My First Perlane Experience

I had been waiting for Perlane hyaluronic acid for as long as I can remember and finally received an email that Dr. James Romano got some in! Well, the end of the day it was GONE. I had missed my window, What luck. But, I called lalena at his office and she said give it a few weeks so I waited some more :( FINALLY IT CAME IN and a syringe was set aside for me!

I luckily got an appt. within a week (I was going to Vegas for one of our get togethers and needs nice lips NOW). I went to Dr. R's office, was greeted by Lalena and Robert (both whom I adore).

June 11, 2002

I got sent into a treatment room with my informed consent sheets - signed them all in a hurry. Afterall, I've read them a thousand times ;) Dr. R went over everything anyway -- just as he should -- just to be sure.

We went over my lips again on what I had before and have presently, etc. My history with my infections, etc. No incidents of oral herpes, cold sores, keloiding, etc. We then took a series of before and afters which he was sweet enough to send me a copy of each one, even the unflattering, eyeshalfwayclosed photos.

He swabbed some Oragel-type stuff on the inner part of my lips to numb them for my submucosal injections of Lidocaine and bicarbonate (isn't he sweet! he added bicarbonate so the pain reliever shots didn't sting or burn).

Dr. R said he had learned to do the submucosal pain reliever injections from Dr. Lemperle (you know, the inventor of Artecoll ). They are sort of superficial and not straight in - more parallel to the lips. I think, I wasn't exactly watching. I was gritting my teeth really hard and making an awful furrow between my brow. Thank goodness I am scheduled for Botox next week, LOLOL!

We waited a bit and he gave me a hand mirror and then proceeded to inject the vermilion border on the right side (I have asymmetry of the right side of my lips - upper and lower).

Then he brought out the Perlane!! Perlane comes in .7 cc prepackaged syringes. TINY needle. Totally clear as if it were water! My lips and mouth area were swabbed with alcohol. He then injected the cupid's bow and left upper vermilion border. PERFECTLY EVEN with my vermilion and it augmented and defined it SO well! I kept hearing a weird popping sound though. Even after he had stopped injecting and the needle was nowhere near my lip, but the sporadic air bubble type popping noise came from my lip anyway!

Then he began to inject into the wet part of the lip, and a little further back to turn my mucosa out slightly. I looked at it in the hand mirror, then he added a bit more to the right side (I have deficient tissue with a tight integument so it restricts my lip more on the left upper side.

He then massaged my lips a bit with both hands from above and behind me with gloved hands and a piece of gauze.
Next he injected the wet area of my lower lip. I remembered what mimi said about the 2 cc so I told him about that. Dr. R said that would be too much but I now know I should have gotten another cc more in the bottom and top 2 cc would have been perfect as an overlay with my GoreTex. He squeezed the last bit as best as he could to get every bit and the syringe cracked!! LOL! What a strong man! I actually thought "OMG the needle is lost in my lip!" But I saw it just cracked the syringe and was relieved.

I bled a bit - don't know why. I don't take aspirin or anything BUT my thyroid supplements and birth control. We took an "after" with the box of Perlane and Dr. R and I :) hehehe. Lips all funny looking and dry from alcohol. Dr. R told Marc to tell Robert (one of his staff) to get HIM a valium because he thought my lips looked so good HAHAHAHAA!! I would like my lips to be this big all the time (a little bigger on the bottom). PERMANENTLY!

*Note: I am a little out of it, it wasn't exactly "cake" but it was well worth it. You know I am all about showing the reality of a procedure, eyes half closed (because I was blinking) and all. Isn't Dr. Romano a cutie?!

We left went to Ben and Jerry's and I tried to drink a fruit smoothie and all I wound up doing was placing a cup of ice up against my lips. They started to bruise and I looked like either I got hit in the mouth or I was a crackhead. lol! I stopped to look in the mirror at Lancome and the make up guy asked "what happened, are you okay?" I said, I'm fine, I just got injected with Perlane!" :) and he said "then you know you're gonna look good girl!" LMAO!!

Is topped to go to the bathroom and freshen up a little and a girl asked if I was okay - I looked all sad, dabbing at my lips. TOTALLY walking in public dabbing at my HUGE lips (swelling). I told her what happened and she said "oh how fun!! good luck!". I am shameless.

We were supposed to go back to Dr. R's to talk shop and what not at 6:10 pm so we met him back there after our Ben & Jerry's. My lips look gorgeous by then! I must say though I could already tell I wanted more in my bottom lip. He told me to wait for swelling to go down and come back the next week

I had a lot of bruising but have been using triple antibiotic (praying my lip implants wouldn't get infected) and arnica montana gel. The bruises are going away faster than I thought they would. At least at first. (It wound up taking 8 to 9 days total for the bruises to subside)

June 12 & 13, 2002 - Day 2 & 3 (left & far right photos, no make up)

June 14 & 15, 2002 - Day 4 & 5 (no make up)

Hindsight is 20/20

I think if I had to do it over - I'd take Vitamin C and some arnica and bromelain starting a few days beforehand. And bring him a case of rocket pops so I can ice afterwards. :) And 2 cc would be NICE!

Overall?

I LOVE IT! All I now is I could get EASILY addicted, but at $550. a cc - I have to give up something in return. Unfortunately I don't have anything I could give up. LOL!

Well, hopefully when Artecoll comes out I can get that JUST like I got the Artecoll in the vermilion, I adore it. We talked about augmenting my philtral ridges because well, I have NONE. Plus micropigmentation to give my lips more shape and symmetry.

All I can say is Perlane ROCKS! I can't wait to get more in my bottom lip. Dr. R is SO competent and soothing, and just so skilled with injections -- I mean it is SO even. RIGHT SMACK under the vermilion border and a little out in the white roll. It is just how I want it, but permanently :)

June 17, 2002: I got collagen in the vermilion bottom, right before an engagement. I couldn't afford (both financially and timewise) to get more Perlane. You get what you pay for though, the collagen wasn't as nice as the Perlane. End result...