I turned 30 earlier this year, and like many people my age, I've started noticing subtle changes in my skin - slight dullness, some uneven tone from past breakouts, and the beginning signs of fine lines around my eyes and forehead. Nothing drastic, but enough to make me wonder if I should start taking preventative measures with aesthetic treatments.
Most of my friends are jumping on the Botox train. It's become the default, but I wasn't quite ready to go down the injectable route, especially since I'm not the best with needles. Plus, with so many clinics and influencers recommending different 'age defying' treatments it can be so hard to know what's actually beneficial in all the noise. Keen to understand what would be best for my skin, I sat down with nurse prescriber Shantel Noble (pictured left), founder of Noble Medical Aesthetics, who is an expert in regenerative treatments, having recently opened up her stylish new clinic in Pimlico.
During my initial consultation, Shantel looked at my skin without makeup to identify possible problem areas, from fine lines, redness, pores and sunspots to recommend a treatment plan to suit my needs and reach my ideal outcome. I mentioned the finer lines on my forehead as my main concern - but she said they weren't a problem area just yet. Shantel explained the advancements in lasers and how the lasers BBL and Moxi would be great for my skin type in preserving how my skin looks now.
"Prevention is key," she told me. "Starting with preventive work rather than doing corrections for finer lines such as Botox later in life means you have less invasive options." On the subject of lasers, she explained: "BBL and Moxi are two key treatments that could work well with you, BBL is the only device that exists that is proven to change gene expressions, so that progressive light treatments mean your skin cells are not only responding and getting better from the light treatments but they are actually reversing."
Explaining why, in my new decade, my skin is less bright, Shantel said: "30-year-old skin cells start to slow down, producing less collagen and decreased cellular turnover." To combat this, BBL changes how your skin cells are acting and makes them act more like your youthful 20-year-old skin cells again, giving long lasting results instead of a quick fix."
What are the benefits of BBL and Moxi?
These two lasers work to improve skin quality and texture - brightening, smoothing, and stimulating long-term collagen production. Noble Studio is one of a handful of clinics to have the newer version of the BBL device which is BBL HEROic, which targets pigmentation, redness, sun damage, and even stimulates collagen. MOXI, on the other hand, is a gentle, non-ablative laser that doesn't break the skin but allows it to heal itself to create an abundance of new collagen and improves the texture of the skin. Together they help prevent aging rather than just a quick fix.
My treatment experience
I had my first BBL + Moxi session at a Noble clinic on lunch break. The whole appointment took about an hour. Shantel talked me through the whole process too, starting with BBL, which felt like a warm flick - not too painful but just a little spicy as Shantel went over specific areas. The laser emits a flash, but you do wear an eye mask.
Moxi was a bit more intense, but the whole thing only took about 10 minutes. The laser gives off a prickly heat sensation, which is manageable. They applied numbing cream before, which helped a lot.
It is worth noting you will have some redness, and your skin will be more sensitive to the sun so it's recommended to bring a hat to wear after or sunglasses if like me and don't want people to be glaring at me.
Recovery and results
Right after, my skin was red and a bit puffy as expected - more like a sunburn - so you are meant to let it rest for the rest of the day. By the next morning you can carry on with your morning skin care routine as normal, and even wear makeup which is great for carrying on your day-to-day life. By day three, my old layer of skin started shedding in tiny dark spots, which you let fall off naturally without exfoliation and my skin started feeling tighter and smoother.
Just after following one session of BBL and Moxi, my skin noticeably improved, my tone evened out dramatically, the redness around my nose almost disappeared and my pores looked smaller. However the most noticeable difference from the increase in collagen production had to be the improved definition of my jawline - I couldn't believe it.
My before and after
The best part? It looked like my skin - just healthier and more even and glowy. No one asked if I "had something done," but I got lots of compliments about how "refreshed" I looked especially bare faced. I love that these treatments stimulate natural collagen production, working beneath the surface, helping my skin stay firm and youthful in years to come.
Final thoughts
If you're in your late 20s or early 30s and want to be proactive with aging - but you're not ready for injectables - I highly recommend looking into BBL and Moxi. It's like skincare on steroids, without the drama. Don't get me wrong, I’m not anti-Botox at all, I might try it some day, but at 30, it was a revelation to try something that treated the whole canvas, not just froze a few lines. I'm planning to do a few sessions a year as part of my maintenance routine.
Pricing for the course of three treatments starts from £1,500. Although it may sound pricey I do believe it is worth the investment, and better yet at Noble Aesthetics you can now pay in instalments.
