Earlier this year, a viral trend swept social media in which people compare themselves in 2016 with 2026, while getting misty-eyed about a supposedly simpler time.
Now, clearly, these people did not have a new baby and a toddler in 2016. In my photograph, below, from ten years ago, I am 37, sitting on the sofa with one small child tucked into my side and a new baby asleep across my chest.
I look at it now and, annoyingly, my skin looks pretty good. Smooth, plump and youthful, despite the fact I was sleep – deprived and coping with post-partum everything.
Simpler times? Not in my house in 2016.
2016 vibes: Lisa Brady with her young daughters ten years ago
And fast-forward ten years, those cherub-faced babies are tweens, and there’s a different chaos that comes with that. However, nobody needs a nappy changed or is permanently attached to me – but while I have escaped the trenches of early motherhood, my face has not escaped the intervening decade.
I am now 47. And gravity, sun damage, perimenopause and the natural decline in collagen have all been quietly getting on with their work.
Which got me thinking: could I actually turn back time, or at least halt the ravages of such, when it comes to my skin?
Could my skin be smoother, fresher and better at 47 than it was when I had the considerable biological advantage of being ten years younger?
A year ago, I decided to find out. I went to Thérapie Clinic for a TheraScan skin analysis, which has the rather disconcerting ability to identify problems that haven’t necessarily had the decency to become visible yet (this is not for the faint-hearted).
It highlighted issues including pigmentation and changes in texture, while I was becoming increasingly aware of that other unwelcome arrival of your 40s: the beginning of sagging around my lower face.
Until then, I had been what you might call a Botox girl. I’ve had anti-wrinkle injections regularly for years and make no secret of it. At 47, my forehead has had plenty to express itself about; I simply don’t require every emotion to be permanently documented on it.
But Botox can only do one job. It temporarily relaxes selected muscles responsible for expression lines. It doesn’t deal with pigmentation, hydration or the quality of the skin itself.
And increasingly, that’s where aesthetic medicine appears to be heading: away from simply filling or freezing and towards treatments intended to improve the skin itself or stimulate the body’s own collagen production.
So, under the care of Therapie’s fabulous aesthetic doctor Dr Jeyanthi, I embarked on my experiment. There was no Extreme Makeover-style afternoon in which I entered the clinic at lunchtime and emerged three hours later with an entirely new head. The treatments were carried out gradually, with time between them, over the course of the year.
First, alongside my regular Botox, came Profhilo, which contains a high concentration of hyaluronic acid, but unlike traditional dermal filler, the idea isn’t to add volume or alter the shape of your face. It is designed to improve hydration, firmness and elasticity.
In depth in 2026: Lisa with her TheraScan results
A course usually involves two treatments approximately four weeks apart, with improvements developing in the weeks afterwards. Prices start from €275 per session.
Next, Dr Jeyanthi turned her attention to my eyes. The under-eye is one of those areas where a decade can rather suddenly announce itself. For this I had polynucleotides, otherwise known by the considerably more headline-friendly description of salmon sperm injections (Yep, really, but don’t let that put you off).
Polynucleotides are regenerative treatments using DNA fragments, typically derived from trout or salmon, with the aim of supporting skin repair and improving hydration, elasticity and texture. They are particularly useful around the delicate under-eye area, where there are fewer treatment options because the skin is so thin.
They cost from €195 per session and typically require a course of treatments, with results appearing gradually rather than overnight.
And then there was the problem no amount of Botox could address: pigmentation and sun damage. For that I had four sessions of Clear & Brilliant, a fractional laser facial. The laser works beneath the surface of the skin and is used to address uneven skin tone, pigmentation, enlarged pores, fine lines and texture, while stimulating collagen and elastin.
At €130 upwards per session, it isn’t an insignificant undertaking when you’re having four of them, although the downtime is relatively minimal. Mild redness can be followed by a few days of dryness while the skin heals.
By this stage, the 47-year-old version of me was undoubtedly more expensive to maintain than the 37-year-old one.
And after a year of aesthetic interventions, it was time to see if I how my face was faring. I recently returned to Thérapie in South William Street and put my mug back under scrutiny, this time with skin therapist Eden.
My skin, it turns out, is still very much a work in progress and while I’m not exactly Benjamin Button, there has definitely been an improvement.
The unapologetic TheraScan did still highlight dehydration (not helped by my wearing make up for the sake of photos). Eden explained that texture can also be associated with reduced collagen in the skin. For hydration, she recommended products containing humectants – ingredients which attract and retain water.
For texture, she recommended a glycolic cleanser twice a week to encourage skin-cell turnover, with treatments such as microneedling also capable of stimulating collagen production.
More sobering was the UV damage the scanner found in the deeper layers of my skin. Some of it isn’t particularly visible yet, but UV damage can contribute over time to pigmentation and reductions in collagen and elastin.
Routine: Eden from Therapie advised Lisa on how best to look after her skin
For home care, Eden also recommended vitamin C for pigmentation and retinaldehyde, a vitamin A derivative, as well as the glycolic cleanser. And, naturally, consistent sun protection.
Which brings me back to those two photographs. It turns out that even with advances in aesthetic tweakments, I can’t expect miracles and that’s perfectly ok.
I don’t actually want to erase every line, hollow or other piece of evidence that the last ten years happened. They did happen – and quite a lot happened in them.
What I want is for the skin I have now to be as healthy, fresh and well cared for as possible, while still looking recognisably like me. And I have to say, I look in the mirror now and I’m happy with my 2026 self.
I wouldn’t go back to that 2016 version because I’ve simply changed too much and god knows I wouldn’t have the energy for tiny children again. So I’m embracing my 40s face, perimenopause and all.
But if a little carefully chosen intervention means the skin I have looks fresher and healthier without turning me into somebody else, I’ll happily take it too.
And honestly? I just couldn’t go back to the nappies.
REELING IN THE YEARS: THE COST
Botox/anti-wrinkle injections: Thérapie’s supplied information lists a subscription from €49 per month, plus a €99 one-off sign-up fee, covering three areas three times annually.
Profhilo: From €275 per session.
Polynucleotides: From €195 per session.
Clear & Brilliant laser facial: From €130 per session.
See www.therapieclinic.com for more and to book
