Mum who thought she was going to die after lip filler issues ‘cosmetic cowboy’ warning

Warning: This article contains content which some readers may find distressing.

A woman who was hoping to banish some wrinkles has told how getting dermal fillers from an unlicensed practitioner landed her with a deadly infection.

Following her disastrous experience, Helena Collard is now urging others who are considering cosmetic procedures to do their due diligence before they go ahead.

After putting her trust into a so-called professional who she found via social media, the mum ended up fighting for her life in hospital and has now been left with permanent scarring.

Helena bravely appeared on This Morning on Monday (26 October) to recount her ordeal and explain how taking a gamble on an unlicensed practitioner can seriously jeopardise your health.

The 59-year-old told the hosts of the ITV show, Dermot O’Leary and Sian Welby, that she started stewing over solutions to get rid of her wrinkles in February this year – and 24 hours later, she received dermal fillers.

According to the British College of Aesthetic Medicine (BCAM), these injectable fillers can ‘replace lost volume and add more definition to the face’, while reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

It explains that it is ‘normal for your skin to be red and swollen’ after the procedure, while bruising and itchiness is also to be expected – however, you should immediately contact your practitioner and seek medical attention if you encounter any other sinister symptoms, as dermal fillers can cause infection, lumps, nodules, and blocked arteries.

The BCAM adds: “An appropriately trained practitioner will know how to successfully prevent and manage complications. Don’t be afraid to ask them about their processes in advance of treatment.”

Unfortunately for Helena, she ended up paying a high price after instead seeking out this service from a person she saw touting cosmetic procedures on Facebook.

Explaining why she wanted dermal fillers, Helena told Dermot and Sian: “I woke up one morning and looked in the mirror and thought, ‘Oh wow, you’re looking really old and wrinkly’.

“I’d lost some weight and I just didn’t feel good about myself, so [I thought], let’s change it.”

She explained she sent the unidentified practitioner a selfie and outlined what she was hoping to achieve, and the next day, she headed to his home.

Discussing how it all happened so quickly, Helena said: “If I’d have booked it for three or four weeks in advance, I probably wouldn’t have gone and totally wasted my deposit. So I thought, ‘Right, just do it’.

“Otherwise I would just overthink – perhaps it would have been better if I overthought, but there we go….I do feel silly. At my age, I should know better.”

‘I couldn’t even leave the house’

Recounting what happened on the fateful day, Helena said that she did not sign any paperwork or have a proper consultation, and was instead simply daubed in some numbing cream.

Despite initially being impressed with the results, the mum soon realised something wasn’t quite right as her face continued to swell in the days after the procedure.

Helena claimed she then contacted the practitioner with her concerns, who informed her it was a ‘normal’ reaction while reassuring her she should ‘not worry’ – but things only got worse.

She went on: “I remember saying to my daughter, ‘People go out after a filler, how the hell can they go out? I couldn’t even leave the house. I was in pain, the swelling got worse. I was struggling to eat, drink… it really hurt.”

The Brit ended up taking herself to hospital, where medics informed her that she had contracted a skin infection known as cellulitis.

This can turn sinister fast if it is not treated promptly, as the NHS explains that ‘the infection can spread to other parts of the body, such as the blood, muscles and bones’ and ultimately lead to sepsis.

“I ended up very, very ill from it,” Helena said. “I remember one night, I felt so ill I didn’t want to bother anyone. I just thought, ‘I need to stay awake, I need to stay awake’.

“I didn’t feel totally right at all. Next thing, there was everyone around me. I ended up having emergency surgery.”

While some of the gruesome pictures showing how her face fared against cellulitis appeared on screen, Helena explained that doctors ‘couldn’t risk’ trying to dissolve the filler that had been injected into her face.

“So, they cut every area that was injected, because it was full of infection,” she said.

Doctor says there were ‘so many red flags’

Despite being left with some permanent scarring, Helena managed to overcome her ordeal – but is now desperate to stop others from making the same mistake as she did.

Sharing some advice for those considering similar cosmetic procedures, she added: “Do your research, really look into things, check whether people have got the qualifications, check their [doing] things the right way.”

Skin health specialist Dr Amiee Vyas was sat alongside the mum on This Morning and explained that the medical community has long been campaigning for the government to introduce regulation that will put a stop to these cosmetic cowboys.

“While these treatments do enhance beauty, they are not beauty treatments, they are medical treatments,” she explained. “There are needles going in, you need to have an understanding of anatomy, cleanliness, and so on.”

Dr Vyas reckons there were ‘so many red flags’ in Helena’s story, saying: “From the cost, how quickly it happened, the lack of paperwork, the treatment, the aftercare…there was none.”

“I also want to flag the images we’re showing here are the ones that we are able to show on daytime TV during half-term, so it did get worse than this.”

She urged people to avoid blindly facing their faith in practitioners they stumble across on social media, while calling for folks to thoroughly check the credentials of service providers.

After being contacted by This Morning, the man behind Helena’s botched fillers said that he ‘never set out to cause injury’ and that he ‘supports raising raising awareness of filler allergies’.

The Department of Health described Helena’s experience as ‘unacceptable’, and added: “We’re introducing a licensing scheme to ensure any practitioners carrying out these treatments are properly trained, insured and working to safe standards to ensure what happened to Helena does not happen to others.”

Last week, the UK Government announced new rules that mean any treatment that involves injecting dermal fillers anywhere other than the face, such as BBLs, are legally defined as cosmetic surgical procedures and will only be able to be carried out by qualified medics. Other procedures that are deemed to be high-risk, including deep chemical peels and vampire facials will be restricted to doctors, dentists, some nurses, midwives and pharmacists.

Those found breaking the rules could be hit with an unlimited fine or a fixed penalty of up to £4,000.