‘Dodgy Botox left me with horrific scars and too embarrassed to point out my face’

A mum has spoken out about a terrible brush with Botox that left her with painful, unsightly abscesses.

Samantha Lougher, a full-time carer for her mother, got Botox injections from an aesthetician she hadn’t visited before. The 58-year-old, who lives in Cheshire, regularly has cosmetic treatments but had never experienced negative side effects.

It is suspected the needle used was dirty or the area was not cleaned properly. She was left with enormous boils on her jaw that weren’t just painful but embarrassing too.

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“I first had filler about 10 years ago,” Samantha said.

“The first time I was just talked into it by a friend of mine.

“I really didn’t think about it then, it was a spontaneous thing.

“Lots of my friends have filler – it’s quite normal.

“For this procedure in August, I went to someone new with my friend.

“I was having filler around my chin area and I asked her to just do my fine lines as well.

“It was very spontaneous.

“I thought it would be an easy procedure.

“I have had filler probably three times before this and I’ve never had any problems.

“She put some numbing cream on and started to inject the filler.

“It probably took about 15 minutes. I felt that it was really painful which is not normal.

“My friend even said ‘I can see you are in agony’.”

Samantha was worried, but the aesthetician reassured her, saying she just needed to put a cold compress on it.

Samantha was due to head to a close friend’s wedding in Spain but didn’t want to go due to the appearance of the boils that were now developing on her chin.

“It was very red at first – she kept saying ‘it will be okay, put a cold compress on and stop taking your aspirin’,” Samantha explains.

“The redness just went into blisters and huge boils all around my chin area, and they were just full of pus.

“I was embarrassed on the plane – I didn’t want to go, and I didn’t leave the hotel when we got there. I didn’t go to the wedding.

“The aesthetician said it would go down.

“It just didn’t seem to ever get better.

“I went to the doctors, and they put me on antibiotics.

“It is now seven weeks later, and I’ve still got scabs.”

When Samantha got back from Spain, she decided to visit Dr Ed Robinson, a cosmetic aesthetics doctor specialising in non-surgical approaches for men and women.

“I first saw Dr Ed the day after I got back from Spain,” Samantha said.

“He was amazing, he knew what to do instantly and has been such a lifesaver.

“He has been dissolving the abscesses and has put me on different antibiotics for acne now.

“I never expected any side effects or complications.

“This experience has definitely put me off getting any future procedures.

“Dr Ed told me that even if I wanted to, I cannot do any procedure for at least a year.

“The infection was so bad that it can come back easily.

“Dr Ed believes that it could have been a dirty needle, not cleaning the face properly, or using the wrong filler.”

But she added: “These procedures really aren’t worth it, you need to go to someone that is qualified, like a doctor or a nurse.

“It’s embarrassing when this happens because you’ve done it yourself – you’ve put yourself in that position.

“I feel totally embarrassed walking around the streets.

“I’d rather have my fine lines than this.”

Dr Ed has nearly finished treating Samantha with a course of antibiotics and will continue to treat the scarring that is left on her face.

“In her case, she’s been lucky,” the doctor said.

“Due to the extent of the infection, I think this was caused by a contaminated filler or needle, or the skin was not cleaned prior to injection.

“The lack of regulation in the UK aesthetics industry has allowed clinics to thrive which do not carry out these procedures to the meticulous standard required for safe patient care.

He added: “Patients are often drawn in by clinics which look safe due to their marketing and social media followers.

“These low prices can seem very appealing to patients but unfortunately you buy cheap you buy twice, and you might have to spend a lot more on correction.”

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