Past-Life Mysteries, Alien Encounters, and the Psychology of Looking Your Best

SPEAKER IDENTIFICATION

Speaker 1 – Prerecorded Announcer: Introduces Popp Talk and host Mary Jane Popp at the beginning of the program.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp, Host: Identified by the opening announcement and by her role conducting both interviews. One guest addresses her once as “Maggie,” which appears inconsistent with the announced name.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews, Guest: Identifies herself as a hypnotherapist and spells her first name “K-R-Y-S-T-E.” She discusses her books, hypnosis practice, and work with Robert.

Speaker 4 – Robert, Guest: Participates in the first interview and describes hypnosis sessions, alleged abduction experiences, health events, and what he says he learned through the sessions. His surname is rendered inconsistently in the source and requires verification.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels, Guest: Introduced as a plastic surgeon in practice since 1998. He discusses self-esteem, skin care, injectables, noninvasive devices, professional qualifications, and patient safety.

Speaker 6 – Recorded Music / Interlude: A brief musical transition between the two interviews.

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Speaker 1 – Prerecorded Announcer: Are you ready for new dimensions and countless possibilities, today and in the future? It is an exciting new time, and the answers are out there. Join Mary Jane Popp as she explores the unique and unusual for a better life on Popp Talk and searches for the truth. And here she is, Mary Jane Popp.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Welcome again to Popp Talk. Have we got a couple of subjects for you that will really get you thinking and exploring!

A little later, Dr. David Daniels will join us. He is a plastic surgeon, but he says it all has to do with confidence, self-esteem, and belief in yourself. How many plastic surgeons talk like that? The idea is that you may want to look good, but does appearance really matter? Should it start from the inside out rather than the outside in? We will find out.

Before that, do you believe in hypnosis? Do you think it can take you on a journey into past lives? I have someone who says yes because she is an expert in the field, and she is bringing along a person who says he has taken that trip. It is going to be fascinating. Stay with me. It is Popp Talk, and you know what we do.

Have you ever been hypnotized? Would you believe an out-of-this-world story that will bowl you over? Kryste Andrews has heard more than you can imagine as a longtime hypnotherapist and expert in her field. Kryste’s book, Discovery: Book One of the Legacy Series, chronicles what she describes as true stories involving an ancient tribe and time travel. Her next book is called 31 Conversations with an Alien. I want to hear about that.

Joining Kryste is Robert [surname requires verification]. He says he has experienced time travel into past lives, and he is going to share his story with us. Kryste, welcome to Popp Talk.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Thank you, Mary Jane. I am very happy to be here with Robert.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Hi, Robert. How are you doing?

Speaker 4 – Robert: I am doing fine. How are you?

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Hanging in there. I love having these different stories on the program because I try to keep an open mind about anything and everything.

I want to begin with Kryste because I would like some information about hypnosis and hypnotherapy. Kryste, define hypnosis for me. Does a person actually go under? Are you asleep, awake, or in a state between the two? What happens?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: There are four states of consciousness that humans can experience, and hypnosis happens when we enter the third state. They are beta, alpha, theta, and delta. Theta is the altered state of consciousness in which someone can delve into the subconscious and get answers.

That is what I have been trained to do: take people into the theta state through what is called an induction. They are not exactly awake, but they are not yet asleep either. Everything is known by that higher consciousness or higher self. The right side of the brain becomes very active, and all sorts of unexplored truths can emerge. It is quite miraculous.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Can anybody be hypnotized?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: They can be, but not everyone allows themselves to be hypnotized. It is well known that some people hold tightly to left-brain consciousness, perhaps because they live in a world where everything has to be demonstrated through facts and figures. They are not familiar with allowing themselves to work from imagination, which is associated with the right side of the brain.

