I know when I first had an itch to try Botox - it was tough to find helpful, personable content about the topic. All the things I found searching online were either Allergan Botox pages on the brand website or straight from med spas - and while both of those are totally trusted resources, I wanted that personal touch. I wanted to hear about the personal experience.
SO - I wanted to create that for you all today because I have officially been dabbling in Botox for over a year now at my favorite med spa in San Francisco: SkinSpirit.
Everyone at SkinSpirit is the bomb, but I'm super loyal to my practitioner, Lauren. She's the most insanely sweet and talented person - and has a realistic and practical approach. Two things I really value when letting someone map out treatments (and injections!). Lauren actually mapped out an entire "bridal prep" beauty series for me including facials, peels, and Emsculpt (blog post coming soon!).
But I digress. Lauren is the bomb - we're here to talk about Botox. So let's get cracking.
What is Botox?
I'm not the expert (Lauren is!), but the long story short is that Allergan Botox is essentially a muscle relaxer delivered via a small injection.
I have a BIG fear of needles - trust me when I say small.
How does Botox "work"?
Botox blocks the signal from the nerve to the muscle - relaxing the muscle! Lauren really helped break this down for me. Botox does not "freeze," it relaxes!
What does Botox help treat?
Botox can help treat a wide variety of things, actually. I've learned a ton through this whole process!
I personally get Botox to help with skin creasing - pesky wrinkles! Lauren explained to me that skin is like paper and, over time, as we crinkle that paper (by raising our eyebrows for example), the creases become deeper and tougher to smooth out. By relaxing the muscle (like my forehead), movement is gently reduced, preventing future wrinkles and allowing collagen to build back up over older ones.
Botox can also be used to help ease migraines, calm excessive sweating, and more!
What is important when choosing a Botox provider?
Here's the thing - while Botox is safe, it is still an injection and needs to be treated with care. Botox should only be administered by trusted professionals.
Honestly, the thing I think is the most important when reviewing Botox administrators is to ask about their philosophy and approach. I trust SkinSpirit (and Lauren!) so deeply because I feel the team has always taken a realistic, practical, and even conservative approach. Lauren has allowed me to make my own decisions, but has always kept me looking natural and beautiful. People comment on how fresh faced I look - no one would know I do Botox unless I told them.
Find an approach that works for you! But if you're in SF...just go to SkinSpirit. Period. They're THE place to go.
Does Botox hurt?
Everyone has different pain tolerances - but straight up my pain tolerance is PRETTY MINIMAL. I'm a wimp. I get Botox on my forehead and around my eyes...
and it's pretty darn near pain free for me.
Lauren has me ice with a frozen balloon (I think it's a frozen balloon?) before any injections and that alone does the trick for me! I also LOVE that she injects from behind - I personally never see a needle (which for me is amazing because half the battle is just mental for me!).
All in all - this experience is crazy easy. If you can handle a solid peel or miroblading, Botox on the forehead/eyes is cake.
How long does Botox last?
From what Lauren has told me, everyone metabolizes Botox differently, but you can expect Botox to last 2-4 months on average. For me I usually get a solid three!
Is Botox expensive?
Like any beauty treatment, I view Botox as an investment. And honestly on the beauty treatment spectrum, I think it's a pretty good one - Botox can vary in price depending on where you live, what spa you go to, etc - but the average in my city seems to range from $12-$16 per unit (for reference I get anywhere from 10-25 units per session depending what's needed).
Is Botox worth it?
Yes, there's an expense here - but it's an expense made once every few months (vs once a month). To me - WORTH IT.
I've seen incredible improvement in my forehead creases over time and feel so much more confident in myself now that I'm not self conscious about them!
I hope this post was helpful, ya'll! Botox is honestly my jam now and I have Lauren and Skinspirit to thank for newfound confidence!
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