Botox, Fillers, Oh my!

Ever since my early 20s I’ve been in the business of taking good care of my skin. I’ve used high end serums, creams, and cleansers, worn hats to the beach, and have gotten regular facials. We only get one set of skin and I wanted to preserve mine as well as possible. All in all I have a great complexion, and my esthetician has told me I have thick skin, ha! So this means any damage I’ve caused in earlier years a: takes longer to come to the surface, and b: can be treated more aggressively. Even with all the work I’ve put in, I have still found myself aging, go figure!!! So when I turned 29 I went and had my first botox consultation.

Way too early?! I’ve heard so many women tell me, that they are waiting till they are older to start botox. Or even waiting till their skin gets worse to start treatment. There is no right or wrong, it is your skin after all, but today I want to share my feelings on botox and fillers, and why I do them regularly. I’m an open book, and will gladly answer any of your questions.

What is botox? It is Botulinum toxin, a protein the prevents the release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction and thus causes flaccid paralysis. Meaning, it numbs the muscle for a short period of time. I call it, giving your muscle a break. Think about the areas on your face where you might start to see wrinkling. Around your eyes, mouth, and forehead. Why? because we use these areas daily to express ourselves. If you wait till you are 40, then you have gone 40 whole years with those muscles on overdrive. Only resting in the evening, and if you are a side or stomach sleeper you may be working them even then. (that is a whole other post to come!)

So in theory there is no harm in waiting till you’re older to start botox, BUT I will caution you that you will end up having to inject more units, more frequently. So in theory it will be the same as if you started earlier, or I would argue even worse because if you start giving those muscles a break in your earlier years when your skin still have some elasticity left they will grow accustom to the rest and will eventually not overwork themselves even as the botox wears off. By the time you are in your 40s you could be down to once a year. Instead of needing it every 3 months. I only get injected twice a year now and I’ve only been getting it done for 6 years.

So how much does it cost? Well it varies, but typically you will find botox for $10 a unit. Depending on your skin, you will need anywhere from 8-50 units. See that’s a huge range too. 8 units would be someone younger who just needs a little around their eyes. 50 would be someone with deep forehead wrinkles, or strong 11s. I typically get around 20-25 for reference.

Does it hurt?? Honestly, I was the. biggest scaredy cat when it came to needles and so my first appointment I was sweating. 20 units? Does that mean 20 shots in my head ahhhhh But no, it’s more like 5 or 6 small pricks. The whole thing is over in about 10 minutes so just breathe and get through it. The results are so worth it!

What is the point of skincare if you are getting these types of treatments? Well let me ask you this, if you want to take good care of your body, or your other vital organs, is working out alone enough? Or do you need to eat healthy, hydrate, and get adequate rest? This is the same for your skin. A regular skincare routine is important for maintenance and also different factors of the aging process, but may not always be enough. No matter what they promise, a cream just simply can’t do what cosmetic procedures can do. Tightening, firming, plumping, creams can only go so far. Let botox give your muscles a break and then watch your creams go!! You will be amazed at how much nicer your makeup wears and how much deeper your products seem to penetrate.

There are several brands of Botox. The original being botox of course, but there is also xeomin, dysport, and jeuveau (newtox). I have tried all four different kinds, and have found that dysport definitely works best with my body chemistry. It all depends how your body metabolizes the proteins, how your body sweats it out at the gym, its almost a trial and error type thing, but most people start with botox. However jeuveau is supposed to activate quicker than botox. I didn’t notice too much of a difference. And they are very similar in price. So maybe if your office is running a special give a different brand a try.

I could talk all day about the procedures I enjoy for my skin along with my regular skincare, and like I said, I’m an open book. So if you have specific questions about your skin feel free to reach out, or follow me on instagram @madeoverbymandy because I talk a lot about the procedures I get done there. Exfoliation, laser treatments for dark spots, derma plane, chemical peels. All the good stuff. But I want to focus on botox questions and fillers. I had my first experience with fillers this summer, and I’m going to fill you in below.

Fillers are different than botox in the fact that they are actually a substance being injected into your body that stays in place till it eventually desolves away. This freaked me out for a long time. I am not super crunchy, but I am very careful what I put in my body. I’m very regular and don’t like to mess with my natural flow. This is the biggest reason I’ve never gotten any type of breast augmentation. Foreign objects being inserted into my body scares me. So I waited and waited and researched and waited. Filler has the ability to extremely change an area. I’ve watched women get filler under their eyes to help with bags or sunken sockets. I’ve seen a whole face transformed by filler being injected into the cheek bone. The entire face then lifts. WOW! I’ve been curious about having lip injections not so much because I felt like I needed it, but because I know that we actually lose the meat of our lips as we age. I sell lipstick for a living and women regularly complain to me about how their lips are shrinking. I wanted to experience it for myself to be able to give a testament.

I’ve also seen some super botched jobs. Huge lips that look like jelly donut rolls. Or the ledge, have you seen it?! I was nervous. So again, I waited. It wasn’t until I met Dr. Steven Porto that I felt comfortable getting my lips done. He educated me. He studied my lips. Watched my makeup videos to make sure nothing would change except for an enhancement. Again with filler there are several different kinds. Volbella is the smallest molecule and gives the most natural appearance. It is perfect for smoothing out lip wrinkles or giving a slight plump. We decided on juvederm ultra in small doses. Instead of slamming a full syringe into my lips we did it slowly over two treatments. This gives your lips time to adjust and settle into their own. It’s honestly why my lips still look very natural, just more full. Like a younger version of my lips.

How much does juvederm cost? With Dr. Porto, it’s $500 a syringe. Which gets you two separate treatments. I am such a fan of this method!!! It lasts 6-8 months, and even after it seems to have mostly dissolved away, you will still be left with smoother, more hydrated lips. The shape of your lips will remain younger looking, and you will most likely need less if you decide to go for another round.

My goal is to age gracefully, and do little bits here and there to help along the way. I never want to look overdone, but I want to preserve what I’ve been given. The best advice I can give you is go slow and research a lot!!!! Botox and filler are both not a permanent thing and actually filler can be reversed. A solution can be inject to dissolve it immediately. But still, there is no reason to have to go through that process. Botox is a muscle method, and you should be careful who you are getting injected by. More and more people are able to get their hands on it and are getting injected by whoever. A couple thoughts on that. You can really screw up your face if it is not done properly, think crazy eyebrows, or sagging eyes. YIKES! Also if the muscle placement isn’t right, it won’t last as long. Also when you go to the same injector each time, they get to know your muscles strength and placement like a road map and they will give you the best experience.

Below are some before and after pictures of me. What do you think? Aging backwards?? (Check out my lips when I smile in particular. This is the biggest change to me, and I am at least 10 years older in the after pictures.)