OT - Botox

[Dogmama]

I've been hesitating to post this because it is way OT - but the audience here is mainly female so here goes.

I'll be 52 years young this month. I have a bunch of wrinkles on my forehead that I've hated for years. Did lots of internet research on Botox, talked to a bunch of people and the overwhelming majority loved it. Yeah, I did the "injecting poison into my body? how can this be good" stuff, but decided that was a radical reaction (which I do often - the only time I see middle ground is when I'm running from one extreme to the other.)

ANYWAY - long story short - I hate it. I have small-ish eyes that are deep set. Botox has frozen/relaxed the muscles in my forehead which caused my eyebrows to droop and my eyelids look like lizard eyelids with a big fold in them. I look half asleep all the time. My eyebrows are perfectly horizontal - not a flattering look. I cannot get used to not moving my forehead muscles, I guess it's hard to break a 52 year habit. (One thing my friends told me was that after a couple of days you don't notice it - bull pucky!)

It might be OK for some people, but you have to assess your general facial structure first. I had it done by a board certified plastic surgeon, not at a Botox party. I now get to wait a couple more months for this to wear off and my eyelids to lift again. Until then, the gecko on that insurance commercial is my new brother.

[Bad JuJu]

Well, live and learn--the great thing is that it's not permanent.

But thanks for sharing. I'm 53, have never considered botox or any kind of cosmetic procedure (though both seem to be all the rage these days), but I'll keep your experience in mind if I hear of any friends considering using botox.

[KnottedYet]

there is an acupuncture technique that works at deep wrinkles to increase collagen production. It is very slow and takes many treatments, but it doesn't hurt and it won't make you look like a lizard. And your face will still have a wrinkle there, just not as big a wrinkle. So you will still look like "you".

Hang in there til the botox wears off!

[esther231]

I'm glad to hear it's temporary and you'll recover from it.

I had severe rosacea years ago and it dramatically changed my face for about 6 months till I figured out what works for me and how to control it. But those were a rough 6 months. Mild understatement. So, I know some of how you are feeling.

Most of my trouble with rosacea came from chemical allergies. So, I've never thought about botox. Or tatoos. Or changing hair color. Heck, I can't even use hair conditioner. lol Just a ton of other stuff that doesn't bother the rest of you can bring me to my knees in a heart beat.

Trust me, no one is as critical of your eye brows or eyes as you are. You think you look odder than you do. Honest. And it'll start getting better alittle bit every day soon.

Glad for you. And grateful you posted your experience. It's good advice.

[Aggie_Ama]

Ugh I am so sorry! At least Botox is somewhat temporary. Hopefully you will get to be like your friends and not see it all the time.

I have a movement disorder and Botox is one of the therapies. I asked my neurologist about doing that in the future when I decide to get pregnant to control my tremors. He said "Well my only concern is if they don't know which nerve and treat the wrong one you could end up temporarily unable to use your right hand." I guess Botox is great, but there are still risks.

[Pedal Wench]

DM

Thanks for sharing this. Usually, we only hear about the positives of these kind of things. Excuse the pun, but your story was a real eye-opener. As I look at my 44th BD, I've thought about it too, but now, it's off the table.

Thank you.

[Artisan]

I'm sorry to hear you had a bad experience with the botox. I am glad you shared this with us. We always hear the positive from the media about cosmetic procedures but rarely the negative. I've not considered botox but I'm just turning 40, I may have in the future. I have deep set eyes as well so I would have had the same issues as you. Thanks for sharing, I do hope the botox wears off quickly. I wonder if there is anything that you could do to help speed it along? I wonder if detoxify would help? Maybe your doctor would have suggestions.

[Dogmama]

I'll never do it again. And it isn't just the weird eye thing (yeah, I'm probably the only one who notices, but still...) - it is the fact that you cannot move the muscles and that is WEIRD.

As for speeding it along, there are some eye drops that they can give to open up the eye area, but they don't always work (and they're for glaucoma.) I would hate to make this worse. It should wear off in another 6-8 weeks. I'm a little gun shy about having anything else done.

I have a friend who had a bunch of cosmetic surgery done because she wants to "stay competitive" (62 years old & unmarried.) Her face looks great but her hands give her away.

Mother Nature WILL have her way with us!

[KSH]

When I got mine done... once... the Dr. told me that if your eyebrows are droopy (? spelling), there is a problem.

Did you move your forehead muscles for 4-6 hours after getting injected? I know I was instructed to do it constantly for hours after getting it done.

Also, did you go to a reputable Dr. who has done botox many times?

At least it wears off, that's a plus to botox! Good luck and sorry your experience was so bad.

I personally liked it and wished I had the money to keep it up on a regular basis. I'm so animated, I have deep wrinkles on my forehead and I want to go away!

PS- If you don't already... to make your eyes look more open, you can go and get your eyebrows waxed to put a nice arch in them... it will open your eyes up some. Trick of the eye.

[chickwhorips]

sorry to hear that the botox didn't work out. like the others have said at least it will wear off in time.

i'm know your still beautiful, even if your feeling a bit weird about the whole thing.

i've known some that have had botox and it has worked great or it hasn't no inbetween. you never know until you try.

just keep smiling

[Dogmama]

Also, did you go to a reputable Dr. who has done botox many times?

I went to a board certified plastic surgeon who graduated from an Ivy League school and has done lots of Botox. I am probably one of the few that don't like it.

He said that because my eyes are deep set, I might have a little eyelid droop so he used less Botox right over the outside eyebrow area. And that looks weird too - just a few wrinkles on the outside of the forehead.

I also felt weak/flu-ey for a few days afterwards. I'm really sensitive to any medication (I cut a 10 mg lexapro into quarters, per my psych-doc) so who knows.

Wish I could have given my Botox to you, because you like it. I have friends who swear by it. I swear AT it!

[Bikingmomof3]

I am sorry for your experience! I have been offered BOTOX as a treatment for migrianes-I refused. Anyhoo, you most likely do not look as badly as you think. But, you still do not like it and that is all that matters. I am very glad to hear it will reverse in time. I personally have no problems with wrinkles. I have earned each line I have.

[KnottedYet]

Yeah, I figured I've earned mine, too. Got me some real deep ones between my eyes and at the corners of my mouth (like dog jowls); but they are ones that fold and get deeper when I smile and laugh. Gotta love it. And they are lopsided, just like my grin.

"Wrinkles are just tattoos with better stories."

[KSH]

I am sorry for your experience! I have been offered BOTOX as a treatment for migrianes-I refused.

Botox used for medical reasons... can be good. My Grandma got shots every 3-6 months for her eyes... she had blethrospasm (can't spell it!)... basically her eye muscles would twitch and cause her eyes to close on their own... and she was very sensitive to light. It helped some. Without the botox, she would have been a lot worse off than she was.

[Nanci]

We use it where I work, too, to get rid of swallowing spasms that make it so people can't eat.