I’ve been going to Expert Centre for my laser hair removal regime for quite some time now and upon browsing their treatment list at my last visit, decided to treat myself to a hair regrowth procedure and Vampire facial to keep my skin and hair looking and feeling far more youthful than the number of candles on my birthday cake this year!

Both of these procedures us Platelet-Rich-Plasma (PRP) which is extracted from your own blood and used to naturally stimulate regrowth and nourishment within the body; I decided to have these two treatments at the same time seeing as my blood was being extracted and can be used in multiple ways, despite one being for the face and the other the scalp.

Here I will share my individual results, thoughts and feelings and hope that in doing so I can shed some light and information on what to expect should you consider having either of these treatments yourself – it’s always nice to know somebody who has been through it first!

In order to have these two treatments I firstly had to have three vials of blood taken from my arm, just like having a blood test at the doctors. I felt a small scratch in the crease of my arm whilst the needle went in and within a couple of minutes the vials were filled and the needle removed. I didn’t feel lightheaded or dizzy at all, even though it looked like a lot of blood had been taken, it was infact only 3ml – 1ml per vial.

My blood was then put into a centrifuge for processing where it is spun for ten minutes in order to separate the plasma from blood. It is then put into a syringe ready for us. Whilst this was happening I had my face cleansed and numbed for my facial and my hair combed and assessed for my scalp treatment as the practitioner talked me through everything to expect.

The plasma is a golden yellow colour and floats to the top of the vial whilst the heavier blood sinks to the bottom making it easier for a syringe to collect the plasma. It was fascinating to see how it works and it put me at ease to know that everything used was completely natural from my own blood with no side-effects or hidden chemicals.

The three vials of my blood amounted to seven syringes of plasma which is enough to do a facial and scalp treatment; however, if you are having just one of these treatments then less blood is needed during extraction.

Having bleached, heat-damaged and destroyed my hair in my youth, I noticed a big change in my hairs health and thickness after having my second child in my mid-twenties. Now approaching 33yrs old my hair is limp, thin and my scalp visible in places which is why this safe and natural treatment really appeals to me.

PRP Hair Regrowth

This treatment is especially useful for those with thinning or falling-out hair with sparse patches as the plasma works to restore the hair to its natural thickness. PRP for hair loss works by stimulating natural regrowth in the hair follicles with a selection of plasma injections across the top and sides of the head.

The growth factors in plasma effectively feed the scalp with nutrients and enhance blood supply which enables regrowth in the follicles and reduces hair loss resulting in healthier thicker hair. This treatment can also be combined with scalp products, LED Light therapy and dermarollering to achieve maximum results.

The plasma taken from my blood and put into syringes was then injected directly into my scalp every few centimetres apart to cover from my hairline all the way back to my crown. This process stimulates the body’s natural healing process and growth factors begin to work within the hair follicles.

This treatment can be performed with or without numbing the scalp, but for mine I chose not to have pain relief because I wanted to know what it felt like and also try to avoid unnecessary products/chemicals and pain relief where possible.

The sensation of the needle going into my scalp felt very similar to fillers, only in an unusual location as we don’t usually experience needles in the head. The treatment without pain relief was bearable, more uncomfortable and unusual in sensation than painful in my opinion, but I’d imagine it would be far less noticeable with a numbing agent applied beforehand.

This is a non-surgical treatment for those experiencing hair loss, thinning and sparse patches much like feeding a plant food to fill the soil with nutrients and help it to grow tall and strong, the scalp achieving optimal health enables hair to thicken and flourish. However, this treatment cannot help to restore hair to those who are already bald or have areas with no follicles.

It is recommended that you have a minimum of 3-6 sessions to be able to notice a significant improvement, with regular sessions every four weeks giving optimal results; it is certainly something to persevere with and be patient. When we think of how slowly hair seems to grow when we want it to, you have to allow time for the body’s natural processes to work.

There is no downtime for this treatment and I was able to return to my day as usual, having to wait 12hrs before washing my hair. Where the needles were positioned I had some small pin-prick size dots of blood which the practitioner wiped away with an antiseptic cleansing wipe that left my hair slightly damp as if I’d been caught in the rain.

Expert Centre specialise in PRP hair regrowth treatments and are one of the leading service providers in the UK for this. After a complete course you may experience 30% more hair regrowth in thinning areas, whilst your existing hair is prevented from falling out and will begin to grow thicker and more nourished – all in all, a very safe, natural and effective way to enhance what you have conveniently within a lunch break without requiring surgery.

Vampire Facial

Following my PRP Hair Regrowth treatment, my face was nicely numb ready for my Vampire Facial. The Vampire facial is a beauty treatment loved by celebrities across the world for its natural beauty-boosting benefits. Your own blood is used to brighten, tighten and smooth the skin of the face for natural and effective anti-ageing with no side-effects.