They therefore hold on to that first state of consciousness, beta. They may not consciously intend to resist, but they are so unused to entering the realm of imagination that they cannot let go of day-to-day awareness.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: You may have explained something about me. I have always wanted to try hypnosis, and I did try it two or three times. Perhaps I was simply working with the wrong person; I do not know. Each time, I said, “I’m fine. I’m ready. I’m open. Let’s do something.”

However, I am one of those people who cannot let go of being in control. I will give you an example, and people will laugh, but it is true. Even in college, I could never get drunk. As soon as I reach a point where I feel I am losing control, I throw up and become stone-cold sober.

I even tried after I was married. I told my husband I wanted to know what it was like because I had never been drunk in my life. He sat there with me, but when I reached the point where I felt I might lose control and no longer understand what was happening, I immediately went to the restroom. Then it was over, and I was back in control. I cannot let go.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: I think that is rather fortunate for you.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Yes. Think about the people who cannot stop drinking. I would never do that, but it applies to anything. Sometimes I even wake up while sleeping because I do not want to lose control by being asleep. That is strange.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Mary Jane, I believe that if you encountered a truly compelling need—a reason to find the answer to a question that could not be answered through medical science or logic—you would probably allow yourself to surrender that control because you would want the answer so desperately.

That is why I entered hypnosis and became a hypnotherapist. I had an issue in my life, and there was no reason for it to be happening. It was not right and should not have been happening, but it was. I went through a past life and found an answer for the situation. I decided, “Wow, this is a one-stop deal. I need to become a hypnotherapist and help people in this way.”

Just Friday, I worked with a 79-year-old woman who had been bulimic her entire life. I do not know how she was still walking around. By the end of the session, she had transformed. She has been in touch with me this week and said she has stopped throwing up. She no longer has that compulsion; it left after her hypnosis session, which was unlike anything I had ever done with anyone before.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Amazing.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: This is something that can be tailored, Mary Jane. It is not like opening a medicine bottle and taking the same two pills that 14,000 other people are taking. This is tailored to the individual. If I may, I would like to bring Robert into the conversation.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Yes. Tell me how you met Robert and how it happened.

Speaker 4 – Robert: I looked on the internet for people who did hypnotherapy with past-life regression, and I found two people. One was in Arkansas. The person in Arkansas gave me Kryste’s number. I called her, told her what was going on, and she suggested that we meet.

I told her I was very skeptical and said, “Good luck putting me under.” When people think about hypnosis, they imagine old movies with someone swinging a pocket watch like a pendulum. It is not so much about giving up power as it is about relaxing. You relax, and the next thing you know, it is happening. I found it extremely therapeutic.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: What was happening in your life that made you seek her out?

Speaker 4 – Robert: Strange things were happening, and I knew I was not going crazy. Some people who were close to me thought I had an active imagination or might be going a little crazy, but I always knew I was not because certain things were happening.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Give me an example.

Speaker 4 – Robert: I woke up in my backyard at 3:00 in the morning, standing there in my boxer shorts. I did not know how I had gotten outside. When I tried to go back in, the door was locked.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That is even stranger.

Speaker 4 – Robert: There were other things: scratches on my body, vivid dreams that I knew were not really dreams, and experiences involving changes to my body. I knew they were happening and were not simply dreams or my imagination. That is why I contacted Kryste. I told her, “Good luck putting me under,” and then I woke up an hour and 20 minutes later.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: What happened?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: He went under very quickly and deeply. When Robert first called me, he said he believed he had been abducted by aliens. He wanted to know whether that was true and, if it was, what happened to him while he was on a ship. That was your main concern, Robert. You eventually came to the conclusion that you had been right all along and were not crazy.

Robert is one of the most practical, present-minded, and strong-willed people I have ever known. That is why he has been able to endure all these years.

Speaker 4 – Robert: It has been happening since I was five years old.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Tell her about the first time.

Speaker 4 – Robert: The first time it happened, I was asleep in my room with my brother, who is five years older. Something woke me up. At the sliding door was what I now believe was a gray. It began to enter and could communicate with me telepathically.

