Nearly every woman has had that moment: a friend takes a candid photo, you excitedly look over, hoping it might be amazing – and then you see it, and your heart drops a little. For Sue, 63, that’s exactly what happened on a balcony in Cyprus.
‘In April 2025 I was on holiday with a friend when she took a picture of me,’ Sue remembers. ‘When I saw it afterwards I was horrified. “Oh my god,” I gasped. “Is that really me? I don't have a neck!”’
They laughed about it together at the time. But once Sue was home, she couldn't stop noticing her jowls. ‘I kept catching it every time I looked in the mirror. My neck that had once been defined was now sagging, with no definition at all.’
Sue's frustration was worsened by the fact she’d done the hard work to shift excess weight, and deserved to be reaping the rewards rather than worrying about her skin’s elasticity. After splitting from her partner nine years earlier, she'd lost two and a half stone, and the rest of her body wasn't overweight. Yet the stubborn fat clung on around her stomach and under her chin – and given she’d achieved such great results elsewhere, these few imperfections felt particularly noticeable.
Given it was affecting her so significantly, Sue, from Staines, Surrey, started to consider professional help. ‘I'd never had anything cosmetic done before,’ she says. ‘But it really knocked my confidence, so I started researching what I could do about it.’
In October last year, she booked in with Dr Leah Clinics for Quantum RF: a non-invasive treatment that uses radiofrequency energy to tighten skin and stimulate the body's own collagen. (Consultations start from £100).
Before and after... ‘I was awake the whole time,’ Sue said. ‘The doctor inserted a probe into her skin just below both ears
After splitting from her partner nine years earlier, Sue had lost two and a half stone, and the rest of her body wasn't overweight
Picturing grisly surgery, scalpels, scars and weeks of recovery? Sue’s story is (thankfully) significantly less dramatic.
‘I was awake the whole time,’ she says. ‘The doctor inserted a probe into my skin just below both ears, and one in my chin. I could feel the probing, but I'd taken painkillers so there was no pain at any point.’ The whole thing was over in under two hours, and a small amount of fat was removed from under her chin as part of the process.
Then came the recovery, wait – and finally, the reveal. ‘Once the bruising had subsided and the swelling went down, I could see a huge difference in my chin and neck. My neck was more defined, my chin more taut.’
Now, that old holiday photo isn’t a jump scare so much as a reminder. ‘Now when I look back at the picture of me in Cyprus, I can't believe the transformation. I've definitely got my neck back – and I feel more confident than I have in years.’
We asked Dr Leah Totton, founder of Dr Leah Clinics, to explain a bit more about what ‘radiofrequency energy’ actually means.
‘Quantum RF is an advanced, minimally invasive treatment for skin tightening and fat removal,’ she says. ‘It's particularly effective for getting rid of a double chin or stubborn fat in the neck area.’ In other words, it's designed precisely for the kind of concern Sue had – the area that won't budge no matter what you do.
Before and after... the natural-looking result and non-invasiveness make the treatment an alternative to surgery – however, you do need to be patient
The device, a thin probe, is inserted under the skin and delivers controlled radiofrequency heat deep into the lower layers. When in place, the effect is two-pronged: gently using heat to melt stubborn fat cells, while triggering the production of collagen and elastin, the proteins that keep skin firm and springy.
‘As the body naturally processes the treated fat cells, the skin appears smoother, tighter and more sculpted,’ Dr Totton explains. Because it works at a deeper level than surface treatments, it's well suited to areas with denser skin like the jawline, cheeks and neck. Paired with microneedling, she adds, the skin-tightening effect becomes even better, improving texture as the skin regenerates.
The natural-looking result and non-invasiveness make the treatment an alternative to surgery – however you do need to be patient. ‘Results develop gradually over the following weeks and months as collagen rebuilds,' explains Dr Totton. Rather than an overnight, obviously-done change, the improvement happens subtly with minimal disruption to daily life – which, for women who've never had work done before, is often much preferable.
For Sue, it’s been a life-changing experience. ‘I feel like me again,’ she says.
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