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By Lollie Hancock
Beauty and Self Care Reporter
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The esthetics market is booming, with anti-wrinkle injections and dermal filler a key element of the beauty regime for an estimated million-plus people in the United States alone each year, according to the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery.
Many people have opted for these "tweakments" and the maintenance that comes with them for years—only to find that they no longer connect with their natural faces after undergoing removal or dissolving their treatments.
One woman sharing how years of filler have affected her self-image is 21-year-old Ksennia Krainia, who first got filler at just 18. The Ukrainian content creator, who lives in Germany, posted a now-viral video on TikTok (@kseniia_beauty) about how she "can't accept" her natural face after 11ml of filler was dissolved.
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The video, shared on June 13, has since gained over 3.3 million views and 140,000 likes.
"I first had my lips done when I turned 18," Krainia told Newsweek. "I eagerly awaited this moment because my upper lip was very small. Due to not accepting my appearance, I thought I would look better if I added fillers to my facial features."
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Valued at $6.34 billion in 2022, the dermal filler market offers noninvasive solutions to eliminate the appearance of wrinkles, increase fullness, restore fat loss, improve facial symmetry and more. Like many, a single treatment led to a series of lifting here and smoothing there for Krainia.
"Six months later, I had my chin done and lips again...I visited the cosmetologist approximately once a year for filler corrections. In total, I had 11 ml of fillers in my face: 3.5 ml in my lips, 2.5 ml in my chin, and 5 ml in my jawline," she said.
Three years later, she began dissolving her filler.
"I want to say that fillers partly helped me love myself, but most of the work was done internally. Now, I fully accept my appearance and don't consider myself unattractive," she said.
Despite this new perspective, Krainia hasn't been fully put off fillers, admitting, "I do want to get small lip and chin fillers again to harmonize my face."
"I feel a significant imbalance between my appearance and my inner self," she said. "Honestly, inside, I feel like a strong, determined girl with character, while my face without fillers looks soft and harmless, which I don't like."
Krainia is far from the first person to feel like she'd taken filler too far.
"Many people believe that fillers will make them look younger when, in reality, a combination of small adjustments could be the solution. The aesthetic industry is continuously advancing, offering a variety of treatments beyond anti-wrinkle injections and fillers," Dr. Sindhu Siddiqi, the founder of No Filter Clinic in London, told Newsweek.
"Currently, bioregenerative treatments such as Polynucleotides and Sculptra, which help the body reproduce its own collagen, are very popular. There are also skin-tightening lasers and treatments that improve skin sagging and fine lines."
Siddiqui stressed that practitioners should exercise caution when administering filler.
"The main aim with fillers should always be enhancement rather than change while preserving the individual's unique facial expressions and characteristics," she said.
Krainia's biggest takeaway from the experience serves as a good reminder to us all: "Through my experience, I want to say that there's nothing wrong with wanting to improve yourself, even if it involves your face and injections.
"However, the key is to achieve high self-esteem without relying on fillers and to responsibly choose your cosmetologist and the products they will inject into your beautiful face."
After seeing varying views in the comments on her video, Krainia was prompted to add, "Ladies, you are beautiful regardless, with or without fillers. Don't pay attention to society dictating its rules to you.
"Judging by the comments on my posts, you can see that it's impossible to please everyone, no matter how hard you try. Everyone has their own tastes. Love and appreciate yourself."
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