I became frightened and ran into my mother’s bathroom, where I hid in a linen closet. I could still hear it speaking in my head, telling me not to be afraid. I came out, it extended its hand, and that is the last thing I remember.

I knew something had happened. My parents told me it was an evil spirit that had come to me, but I knew that was not true. I have thought about it all these years, and I knew I had not made it up.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: When Robert went under, it was almost immediate. The gray that he said had entered his room when he was five appeared and began speaking through him and answering my questions. Suddenly there were three of us in the room rather than two.

For one year, Robert came to the house, lay down, and went under almost immediately. The gray would communicate through him. The gray is not a gender, but we refer to it as “him” because that comes naturally. I wanted something to call the gray, and Robert suggested the name Fred.

Speaker 4 – Robert: It gave him a name.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: The conversations and information that came through were incredible. The main reason for writing the book and sharing the information is to help people understand that, if things like this are happening to them, they are not necessarily crazy. They do not have to keep everything to themselves and feel as though they have lost their minds or are strange in some way. They may find validation in it.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Robert, why do you think the gray came to you? Did he tell you?

Speaker 4 – Robert: It is a very long story.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Give me a brief synopsis.

Speaker 4 – Robert: Fred came through and spoke with Kryste. I learned that I had been Fred’s partner. At one point, in what I understand as a past life, I was a gray. Kryste took me back through regression and asked me to describe myself. Under hypnosis, I described myself in the same way I had described Fred.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: To put it simply, Robert has DNA of the gray type of being.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Like a hybrid?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Yes, like a human hybrid. I have come to believe that each of us has some percentage of alien DNA within us.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Really?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: From what we learned through the conversations with Fred, the grays were on this planet very long ago, near the beginnings of the human race becoming close to what we are now. According to those conversations, they essentially fashioned us. Humanity developed over the eons, but Robert also returned to what he described as his life as a gray.

Speaker 4 – Robert: This is my first incarnation as a human.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: That makes it different from an ordinary past-life regression. I studied under a woman who specialized in past-life regression, and that was fascinating to me. In my practice, however, I am finding that my specialty does not determine what happens. People come to me with very different experiences, and I remain open to their needs.

Robert was the first person who asked me to help him discover what he believed was happening when he was abducted and lying on a cold metal table aboard a spaceship. That was a first for me.

The book I wrote is about time travel and remote viewing. As far as I know, nobody else has done exactly what that client of mine did. He went back 25,000 years and observed a tribe over three generations. Because my client was an airline pilot, he said he knew exactly where those people were because he had flown over those regions of Europe. That was unique, and Robert’s situation is also unique.

Some people who think they have seen a ship or been abducted are not hybrid humans in the way Robert believes he is. This is a unique situation.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Do you now feel that you understand exactly what has been happening?

Speaker 4 – Robert: I also found out that members of my family had been taken. I had never told them in detail what the beings looked like or how they came, yet family members later told me about experiences that matched mine.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: His daughters, his mother, and his sisters described experiences. As soon as Robert had the courage to investigate and find what he understood as the truth, it was like opening Pandora’s box. Family members who had experiences of being taken, even if only a few times, began to talk about them.

According to what emerged in the sessions, Robert’s mother had been inseminated aboard a spaceship by beings we called the scientists. They were another group of beings, smaller than the grays, and were described as the brains behind the operation.

Under hypnosis, Robert says he sees very clearly what is happening aboard the ship. He has described it repeatedly. In our view, it goes far beyond what someone could insist was merely imagination.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Robert, how has this changed you?

Speaker 4 – Robert: In many ways. I know I am not crazy, and I know there is a purpose. My mother had never said that she had been taken until I told her about my experiences. Now I understand why I have gone through certain things and what I believe they have been doing, because they are testing me. They have always said, “He can take it.”

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: You now have an inner strength that is building because of what you know.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Robert has undergone 34 surgeries.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Thirty-four surgeries?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Yes, in a lifetime of 59 years. That is a lot of surgeries. It cannot be explained why all these different things have happened to him. There is so much to tell, which is why I am writing the book. I want to get it out there.

