You've seen it before on celebrities, on social media, and in your neighborhood. People who have taken their facial fillers too far. Maybe you've noticed their lips are overdone and out of proportion, or perhaps their cheeks are far too elevated. How does this happen?  Dr. Nowell Solish, a board-certified dermatologist says, "You see it all over social media, and I think a lot of it is bad to be totally honest." 

It may seem that everyone is going too far, but that's not necessarily the case. Maybe you just aren't noticing the people with natural-looking fillers. As a renowned specialist in the field of facial injections, Solish says if you can tell someone had something done, it usually means it wasn't done well. But he says, "If you think someone looks great, rested, and they hardly age or like they just came back from vacation, chances are they're probably getting something done and the person they're going to is doing a great job," states Solish. And that's the way it should be. We shouldn't look like a caricature of ourselves!

Is Your Physician's Staff Over Treated?

When you walk in your doctor's office, take a quick inventory of how the staff looks. Are they overdone or do they look natural and rested? "I always tell my patients, especially new ones, look at my staff. If you think any of them are overdone, walk out, because they're all getting treated, including me. I think overtreatment is really an epidemic," says Solish.

Exaggerated Fillers: The New "Normal"

One of the worst offenders is the lips. Solish explains that many people want the look of overdone lips. I think many times, we get used to seeing the exaggerated look on social media or celebrities and we think, this is the new normal. But Solish says this look is too much for most people and the proportions are all off. "The hard thing for me is, I have a lot of patients coming in who actually want that, and that's not me. And so I gently and nicely have to turn them away."

The Right Proportion in Facial Fillers

So what's going on with the lips that make them look unnatural? Solish says a lot of it has to do with proportions. First, the lips are out of proportion to their face. And second, the upper and lower lip are out of proportion to each other. "They're making the upper lip too big compared to the lower lip and also in projection. What I mean by projection is, the upper lip coming forward," says Solish. Think, Marge Simpson. 

"You can't take someone with a very small lip, and make it large, you really just can't do it. What you really want to do is shape a lip, make it look nice, make the contour look good and make it match the face. The best analogy for me is a nose job. You can't take someone with Mediterranean features and a large face and give them a tiny nose that you would see on a Caucasian petite woman. It just doesn't match. I try to always make it match and blend with the person. And if that's not what they desire, that's okay, it's just not going to be me that does it." 

Talk to your physician or injector and trust them when they tell you, you've had enough fillers. Don't be one of the over-treated, instead, be the one with fillers that no one can see.