Why Glowday Is More Than Just Botox

But you're still concerned about where to go and you're still fretting about it going wrong. We know. We feel - or have felt - the same. There is always that nagging doubt that it will look really obvious or you'll be the one who gets the droopy eye. You don't want to look like a duck, you're worried once you start you won't be able to stop, and let's be honest, despite it being 2021 we're still worried about being judged.

Glowday - more than fresh faces.

I hate it when companies say 'we're not just a business, we're a force for good'. Usually because it's clearly a lie and simply a useful line to stick on their annual report while they sell a product or service nobody really needs. Trust me. I've worked in the corporate world for 20 years and have sat around many board tables with lots of men in suits, scratching their heads to come up with a reason why their business exists, aside from to make lots of money.

It's different at Glowday. The business came from a problem that Hannah, Glowday's CEO, stumbled upon when she decided to get Botox for the first time. There was no definitive website, directory or resource she could find that told her who was safe and good at Botox, in her area. She identified an opportunity and we've come to realise Glowday really is a force for good.

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^{Hannah, Glowday's CEO, developed Glowday after realising nothing existed to help women choose an aesthetics clinic.}

Why?

Because every day in the UK women are having botched procedures - they are being given over-filled lips, frozen faces and puffy faces - and sometimes worse. This happens because there are no regulations or laws stipulating who can administer fillers and Botox. Your bin man can inject your face with Botox, perfectly legally, if he wanted to. Therefore the opportunity to provide women with a dedicated place where they can find safe, professional, qualified, experienced, insured aesthetic practitioners with a medical degree has become a mission, a goal and a force for good: Glowday exists to keep women safe.

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^{Leah Morton, 26, developed necrosis - a flesh eating bug - after receiving botched filler from a beautician.}

Women aren't stupid, do they need to be kept safe?

No women aren't stupid, but we're a trusting bunch and assume if someone says they're qualified to administer Botox and lip fillers, that they actually are. We assume, that as a developed nation, there's no way our Government would let just anyone inject toxin in our faces. You can't walk over a wet floor without there being rules and regulations in place for the person who mopped it, so it's definitely okay to book the lady on Instagram offering cheap Botox, she'll have to do it properly and within the law. We don't even think to question if it's okay because it's so normal and prolific, it has to be!

It was truly shocking to me when I joined Glowday to find out that Botox and fillers aren't safe in the hands of my beautician, my nail lady or my hairdresser. I had assumed they were beauty treatments, because beautician salons up and down the UK offer them - surely they've had the proper training?

And unfortunately, it's usually women who are already vulnerable because of their social or financial situation who are most likely to fall victim to dodgy clinics. They want a treatment to make them look better to feel better - and they need it to be cheap. It's unlikely they will receive a consultation, be told about the risks, be educated on post-treatment care or even asked to give their consent. There are kitchens up and down the country that become Botox clinics on a Friday night, using products bought on eBay with the injector following diagrams printed off the internet.

Botox and fillers are medical treatments

So was I stupid? Maybe, because now it makes perfect sense to me. I've been educated about the risks of these treatments, so it stands to reason I'm going to need and want to see someone who has medical training and understands all the blood vessels underneath my skin. I need to see someone who knows what to do in the rare situation of there being a complication. Most importantly I need to see someone who is accountable to a statutory body and who will lose their licence to practise and will lose the honour of calling themselves a registered doctor, nurse, dentist or pharmacist - if they are incompetent, meaning other women are saved from the same fate. But this doesn't happen with lay people who administer Botox and lip fillers - or chemical peels, microneedling or threads - or any other non-surgical aesthetic treatment that has the potential to go wrong!

So what does Glowday do to stop this?

First and foremost we only allow medically-qualified aesthetic practitioners and clinics to list on Glowday. This is the single most important thing we can do to ensure women stay as safe as possible when choosing a clinic for their cosmetic treatments. It's why we're more than a business and hopefully a force for good because, to be frank, we are limiting our opportunity. If we allowed beauticians - or indeed anyone who doesn't have a medical qualification - on Glowday, we'd make a lot more money!

We then check that these medics are who they say they are and we ensure that they have a current license and they are registered with their statutory body. We ask to see all of their training certificates and store these on our system and check that they're insured. If they aren't a prescriber (Botox and the product which dissolves filler are prescription-only medicines) we ask for their prescriber's details too and we check these are sound and appropriate. Only when are we satisfied all of these checks have been made and they have been verified, do we let their Glowday profile go live.

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^{Find and book on Glowday, right here.}

Why should I use Glowday?

You've already decided you want to sort out your frown lines, get rid of the wrinkles on your forehead, fix the crows feet, plump your lips or banish the eye bags. Using Glowday to find the right person to do this saves you worrying about if they're any good, safe and appropriately qualified. Glowday is the only website where you can read genuine reviews from other women and look at the before and after photos of that clinic's work. It's the only website where you can see the practitioner's diary and book in yourself at a time that suits you. No phoning, no messaging, no messing about! We care, genuinely care, about keeping you safe - trust Glowday with your face.

Find the best clinic in your area right here.