Speaker 4 – Robert: I photograph everything. At one point, the lymph nodes in my neck were enlarged and covered with nodules [medical description requires verification]. My doctor scheduled follow-up care and was able to verify the nodules, then referred me to an oncologist.

It took about five weeks to obtain authorization for the MRI. By the time the imaging was done, the enlargement and nodules were gone. The doctor told me that I must have many people praying for me and that someone must really like me. I did not understand how it could simply disappear.

Kryste later put me under hypnosis, and Fred came through and said, “We caused it. We had to take care of it.” I have photographs showing how swollen my neck was. How does something like that simply disappear?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: There have been many occasions when unexplained things occurred and doctors shook their heads and said they had no idea what they were seeing.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Do you consider yourself extremely fortunate?

Speaker 4 – Robert: Yes.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: He is also very brave to have gone through all of that.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Especially after discovering what you believe is behind these events, you would have to adjust. You are raised with one understanding, and then something opens your mind to other possibilities. Has it changed you that way?

Speaker 4 – Robert: It has opened my mind considerably. It changes the whole concept of religion.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: People say aliens do not want to reveal themselves or interact openly with Earth because it would destroy religion. Why would it? You could still believe in a supreme being or spirit. We are all part of the universe.

I have used this idea with researchers I interviewed who were atheists and said they did not believe in that kind of thing because it was all faith. I asked, “What are we made of?” They answered that we are made of energy. I remembered Catholic school and my catechism, where the definition of God was, “always was and always will be.” Then I asked for the definition of energy. They said it does not go away; it changes form, but it never dies. Perhaps we are talking about the same thing. What do you think, Kryste?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: It is semantics, right? We also asked Fred about religion.

Speaker 4 – Robert: Yes, we did. There are many religions on Earth, and each says it has the truth. We asked why there are different religions. Fred said extraterrestrials created religion for humans because they realized people needed a strong belief around which they could bond.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: People needed structure, community, and guidance. According to Fred, religion came from aliens who recognized that need. I am not saying we have a new religion or possess the truth; I am only reporting what Fred said.

Speaker 4 – Robert: You mentioned that we are energy. Fred said that when the human form passes, our energy continues. You were right on the money about what we were told.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: It makes sense. Do we know exactly what form we will enter? No. Our limited human minds cannot fully wrap themselves around it. We know something changes, but we continue forward in some form, right?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Robert has been told that he will return to being a gray when his time as a human ends. That may be the hardest part to comprehend. Most of us wonder where we go and what we do. I believe we enter another body through reincarnation. Robert believes he has been told what to expect.

Speaker 4 – Robert: I have been told twice that I will return to being a gray, which I understand as my race.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Amazing. These are great stories, and this conversation will have to be continued. I would love to talk more about it. Would you both come back?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Absolutely. We welcome the invitation.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Kryste, do you have a website?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: I do. It is my name: K-R-Y-S-T-E Andrews, KrysteAndrews.net.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: What about your book, Discovery? Is that available there?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Discovery is available on Amazon. Other books will appear if you search only for the title, so search for my name or my co-author, Rick [surname requires verification]. It is Discovery: Book One, by Kryste Andrews and Rick [surname requires verification].

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: When is 31 Conversations with an Alien coming out?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: I wish I had an answer. Right now, my latest thought is that I might make it an audiobook so it can include many excerpts from the actual recordings we made.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That would be great. Would that not be the best format?

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: I think so. Robert could also speak, and we could include our voices and explanations. It would feature real sessions and authentic recordings made over approximately a year, from “August 22 to August 23” [dates require verification].

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Fantastic. Kryste Andrews and Robert, thank you both so much. You have to come back.

Speaker 3 – Kryste Andrews: Thank you.

