Botox and fillers and lasers, Oh my!
Do you sometimes feel confused with all the different antiaging treatments available? Do you look in the mirror and know you need anti-aging intervention but don’t know where to start, what you need, or what procedures will have the biggest impact on your overall youthful appearance? Welcome to first-world aging problems in the 21st century, Chickie.
It’s an anti-aging smorgasbord and you don’t know whether to get the fried chicken, the meatloaf, or the mashed potatoes — or everything on the buffet. And just like the selections in a lunch buffet – it can get overwhelming.
First, let me just say, how freaking lucky are we that we get to age during this time in history? We are blessed beyond blessed to have so many options to reverse the signs of aging.
But to whom much is given, much is expected. Get informed. Go back and read this post , oh and this one to understand how we age and how it affects our face. That way, when you visit your dermatologist, you can have an educated discussion about the best course of action to take.
Aging isn’t limited to wrinkling. Of course, that’s what most people think about when they think about aging. But there are many structural changes happening behind the scenes that affect the youthful appearance of the face: loss of volume from facial fat loss, loss of facial bones, sagging, from loss of these structures, textural changes to the skin due to sun damage and loss of collagen, brown spots and pigmentation.
Facial rejuvenation is a multi-pronged approach.
So let’s break it down…
The toxins
Botox, Dysport, and Xeomin.
Most of the time, I get Dysport because it works faster and because I usually get it done when I have a forehead emergency. And because I have no patience. But it’s up to you and your practitioner as to which one will better suit you.
These treatments are good if you suffer from the following:
• Horizontal forehead lines
• Frown lines (the vertical lines between the eyebrows)
• Crow’s feet (lines around the eyes)
• Horizontal creases on the neck (necklace lines)
• Vertical chords that protrude along the length of your neck (platysmal bands). If you want to know if you have these, tense your jaw in the mirror
• Slight sagging of the neck (turkey neck)
• Droopy eyelids
• Bunny lines on the side of your nose (really apparent when you smile)
• Dimples or depressions on the chin
• Vertical lines and wrinkles around the mouth
• Downturned corners of the mouth (in combination with fillers)
The Fillers:
The most common ones are Restylane, Restylane Lyft, Restylane Silk, Radiesse, Sculptra, Belotero, Bolotero Balance, Hydrelle, Juvadérm, Juvadérm XC, Ultra XC, Voluma XC, Volbella XC, and PREVELLE Silk.
Has your face fallen and it can’t get up? Do you look worse than a deflated balloon? Then you need to filler up (with caution, chipmunk) with dermal fillers. Again, it’s up to your injector to advise on which one is for you.
• Hollow or fallen cheeks
• Deep creases that run from the nose to the mouth (nasolabial folds or laugh lines)
• Sagging on the sides of your mouth (marionette lines)
• Slight sagging of the jaw
• Indented temples
• Thinning lips
• Undereye bags
• Undereye hollows
• Vertical lines around the edges of the lips
Of course, there are also lasers, resurfacing treatments, and much much more. It’s daunting, and it’s expensive. But if you can, at least do these two different types of treatments and take care of your skin with proper skincare. You will reverse the signs of aging by a good number of years (of course it’s different for everyone).
I hope this was helpful. Let me know what your favorite facial rejuvenator is.
xoxo
Good post! I recently thought about getting Botox but decided to try a NuFace first because I’m just not ready for it.
Author
Thank you, Tracy. I get it. You have to be ready. Although, I think that once you do it, you’ll realize it’s not that big a deal.I like the fact that you get it done, and that’s it…You’re good for 3 or 4 months. I can even tell the minute it starts to wear off, and then I go into panic mode, haha. I have to say though, I love Botox for so many reasons, but what I love the most is that I can tailor it to my specific needs. I don’t particularly like the frozen forehead look, but some women do and that’s perfectly ok. I get a little bit specifically where I need and that’s it; I still have movement and expression. I know a lot of women are a little scared that it will change their face, but it won’t. The key is finding a qualified injector so you don’t walk away looking like Spock. Let me know how it goes with the NuFace. I bought one a while back and didn’t use it. When I finally decided to try it, it didn’t turn on. Now it’s too late to return it and I don’t want to spend the money on a new one.