For years now I have had a skin tag on my eyelid which has really really irritated me and at times made me feel really self-concussions. It wasn't a huge skin tag and very little people even mentioned it, but I knew it was there and every so often I would catch it when washing my face and it really began to annoy me.
Skin tags are small, soft, skin-coloured growths that hang off the skin and look a bit like warts at a glance. They are really common and can differ in size and are usually found on the neck, armpits, around the groin, or under the breasts. They can also grow on the eyelids or under the folds of the buttock. These tags are made of loose collagen fibres and blood vessels surrounded by skin. Collagen is a type of protein found throughout the body.
The removal of skin-tags is regarded as a cosmetic procedure and isn't something that is usually available on the NHS, mine wasn't when I asked about it recently. As always with ay procedure, there are things you really should consider. When the opportunity arose to have it removed, I was nervous as to what the procedure might end up being, but I was delighted to get the chance to visit the Rejuvence Clinic which is local to me, to find out everything I needed to know.
I met with both Dr Sam Ghani and Dr Ruhul Amin to discuss the removal of my tag. As mine sat in quite a precarious position, both doctors wanted to ensure I understood the procedure that would be undertaken and we sat down and went into a lot of detail, the pros and cons and obviously why I wanted the tag removing. Throughout the whole consultation at no point did I feel under any pressure to have the procedure, it was an incredibly relaxing atmosphere to sit and discuss my options, have my questions answered and both Doctors are just so incredibly welcoming and care deeply about what they do. After spending almost an hour with them, it was agreed that I would have a think about my options and if I was happy to go ahead, then I would go back in a weeks time.
Having decided that I would go ahead with the removal, I went back to the clinic and before any procedure took place, we again sat down and discussed how the tag would be removed, answered further questions that I had and then once I was happy the procedure took place. The first part was to apply an anaesthetic cream to my eyelid rather than use an injection, so once it was applied, the cream needed to be left for 20 minutes to work its magic. As the cream was setting in, I was able to chat to both Dr Ghani and Dr Amin about further treatment if it would be needed. So the cream had done its thing and I was ready to have my tag removed using what is called a Dermablade, something I had never come across before, but it is essentially a bendy blade which has been specifically designed to remove skin lesions such as mine. The whole process took less than 5 minutes, didn't hurt a bit, in fact I hadn't realised the tag had been removed until I was jokingly asked if I wasn't to keep my little friend. I did have to have 2 stitches, again thanks to the anaesthetic cream I didn't feel a single thing and on top of those stitches are some Steristips to ensure they remain in place.
Despite the slight bruising, which you could only see if I had my head down or eyes closed, there was no pain at all, which even surprised me. The only issue I had was remembering not to get my entire face wet or the Steristrips would come off and as a Beauty Blogger, this was the hardest thing about the entire process - that and no mascara!
A week after having the tag removed I was back to have the stitches removed, something I have ever had done before, so I didn't quite know what to expect. Once in the chair, eyes closed I was told I would feel a little tugging, possibly one of the weirdest sensations I have ever experienced and given that the stitches were right on my eyelid, I was expecting there to be a lot of pain, but it was over in minutes and this photo was taken within an hour of the stitches being removed.
Again at this point there was no pain at all. What felt really good was being able to double cleanse again and get my eye area wet without fear of losing a Steristrip or tugging on the stitches.
There was still some slight bruising, but only noticeable if I closed my eyes and thankfully no one actually noticed it all. The final picture below was taken a whole week after the stitches had been removed and it has healed so well, I am chuffed to bits with the whole process.
As you can see, there is very little in the way of scarring, the area where the skin-tag was is flat and the bruising has all but disappeared.
So the entire process is now over and if a similar tag appeared anywhere else, I would not hesitate to visit Dr Sam Ghani and Dr Ruhul Amin again. I had no idea what to expect with the tag removal and it was such a straightforward procedure with no scarring, no pain or irritation and the entire time I was at the clinic, I felt calm, relaxed and knew that I was in good hands.
*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page here