Speaker 4 – Robert: Thank you.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Right back at you. Take care. Those were amazing stories. They explain a lot, do they not? Let us take a brief musical interlude. Then our final guest, Dr. David Daniels, will join us on Popp Talk.

Speaker 6 – Recorded Music / Interlude: [Brief musical interlude.]

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: More Popp Talk is coming your way. Wait until you hear what we have to discuss, because it involves confidence and self-esteem—but there is even more to it.

Maybe it is vanity. Is it vanity? It has to be more than vanity, right? It has to involve belief in who and what you are. How important are looks to confidence and self-esteem? You might be surprised by what Dr. David Daniels has to say.

He has practiced as a plastic surgeon since 1998. He wants people to make safe choices and consider all the possibilities. The psychological side matters, as do the procedures themselves. The answer may not always be surgery; it may involve noninvasive procedures. Safety is also extremely important. Dr. Daniels, it is a pleasure to have you with us on Popp Talk.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Hi. How are you doing?

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Hanging in there. We are bombarded by magazines, the internet, television, and movies, always telling us to look better and younger. This country has a very youth-oriented society. Do you say that it has to begin inside, with your inner being, and then move to the outside? Is that important?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Of course. You are not going to make yourself happy by changing only something external, and other people do not make you happy. You have to begin with happiness inside.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Are people’s expectations too high? Someone might say, “I want to take 20 years off.” You would have to die and come back again, because that is not going to happen, right?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: You can turn back the clock somewhat when it comes to skin quality. Good skin care is important. The most basic measure is a good-quality sunscreen so sun damage does not continue to progress.

There are devices that can help, as well as appropriate uses for fillers—not injecting for the sake of injecting, but restoring structure that may have been lost over the past five, 10, 15, or 20 years.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Gravity does that to you. I joke that during the first 40 years of life you walk upright, and during the next 40 you should walk on your hands with your head down so everything goes back where it was.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Some of it is structural loss. Diet and exercise are also important. If you exercise, you are more likely to retain bone. Taking calcium supplements alone is not enough; you also need to make sure you are nutritionally healthy.

Unfortunately, many foods are stripped of minerals we used to receive from fruits and vegetables, so supplementation can also be important. One simple approach is adding a little Celtic salt to the daily diet and/or using Irish sea moss. You need to restore minerals. Choosing a calcium supplement alone will not reverse osteoporosis.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That is very true. Often, all anyone wants to do is give you a pill.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Pills generally treat symptoms. They are not necessarily replacing something that is missing. Look at society now: more people are taking antidepressants than ever, yet suicide rates are also up.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, are popular antidepressants. However, people do not have an “SSRI deficiency.” What is actually missing that contributes to these issues? There can be other factors. It may not be that you need a different pill or any drug at all. It may be a nutritional deficiency.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That makes sense. Let us talk about injections. I will be honest: there is no way you are putting Botox into my face. Is that not botulism and therefore toxic?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Everything involves dose; even water can act like a drug. With Botox, the goal is not necessarily complete paralysis. Some people make exaggerated expressions. For example, they may create the “11s,” or several vertical lines, between their eyebrows and appear angry all the time.

When someone looks angry, other people respond as though that person is upset with them, creating a negative feedback cycle. I have a patient who receives Botox every three or four months. She says she has felt better since receiving Botox than she did while taking an antidepressant. Part of the reason is that she no longer has what is sometimes called “resting bitch face.”

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Okay. She no longer looks angry.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: People see her as more relaxed. They smile at her, she smiles back, and it creates a better social interaction. Yes, she received a drug, but it is administered once every three or four months. It relaxes her expression, people no longer perceive her as angry, and she says she feels better than when she was taking antidepressants.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: You had better choose somebody who knows what they are doing, right?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: That is important. You should not receive something merely for the sake of receiving it. A patient may come in complaining about forehead lines. If those lines come from constantly holding up low brows, injecting Botox into the forehead can make the brows appear even lower because the patient can no longer raise them.

