Beauty 7 years ago My No Bullshit Story on Botox
I was 19 years old the first time I ever got Botox.
Don’t freak out. It was in my armpits and after battling an embarrassing episode of hyperhidrosis, I was dumbfounded by how quickly and painlessly it worked.
One of the most commonly asked questions I get is people asking if I’ve gotten Botox. At first, I thought it was invasive and inappropriate. Why does it really matter? But after giving it a lot of thought, I started to think about how misleading it is for me to be promoting beauty products and disclosing that they are paid and/or sponsored, but not to disclose my use of Botox.
So, here we go. #Botox #notsponsored
The Taboo Topic
Botox is a taboo topic, especially in the blogging world. But I’ll tell you something: everyone gets it. The top of the top, cream of the crop and everyone in between. So don’t for one second always buy into the secret serums and potions that rid beauty bloggers of their wrinkles. I don’t know why we all feel the need to hide this because almost every woman at some point has considered, or gotten, Botox treatment. I’m positive that I’ll receive a few e-mails, DMs, comments and messages from readers who are upset with me about this post. Sorry, I’m not sorry. I’m a 35 year old woman who can make her own choices.
The Age To Start Preventative Botox
I put off getting Botox until my 30th birthday. While I have been very blessed with not having to battle acne, major sun damage and generally have “good” skin, when I turned 25 the deep lines on my forehead started to appear. I am also very blind so squinting to see anything and everything started to really do some damage. Year after year the lines grew deeper and a sinking feeling started to rest in my stomach every time I would look in the mirror. I preached to myself “Jacey, aging is a beautiful thing!” and told myself to not be so narcissistic and consumed with what I look like. But here’s the thing: I take photos of myself for a living. I literally have to look at photos of my face every day {eye roll, I know} and there were 2 or 3 lines that were just driving me absolutely insane. While I waited until I was 30, a part of me wishes I had started at 28 years old. According to dermatologists, the appropriate age for preventative Botox is between 25-30.
What Is Baby Botox?
Don’t worry, it doesn’t actually involve babies. I made a few promises to myself when I took the botox plunge. Number one: that I would get what they call “Baby Botox.” Baby Botox is lightest amount you can do to even out lines. Number two: I vowed to only get Botox once a year.
Does It Hurt?
For some people, getting Botox is painful, but I was pretty surprised by how little it hurt. My doctor provided ice packs to numb my skin {which really helps!} and before I knew it, I was in and out with 8 units of magic injected into my face. I felt zero, nada, nothing for a few days and then I had an absolute panic attack that I couldn’t move my forehead. I’m not going to lie, that first time I was a little freaked because no one told me. No one explained that after a few days, your face will feel like it’s freezing up, but then after about a week, it will settle back into a nice place. After a week or so, I felt great! My annoying lines disappeared, but I was still “me.” It didn’t take away my laugh lines or crows feet. I went super subtle and focused on the one line above my left eye that was driving me nutso.
When It’s Gone Too Far
Once upon a time, I went to a doctor who went ham on me. He injected way, way, way too much. I was sick to my stomach and never went back. I also learned my lesson to really talk things out beforehand and let the doctor know that I am serious about what I want. You can always go back for more and in my opinion, with Botox, less is more. The good news is that it eventually all wears off, so if you try it out and hate it, you’ll be back to your old, wrinkly face in no time {kidding}.
How Much Do You Get?
Five years later, I’m still alive and telling the tale. Sadly, I haven’t stuck to my once a year plan but I’m pretty close! I usually get Botox every 8 months and stick to minimal units {8-10}. I am very careful, telling the doctors that I want to keep the integrity of my face. I also don’t mess with fillers or anything else outside of Botox.
And only because I know many of you will ask or question, this was in no way sponsored or paid for. The place I got my very first Botox {in the face} is DMH Aesthetics. I tried other doctors {i.e. the heavy hand}, but I’ve recently circled back to DMH and really love their work.
What’s your experience with Botox? Hate it? Love it? Thinking of it? Have any tips to share for fellow readers? Please leave a comment below. Oh, and if you are positively against Botox and have extreme thoughts about how bad of a person I am for getting Botox, can you just please keep them to yourself? I’m only opening up about this for those readers who are curious to learn more. Please & thanks!
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