WHAT THIS SERIES COVERS
This series is for readers who are close to a decision. It looks at the choices people tend to regret: booking in a hurry, judging a treatment on a single session price, and committing before the whole picture is clear.
The checks are specific and practical, written without scare tactics. See how we research our guides for our standards on sources and dates.
NOT THE RIGHT PAGE IF…
…you’re dealing with a reaction, a complication or a skin condition. Please don’t wait on a guide.
Contact the practitioner who treated you or your GP, and call emergency services if it’s urgent.
WHERE REGRET USUALLY STARTS
Deciding in a hurry. A consultation can feel like the moment to say yes. It doesn’t have to be. Taking the information home and reading it again a few days later is a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
Reading only the first number. Clinics often quote only a single session. Many treatments involve a course, then maintenance and aftercare, so the first price can be a small part of the real spend.
Committing before you know what’s involved. It helps to understand what happens before, during and after a treatment before you agree to one. Our plain-English guide to what cosmetic treatments involve is a good place to start.
CHECK BEFORE YOU COMMIT
Ask how many sessions are usually needed, how far apart they are, and what happens once the course ends.
Sessions, maintenance and aftercare all belong in the budget. If a quote leaves any of them out, it’s worth asking for them in writing.
Results vary from person to person. Words like ‘permanent’ or ‘guaranteed’ are a cue to slow down and ask what they actually mean.
Most treatment information comes from people selling treatments. That isn’t wrong in itself, but it’s worth weighing their advice against an independent source.
A decent offer is usually still there next week. If you feel pressed to decide on the day, that’s useful information too.
Ask whether aftercare comes with restrictions, such as staying out of the sun, and whether that suits your work, holidays or an Australian summer.
THE QUOTE IS ONLY PART OF IT
Incomplete quotes catch out more decisions than almost anything else. Our cost guide covers the whole journey (sessions, maintenance and aftercare) and every figure in it comes from a dated, citable source. It can’t give you a personal quote; only a practitioner can do that.
RELATED READING
What to avoid before you commit to a treatment
A closer look at the warning signs, one by one.
Treatment cost guide: the whole journey
Where the money goes beyond the first session.
Cosmetic treatments: what they involve
Before, during and after, explained plainly.
Start here: a beginner’s path
If you’re new to all of this, begin with the basics.