There are ways to address that. A surgical option would be a brow lift. A non-surgical option is a newer device called EMFACE, made by BTL. It has been available for about 18 months, and I have had good success using it to elevate patients’ brows non-surgically, open their eyes, and improve forehead lines without Botox.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: How does it work? I have never heard of EMFACE.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: It is one of the devices made by BTL. You may have heard of EMSCULPT or EMSCULPT NEO, which are muscle-strengthening devices.

Patients use them to strengthen the abdominal muscles, glutes, biceps, and triceps. These treatments are noninvasive. A patient lies down for 30 minutes. In the case of EMSCULPT NEO, the company describes it as the equivalent of 20,000 to 25,000 crunches in 30 minutes.

For me, it helped resolve back pain that came from poor core strength. I had experienced chronic back pain for more than 15 years. I underwent the treatment, and two weeks later I was walking straight. It was non-surgical, with no epidurals or other invasive treatment.

The same company developed a device called EMSELLA for stress incontinence. Many women experience leakage during activities such as sneezing, jumping jacks, running, or tennis. Some men experience erectile dysfunction or stress incontinence after prostate surgery.

Patients sit fully clothed in a chair for 30 minutes. The company describes it as the equivalent of 11,200 Kegel exercises in that short period. Patients may experience significantly improved stress incontinence and quality of life without an invasive probe. EMSELLA and EMSCULPT NEO have been available in the United States for approximately four or five years, while EMFACE has been available for about a year and a half.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: EMFACE is interesting because, as a person gets older, the brow comes down. I assume gravity causes it.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: I follow a philosophy that much of it may come from bone shrinkage. Everyone says they become shorter as they age. I believe the skull and jaw also shrink, along with the bone behind the nostrils. I think under-eye bags may develop partly because the bone supporting the eyeball recedes. As that bone moves back, the opening becomes larger and the cheek can sag because it loses support from above.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That is amazing. I have never heard that before.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: When using fillers, the objective should be to restore structure that was once there, not simply fill an area for the sake of filling it.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: What would you use for that? Are we talking about the upper eyelids and fat pads beneath the eyes?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: I am referring to the lower eyelids. You have probably seen people with dark circles or bags under their eyes.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: They sometimes have the bags surgically removed.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Sometimes they need surgery, but sometimes they have lost support beneath the rim of the eye and need structure restored there. An 85-year-old patient came to me before a family wedding. She did not want surgery and asked what she could do. I said we could fill the area.

We performed the treatment. A week later, the bruising had resolved and she looked wonderful. To her, it felt like a miracle. She had not known that option was available.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: What should someone ask for when visiting a cosmetic practitioner? Is there a difference between a plastic surgeon and a cosmetic surgeon?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Yes. A plastic surgeon is trained through a plastic-surgery residency or fellowship. “Cosmetic surgeon” can simply be a title someone gives themselves. Facial plastic surgeons are generally ear, nose, and throat physicians who complete additional training after their residency, usually within their specialty.

Cosmetic surgery is not a separate board-recognized specialty in the same way. Plastic surgeons complete at least two, and sometimes three or four, additional years of training after their prior residencies to reach that position and develop their knowledge.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: A plastic surgeon would be the person you want to see, right?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: That is why I do what I do.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: I was told a long time ago that any doctor can hang out a shingle and say they perform plastic surgery. Is that true?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: They can.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Really? That is a problem.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Even with many of the medical spas opening now, you see patients or friends who have been injected and are unhappy with the result. I offer filler as an option, and some patients initially refuse because a friend had it done and looked terrible. I ask, “Did I do it?” There is a difference. Their friend may have gone to a medical spa or a party where the person performing the injection was not well qualified.

In many states, including New Jersey, a nurse practitioner can inject. The question is how well trained that person is.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That is the issue. People hold Botox parties. A friend went to one and was horrified because she could not close her eyes.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Price shopping is not a good approach. This is your face and body. It is not like choosing between two brands of ice cream. The injected product matters. Even within one brand, there are different types of fillers, each with an appropriate use.

