A woman feared her face "was ruined" after suffering an extreme reaction to lip fillers, and claims even doctors couldn't help but laugh at her exaggerated "fish lips."
Charis Evans, 22, had previously paid for lip fillers twice before her startling reaction, and was terrified when her lips ballooned up to four times their natural size, giving her the appearance of a "blow-up doll."
The mum-of-two says she opted to try out a different salon for her third round of fillers, which she had done last year and paid £90 for the treatment.
Unfortunately, mere hours after leaving the salon, it became clear something was very wrong, with Charis left feeling as though her dramatically swollen lips might burst at any minute.
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Charis, from Birkenhead, Merseyside, said: "I went to my mum's and she said they looked really swollen but they do swell up anyway at first. They were really swollen in the space of a couple of hours.
"My mum was saying my face was ruined. I was scared that it wouldn't go back to normal, I was panicking. It was painful and it felt like they were popping open."
"I looked like a blow-up doll. I had fish lips and it looked like I'd been in a fight. They felt like they were bursting out of the veins so I went to the walk-in centre at 2am and they gave me antihistamines.
"They were about four times bigger. They were really big. The doctor started laughing when I walked in. Everyone I showed was mortified. We were wearing masks luckily so I could hide them."
Charis claims she had to wear a mask 24/7 to hide the swelling, which thankfully began to ease up after a week.
Despite her lips returning to their normal size, the mum still lives in fear that they will swell again - with her being advised to avoid spicy foods as they cause a similar reaction.
She explained: "I try to avoid spicy food because every time I've eaten something spicy my mum says I look like I've had them done again because they swell and I get a burning sensation like they're stretching.
"I still get shooting pains in my lips."
The support worker has since vowed never to touch lip fillers again.
She added: "I haven't had them since because it put me off for life. I'd never get them done again and absolutely wouldn't let the kids. My body just had a reaction. Sometimes you don't know what you're putting in your face.
"I do wish I'd never had them done. Some people found it funny and some people were like 'oh my God, what have you done?' My nan said it was my own fault.
"I want people to have a really good think about it before getting lip fillers. I got them because it was a trend at the time and a lot of young girls were having it done but the pain and trauma wasn't worth it."
Have you had a frightening reaction after undergoing cosmetic surgery? We pay for stories. Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com
