and balanced diet rich in carotenoids, flavonoids, vitamins A, C, D , E, proteins and probiotics. Eat a lot of oily fish (omega -3 fish oil is good for your skin). Include a lot of fruits in your diet: papaya, avocado, pineapple, watermellon, berries. Don’t foget the veggies: tomatoes, cucumbers, ginger, garlic. Take food supplements to help your skin glow, stay healthy and wrinkle-free.
Healthy life habits
Hydration is extremely important to fight wrinkles. Have at least 2 litres of water a day. Be active, do sports but don’t forget to protect the face with a cap, sunglasses and sunscreen. Get some sleep, many researchers have proven that sleep deprivation can cause overproduction of cortisol also known to be one of the factors in the creation of wrinkles as opposed to the growth hormone which is produced when we sleep. Alcohol and sleepless nights can be a lot of fun but in the long run you’re looking at more wrinkle treatments from your favourite Aesthetic Medicine doctor!
One more advice, a very important one. Sleep on your back if you wish to avoid the morning Sleep wrinkles.
How to eliminate wrinkles in Milojević Polyclinic
Finally, what can a facility like Milojević Polyclinic do for you and your wrinkles? It can do a lot and fast. Not to mention our efficiency. And no, I don’t wish to bore you with all the complex details of our procedures but rather give you a useful short guide through our treatments so here we go…
I can put our solutions to your wrinkle problems in three groups. Like I always say, three aces up our sleeve to eliminate your wrinkles and rejuvenate your skin.
1. Protection and treatment of damaged skin
By protection I mean all our cosmeceutical medicinal creams. We have excellent experiences with the three most efficient top brands in the world: Biologique Recherche, SkinCeuticals and ZO Obagi.
The right combination of creams, serums, vitamins, cleansers, SPF factor creams, creams rich in natural ingredients, vitamins and retinol can indeed protect, heal, even out, remove hyperpigmentation and deal with the wrinkles in the process.
2. Platelet-Rich Plasma, Laser treatments, Radiofrequency treatments
Talking about skin quality treatments, we offer quite a long list. From treating the skin with Platelet-rich plasma (PRP, PRGF) full of growth factors and stem cells known to accelerate wound healing and rejuvenate aging skin to Medical dermaroller Microneedling. We also offer biostimulator skin treatments, Hyaluronic acid Skinboosters like Restylane Vital or Juvederm Volite for skin stimulation and rejuvenation also via HydraFacial treatment or laser such as Laser Genesis. Not to mention Radiofrequency and Fraction laser.
In our skin rejuvenation and regeneration treatments we often simply stimulate the skin to regenerate itself, produce more of its natural collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid thus restoring its youthful appearance and eliminating the wrinkles.
3. Restoring facial volume and youthful appearance through dermal fillers
With age, face inevitably loses its volume and plumpness so it starts to crease, wrinkle and fold. Face gets a tired, drooping look, loses its natural shape and volume. Hyaluronic dermal fillers such as Juvederm or Restylane restore facial volume effectively and remove wrinkles. With dermal fillers we can make a non-surgical facelift and as the face restores its natural and original position, for instance, the nasolabial wrinkles automatically disappear. Dermal fillers can plump up even the deepest wrinkles and crevices on the face.
Botox for Dynamic Expression lines elimination
And last but not least! This is not a Botox blog, so I’ll make it short. Botox is the most efficient treatment to eliminate wrinkles on your face and neck and that is especially true for Dynamic Expression lines in mature and damaged skin. The treatment is simple. From three to five minutes is all that it takes for the muscles under the wrinkles to relax and even out. You can literally see the wrinkles disappear! Easy, natural, effective.
“Bore no more!”
I remember one Polyclinic Milojević big anniversary party. For the occasion, we had some beautiful and original T-shirts done. Turquoise “wrinkles” fading away in the distance were drawn out on them, turquoise like the colour of our Polyclinic. There was a big sign saying “Bore no more”. Bore, which is Croatian for wrinkles, made a witty wordplay with “no more” thus connecting my two languages which is exactly the sentiment close to my heart and life philosophy.
In our soft and experienced expert hands, if that is your wish, the wrinkles on your skin will be nothing but a loving memory you put behind to join those past experiences that were a part of their formation.
Take care of your skin, protect and pamper it. For it’s the only one you got…