If you see a Groupon and run to someone because the product is “just JUVÉDERM,” remember that there are several different types of JUVÉDERM. Someone who is not educated may inject the least expensive version available, even though it may not be the correct product for that area.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: There have been so many products. Long ago, people started with collagen injections and then injections of their own fat. Later came Alastin and JUVÉDERM. Every time you turn around, there is another one.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Fat injection can be a good option, but I am personally not a fan of using it in the face. Although it is the patient’s tissue, it is very difficult to remove if there is a problem.

For breast reconstruction, fat can be appropriate. Patients often require more than one treatment, and the goal is for breast tissue to feel natural. The issue is not that fat necessarily feels unnatural in the face. Rather, the amount of volume needed in the face is much smaller than what might be used in a breast or another body area.

For those small facial amounts, I prefer a filler because, if there is an issue, another substance can be injected to dissolve it. That is generally straightforward. I recently saw a patient who had undergone a facelift with another surgeon, who had also injected fat. Unfortunately, there was too much fat. I did not know exactly where or at what tissue level it had been placed, and there was no easy way to remove it. She was stuck with it.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Years ago, when facial fat transfer became a trend, people made the joke that patients had “butt face.” I should not laugh, but doctors sometimes take fat from an area where it is available and use it elsewhere.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: The fat is processed in a centrifuge to separate it from blood and plasma. You have to know what you are doing and where you are placing these products. Fat transfer is more of a surgical option, while fillers and injectables are generally administered in the office.

Today, for example, a patient came in with a cellulite concern. We demonstrated a newer device. It appears that a single in-office treatment under local anesthesia may resolve much of her cellulite. I do not want to say too much about it yet, but new options are always emerging. They have to be vetted to make sure they are appropriate.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: Absolutely. If someone recommends a filler, how do we know what is best? Is Alastin better than JUVÉDERM, or JUVÉDERM better than Alastin? What else is available?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Alastin is more of a skin-care product. Among fillers, there are JUVÉDERM and Restylane products. I am comfortable with Restylane products, but I tend to use Allergan products more often because I am familiar with them and know what each will do in my hands. Both are reputable companies.

Some other products are newer and may have issues. Generally speaking, if there is a problem with a hyaluronic-acid product, there is a way to dissolve it. I am generally comfortable with hyaluronic-acid products, also called HAs. The brand matters less to me than selecting the appropriate product. Even within the JUVÉDERM line, several products exist, each with its own proper use.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: You have to find somebody reputable. How do you determine whether a practitioner is reputable?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Some of it comes down to reputation and word of mouth. Groupon generally is not the way to go. I am also not a big fan of relying on online advertising. Most of my patients come through word of mouth.

I tried some social-media advertising and did not find it very effective. Those prospective patients were often window-shopping and seeking the lowest quoted price rather than choosing a practitioner because of reputation.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: That is right.

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: It is better to talk with friends and learn who treated them. Some people like to keep cosmetic treatment quiet, but it is nothing to be embarrassed about. We are living longer and want to maintain our youth and a youthful appearance. It is part of life.

Speaker 2 – Mary Jane Popp: I am honest about it. I have had fillers. They make me feel better. I look in the mirror and think, “Okay, you look a little better.” I do not want to take it too far. Sometimes people overfill their lips until they resemble a duck, or they have a facelift and look as though they have been in a wind tunnel. You do not want that. You just want to look rested, right?

Speaker 5 – Dr. David Daniels: Right. As an example, I perform a jaw technique that only a handful of practitioners in the country perform. It is called the Y-Lift [name requires verification]. It structurally augments the jaw back to where it should be and where it used to be.

It is not simply injecting with a needle into the back of the jaw to expand it. It is a specific technique that uses filler to augment the bone structure, and the product remains within a defined space. The result lasts two to four years. Even the fact that it lasts two to four years is not something I consider a problem—

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