Welcome to the new era of INTENTIONAL AGEING

More women are skipping facelifts and opting for less-or non-invasive treatments to refresh rather than change how they look. Sally Hunwick looks at some of the most accessible ways to address the signs of ageing

- Sally Hunwick

Not so long ago, anti-ageing was very much part of the vernacular. Ageing was feared and youth was the goal. We chased a younger version of ourselves with major facelifts and arguably far too much botulinum toxin and filler. But instead of getting our fresh, 20-year-old face back, what stared back in the mirror was an overtightened, over-filled face that only barely resembled its owner.

Lately, though, there has been a shift. Women are still seeking out surgeons and cosmetic physicians, but rather than major facelifts often they are opting for non- or minimally invasive treatments to refresh rather than alter how they look.

Why the paradigm change? Experts theorise that some women could be looking to their mothers or grandmothers, whose quest for youth has resulted in less-than natural results. Or it could be the pictures on our social feeds showing certain celebrities, once the epitome of beauty, now looking tight and painfully over-filled.

This aesthetic backflip where women’s primary goal is not youth at all costs but a better version of themselves also comes from an increased supply of options. A new wave of technology – including buzztreatments such as Morpheus8, IPL, Matrix PDO and HIFU – promises real results without surgery. And we’re booking in droves.

Dr Joseph Hkeik, a high-profile cosmetic doctor in Sydney, says that women are keen for a more natural result and are increasingly looking to tech and injectables to get it. “As most women are starting the rejuvenation journey earlier, less is required as they face the ageing process,” says Hkeik.