These days, getting eight hours of sleep is considered a rare occurrence.
As a result, most of us are paying the price of sleepless nights manifested in the form of dark eye circles and under-eye bags that make us look dull, tired and older than we actually are.
While it is commonly understood that dark eye circles and eye bags are a result of a lack of sleep—the truth is, it can also be due to a plethora of factors such as:
- Genetics
- Allergies
- Pigmentation from excessive rubbing or scratching
- Sun exposure
- Stress
- Thinning skin and loss of fat and collagen from the natural ageing process
- Naturally deep tear troughs
Regardless of the cause, if you find yourself constantly donning on a tired appearance and are on the hunt for a solution without having to go under the knife—consider opting for non-surgical eye bag removal! But more on that later.
First, let’s dive deeper into the underlying cause of under-eye baggage!
Dark eyes circles vs under-eye bags
Otherwise known as preorbital hyperpigmentation, the root cause of dark eye circles is simply excess pigmentation and lack of blood flow to the capillaries in the lower eyelid—resulting in a persistent darkness under the eyes. As we age, the skin gets thinner which enhances the visibility of the blood vessels.
Genetics tends to play a huge role in the development of panda eyes, and it can be made worse by various lifestyle factors such as not getting enough ZZZs and allergies.
On the other hand, under-eye bags are what happens when the muscles and skin supporting our eyelids start to weaken as we age. As a result, the fat that is normally used to support our eyes start to migrate into the lower eyelids, leading to the formation of a pouch that is targeted by fluid (and hence the puffiness).
No thanks to the pull of gravity, our eye bags are further accentuated by volume loss from not just the eyelids but also skin laxity of the cheeks and tear trough due to the natural and gradual loss of collagen and elastin resources.
While eye bags are often visible when you look upwards; in severe cases, the eye bag is protruding and noticeable at all times. “True” eye bags are those that are genetic and not caused by lifestyle factors like smoking or consuming too much sodium.
Both dark eye circles and under eyes bags are two completely different problems that require different solutions, and accurately assessing which issue you are dealing with is the first step to finding the right treatment for you.
An easy way to find out what you are suffering from is to conduct the pinch test: gently lift the skin under your eyes between two fingers and see if the darkness goes away—if the answer is yes, it’s likely that you’ve got under-eye bags and not dark eye circles.
How to treat dark eye circles and under-eye bags
To quickly summarize, both dark eye circles and under-eye bags can be treated using dermal fillers, chemical peels, laser therapy or surgery.
While going for surgery (aka blepharoplasty or scarless eye bag removal) used to be the only viable treatment to remove undesirable eye bags, the advent of minimally-invasive and non-surgical eye bag removal has allowed patients to achieve great results without going under the knife.
In fact, non-surgical eye bag removal is ideal if you want a solution that offers faster results, a lower risk of adverse side effects and minimal downtime.
Just like any acne treatment, the best solution is a combination approach to correct multiple aspects of ageing around the eyes at once, whether it be fine lines and wrinkles or pigmentation!
Get brighter, more beautiful eyes
Our doctors have painstakingly crafted the Eye Bag Protocol that combines both AGNES and SECRET RF to effectively shrink and safely treat your eye bags!
Using the power of radiofrequency (RF) energy, fine micro-needles are used to penetrate the skin and deliver energy to successfully break down the subcutaneous fat that is weighing down the eyes. At the same time, the treatment works to stimulate collagen and elastin production to tighten and rejuvenate the eye area.
Why use both AGNES and SECRET? While both are RF devices, AGNES is employed to deliver fixed-depth, concentrated RF energy while SECRET works to deliver energy at more controlled levels across all layers of the subcutaneous fat.
This results in a synergistic effect that allows our doctors to breakdown larger under-eye bags that used to be possible only with surgery.
Other treatment options that we offer include dermal fillers (e.g. Restylane) and lasers (e.g. Fractional CO2 laser, pulsed-eye lasers) to help target volume loss, sagging skin and pigmentation to enhance your results!
Always remember to get in touch with a professional and highly-experience aesthetic doctor that you can trust and feel comfortable with. Our doctors are the pioneers of using both AGNES and SECRET RF for treating under eye bags and possess decades of experience handling the device.
In fact, our doctors can also employ these devices to remove an unwanted and stubborn acne scar or utilize them as part of an acne laser treatment.
We are proud to say that our non-surgical eye bag removal methods are able to achieve faster and permanent results comparable to that of surgery!
If you are ready to get started on your treatment journey—give us a call to book your consultation today!
FAQ
1. Who is the ideal candidate for non-surgical eye bag removal?
The ideal candidate for non-surgical eye bag removal is someone with mild-to-moderate eye bags and whose skin is not severely loose around the eye area.
That being said, it is possible to reduce the size of larger eye bags when both AGNES and SECRET RF are employed; however, do take note that multiple sessions are required to see the best results.
Patients who have tried everything under the sun to remove their eye bags and have not achieved any results are also good candidates for non-surgical eye bag removal.
Before starting any treatment, our doctors will first conduct a detailed consultation to better understand and evaluate your facial anatomy and eye area to determine the amount of fat and excess skin that needs to be removed and recommend the best solution for you.
2. What is the treatment like?
The non-surgical eye bag removal treatment follows 3 key steps:
- Step 1: Topical local anaesthesia is applied for 30 minutes to minimize any pain or discomfort during treatment.
- Step 2: Local anaesthesia is injected to help numb the skin and tissues around the eye bag.
- Step 3: RF energy is delivered using the AGNES and SECRET device to melt the fat cells and tighten the dermis.
The entire process takes just 20 minutes (not including anaesthesia) and some slight swelling, bruising and redness can be expected at the lower eyelids that should subside within a week.
3. How soon can I expect to see results?
It typically takes 1 month to start seeing an improvement, and depending on the severity of your eye bags, a total of 1 to 3 sessions over 1 to 2 months is required. Some patients may even start seeing results just 2 weeks after their first session!
After an entire treatment cycle, results usually last for about 3 to 5 years; however, with proper skin maintenance and healthy lifestyle habits, it is possible that you will not need any further treatment!