Sasha Dean boasts of her appearance and, as well as regular workouts to maintain a mild figure, had fills and botox to help her keep a youthful complexion – but “the only thing I felt that she left me was my back,” she says. “I felt that one side was rounded while the other was flat.”
After training with a personal trainer failed to achieve the shape it wanted, Sasha, 54, chose to have a liquid Brazilian lift (BBL)-a non-surgical process where the filling is inserted into the buttocks to become larger, more rounded or raised.
But it is a bitter decision, as the experience almost killed it – and 18 months later, it is still not fully recovered.
Sasha, who manages a transport company at Bedfordshire, has fallen seriously ill within a few days of the existence of a hole that improves the volume in its buttocks with sepsis, a life -threatening reaction to an infection.
Within a few hours of being blue lighting at Sasha Hospital suffered a heart attack, a lung lung and her kidneys began to fail.
Doctors had to put Sasha in an induced coma as they fought to save her life.
He is now talking to warn others who are thinking of having the process of knowing what they could leave themselves.
“If you told me how dangerous this process could be, I would never agree – it almost killed me,” says Sasha, who has a 26 -year -old son, and a daughter, 23.
Sasha Dean, 54 years old, chose to have a wet Brazilian lift-a non-surgical procedure where the filling is inserted into the buttocks
This week, the Chartered Institute Trading Standards warned that unsecured professionals have turned the market for cosmetic processes such as lifts and botox into a “wild west” that “at risk”.
He reportedly revealed cases of procedures offered in public loose and hotel rooms – and warned people to check those who offer cosmetic procedures.
A BBL traditionally includes surgery to get fat from the patient’s thighs, hips or abdomen – with liposuction – and injection into the buttocks to add volume.
It is widely considered one of the most dangerous cosmetic procedures by experts because the large veins in the buttocks can easily be injured or torn.
In addition, fat can be accidentally infused in the wrong area, leading to embolism – a severe complication where fat prevents blood flow to vital organs, including lungs, heart and brain.
Liquid BBL Sasha was a newer technique where the synthetic filling – typically hyaluronic acid, the same compound used for cosmetic lips – is injected into the buttocks instead.
Because it does not include surgery to remove fat, it is assumed to be safer than conventional BBL. But are they?
Those who undergo a liquid BBL will experience “some swelling straight after that will have to be installed,” says Mo Akhavani, a plastic surgeon consultant at the Royal Free Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and the Plastic Surgery Private Clinic, both in London.
“BBLS liquids must be completely banned. Greetings as a safe “lunch” process, but I am proof that it includes Russian roulette with your life, “Sasha warns (file image)
This can take up to six months to “retreat”, but adds: “real risk” is possible infections.
“Hyaluronic acid is safe on the lips but more dangerous at the back due to the large volume used there,” he says.
“In addition, stab into an area that is of course not very clean, so the risk is higher.
“The lips also have a stunning blood supply and therefore to fight the infection quite easily, but the buttocks do not apply,” adds Mr. Akhavani, who also has a private clinic but does not offer BBL of any kind.
The added problem is that while the BBLs are performed only by doctors, liquid BBLs can actually be done by anyone without training or experience of healthcare or experience.
“Liquid BBLs are often advertised online as a cheaper alternative to surgical BBL, which is why many people choose and suffer from life -threatening complications,” says Ashton Collins, director of the charity, a government -approved register.
Since 2023, the Charity Foundation says it has supported more than 700 women with complications and problems caused by liquid BBLs – and more than half have ended up in the hospital.
“All of these procedures were carried out by professionals without medical experience and were either incompetent or do not wish to manage the complications,” he adds.
The Charity Foundation believes that the tragic death of 33 -year -old Alice Webb, a mother of five from Gloucestershire who lost her life due to complications caused by a liquid BBL last September could be avoided by stricter regulations on who could offer these services.
Save Face is among those who are now calling on the government to rebuild liquid BBLs as surgeries that can only be performed by plastic surgeons.