The practitioner began by injecting my blood plasma back into my face in areas where I’ve lost volume from age and sun exposure. The areas she targeted were my cheeks, under eyes and smile lines around my mouth and the sensation was very much the same as having filler with a sharp thin needle that was hardly noticeable because of my face being numbed.

The plasma taken from my blood is smeared across my face which combined with micro-needling helps to create controlled traumas to the skin and promotes healing, cell turnover and natural collagen production. Whilst it may look alarming to see my face covered in blood, I must stress again that this is an entirely safe treatment with zero side effects and a fantastic alternative to fillers.

The under eye area is very delicate and prone to bruising for which I was expecting to have small dot-like bruises where the needle was used. I suffer terribly from dark under eye circles and so this treatment helps to refresh and plump out the skin to minimise shadows are sunken-in darkening.

Platelets in the blood contain high levels of growth factors which have pure skin-boosting benefits. The use of micro-needling with PRP allows the plasma to penetrate down to deeper layers beneath the skin via a series of pinpricks which actively promotes collagen and elastin, stimulates cell turnover and leaves you with a more voluminous, fresh and youthful complexion.

The most sensitive part of this treatment is certainly on the forehead which feels like a hard pushing and scratching sensation, even with numbing cream. I can only really compare it to scratching your knee on the playground at school, only more gently on the surface as opposed to deeply cutting open the skin and bleeding heavily.

In areas where there is less tissue it is more tender, the rest of the face is soft and squishy in comparison and the forehead was the only part that I found uncomfortable but not unbearable. Many people notice frown lines and fine wrinkles across the forehead from self-expression and sun exposure; I had fillers to my forehead and crowsfeet around a month ago for which this treatment is suitable to have after two weeks. Fillers work to relax the muscles of the face and this facial works to even the texture and complexion of the skin which together achieves the best results.

The Vampire Facial is widely celebrated for reducing fine lines and wrinkles, acne scarring and open pores to create a naturally refreshed look and this is my second time having this facial as I previously had it around 18months ago and loved the results so much I couldn’t wait to repeat it. This is certainly going to be part of my winter routine to repair and replenish my skin after the sun exposure and dryness of the summer.

This treatment is suitable for those with ageing skin, fine lines, wrinkles, scarring and acne scarring and results are noticeable from the very first session, with a course of six treatments recommended every 3-4weeks for maximum effect. Although the skin will instantly look fresh and rejuvenated, the real results will be visible four weeks after the treatment once the body’s natural healing processes have completed collagen production.

Immediately after treatment my face is cleansed and soothed with an SPF50 sun screen and the small pinpricks that bled during treatment close. My skin is left feeling plump, slightly moist and warm and it’s lovely to step outside and feel the fresh cold air on my face. I’m unable to wear makeup on the day of my treatment to prevent clogging my pores and travelled home happily on the train with a face mask for Covid looking like I’d been to a sauna or had a touch of sunburn.

Directly after treatment it is normal to expect redness, swelling and puffiness to the face which will naturally reduce within a day or two. You may also experience peeling three to five days after treatment as the face sheds dead skin cells which will complete within a week.

I was advised to apply E45 cream to my face to keep it soothed and hydrated as it felt warm to the touch and as if I’d exfoliated myself with a rough cloth. It’s a wonderful sensation to feel the cream soak into the skin and by the following morning it felt less hot and the redness began to calm, instead looking like I had a few scratches scattered here and there from the micro-needling.

Facials work by cleansing, exfoliating and nourishing the skin whilst removing dead cells, with some treatments being milder than others. This is perhaps one of the more involved facials that you can have, which obviously gives the most longer lasting and noticeable results because of the more invasive processes used with micro-needling as opposed to using an everyday exfoliating cream or rough cloth at home.

I applied makeup 48hrs after treatment to cover the rest of my redness that was left, as it was the weekend I happily stayed at home during the stormy weather and applied cream to my face a handful of times each day whilst catching up on work and tending to my children. 72hrs after my treatment my skin began to tighten and crack lightly on the surface, much like having a peel but very superficial. It isn’t massively noticeable when wearing makeup and I happily went to the gym and shopping as usual without anybody mentioning it.

My skin now looks and feels so plump, fresh, dewy and new with my fine lines and wrinkles reduced and my cheeks and under eyes no longer sunken and hollow. I feel fresher, brighter and look far less worn all. Expert Centre have the most professional knowledgeable staff and state-of-the-art equipment and beauty techniques to devise individual treatment plans based upon your unique skin type, condition and needs; this has to be one of my favourite facials and the natural long-lasting results really speak for themselves.

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