‘Unlike surgical respectively [i.e. traditional BBLS] Anyone can grant BBLS liquids from any type of regulation, even though they have the same degree of risk as their surgical counterparts, “says Ashton Collins.
“We estimate that thousands of BBL liquids are executed annually in the United Kingdom, mainly by non -medical professionals operating in non -adjustable environments. Without decisive action, more lives will be lost. ”
The Royal College of England Surgeons (RCS England) wants changes in the law and calling on the government to “urgently introduce a licensing system for non -surgical cosmetic procedures, as well as legislation to limit the practice of cosmetic surgery”.
“Non -surgically injectables can be dangerous,” says Professor Vivien Lees, senior vice -president of RCS England.
“In the hands of an unsecured person, members of the public can place a significant risk of injury, injury and potential death.”
“Injections performed by someone who has not been trained could cause tissue damage and severe infection – they can introduce things to places that should not be infused, such as blood vessels,” says Mr Akhavani.
This is what is believed to have happened in the case of Sasha.
When she discovered that the clinic where she had injected Botox on her face for three years had begun to offer liquid BBLs, was excited. He was charged for Sasha as a “Walk-in” process.
“They said it was safer, much safer than a traditional BBL,” says Sasha. “I felt it was completely reliable.”
“I was not warned about the side effects,” he says.
“In fact, the consent form was no longer or different from the one I often signed for Botox.”
Sasha had three injections of 200ml of filling introduced into her buttocks in the clinic for 20 months since the beginning of 2022, she was cleaned with sterile liquid in advance and “all the thing was very professional”, she says.
But it was not satisfied with the result of treatment – which usually costs about £ 5,000. So her beautician offered a discount on a fourth process – which she said she could perform at a cost, £ 1,500, at her home, Sasha says.
“I knew her, trusted her and she knew she had a room at her home for an appointment – which I had previously visited – so I agreed,” she says.
Sasha went for the appointment, with her partner Alan, 47, on December 30, 2023 – “The room was clean with a proper surgical bed,” she recalls.
“Only during the process did I discover that she shared this space with her mother, a hairdresser, and there were hair everywhere. It looked clean, but it wasn’t as sterile as I thought. ”
The process was the same as before – “but as I left, I felt cold immediately,” recalls Sasha.
“It was winter, but that was something different. Back home, I went straight to bed, still trembling. ”
The next day they were spent in bed, trembling, unable to eat, drink or even pass the urine. The day later, Alan found her in bed still faded in and out of consciousness- so she called 999.
“I remember the paramedics coming into my room and listening to the word ‘rot’ – then all the hell breaks loose,” says Sasha.
It was blue lighting in the hospital where septicemia was confirmed. There was no doubt that the liquid BBL was to blame.
Sasha was placed in intensive care and her frustrated family warned that she may not survive as her organs fail.
Doctors explained that they had to put it in an induced coma if it should have a possibility of survival.
“I was in and out of consciousness,” says Sasha. “I remember the look in Alan’s face and my dad. I knew I was seriously well.
“It sounds weird, but I felt peacefully. I’m not sure if the drugs crush me, or if that’s what you feel when you die.
When she returned after being unconscious for five days, Sasha could not speak and stayed in the hospital for five weeks, learning to walk again with physiotherapy and high protein drinks to help recover the weight and weight.
When it was released in February 2024, “Life as I knew it was over,” he says.
“I had lost a stone and muscle, plus I couldn’t work, so my transport business was on her knees – and I had PTSD from the wound like my family.”
When Sasha tried to contact the aesthetic she faced, she discovered that she had blocked her by email, phone and all social clinic accounts.
“I was completely stunned, I would think they would have some accountability and I would care if I lived or died,” he says.
Eighteen months, Sasha is still recovering.
“My hair fell out. I have a syndrome after Sepsiou, where I have chronic fatigue-and if I do some exercise, I’m in bed from teatime.
It no longer has cosmetic procedures and now warns other people: “Liquid BBLs must be completely banned. It is welcomed as a safe “lunch” process, but I am proof that it includes Russian roulette with your life. ”
