Botox for Beginners

A life of interesting stories leads to a face of interesting wrinkles!
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I wasn’t overly concerned until my early-fifties, that is when the ravages of age laid it’s claim to my face. I’ve been afraid to try anything invasive including Botox… the needle, injecting something into my face, what if I don’t like the results? I’m probably beyond fixing anyway… if my face was Earth, some of the wrinkles would be relative to the Grand Canyon!
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​Whilst I’ve been debating the next step beyond wonder creams, Botox has become even more mainstream with youngsters in their twenties using it as a preventative measure to stop wrinkles forming in the first place. They will remain like porcelain dolls their whole life… well that’s the idea! For me, a cracked porcelain doll would be a bonus, or at least the softening of well-etched lines created from many a good story!

Like the world, my forehead has it's own set of natural wonders!

I was fortunate to meet Nurse January, a true professional who works out of spa810 at both the Scottsdale - Shea location and Arrowhead, AZ. Nurse January RN, BSN has extensive medical and aesthetics experience which totally put me at ease. “Client outcomes are my number one priority”, says January. Her mantra, especially for newbies, is to go with less and do more later if necessary.  

​As with any huge decision that causes apprehension, doing your own research is very important. The number one recommendation is to seek the services of ONLY fully qualified nurse or doctor practitioners. 

I was about ready to take the Botox plunge despite being a nervous wreck, anxious that my face would be frozen, worried that my heavy eyelids would droop even more than they do already, and I would have a botulism plague running rampant throughout my body. Valid concerns I thought to myself! But if I was to entrust anybody to manage these horrid consequences, Nurse January is my gal!  

Lots of medical forms and full disclosures are to be expected

Basically, Botox relaxes the muscle to minimize contraction which creates the deep creases, you still have feeling so you are not numbed by it. Continual use over long periods of time can reduce the formation of new wrinkles. It gradually wears off lasting 3 to 5 months, hence the need to keep up treatment! If deep lines already exist, Botox will soften them making them less pronounced, but they will not disappear altogether. Softer lines will become near to invisible.

Before the procedure make it clear to your practitioner what you are looking to achieve. For me I wanted the "Botox, no Botox" look, a refresh but keeping my expressions! ​Note that Botox works on the upper face primarily - forehead and around the eyes.

A good practitioner will show you the bottle that your Botox came in. If not, you should ask to see it. There's another product which is inferior to Botox, so it's important to know that you are getting what you pay for. Also ask your practitioner what the dilution of Botox to saline ratio is. Normal practice is 1.5 to 2.5. The less dilution the better, 1.5:1 or 2:1 is good. January did all this automatically, I didn’t have to ask!   ​

Nurse January establishes where to put the Botox by seeing your expression lines and wrinkles. She marks where the injections will go.

My "elevenses", the two lines that appear when I frown between the eyebrows are very pronounced. Nurse January squishes them together to determine where she will inject to minimize them. They are deep creases so they may not go away altogether, but she can make them much less noticeable. 

January's proprietary step is to transpose the markings on your face to paper to keep for her records, it also helps her explain why and where she is placing the Botox as well as shows how many units you will get.

On with the show! 

I was totally blown away that I could barely feel anything. It really is the faintest tiniest pin prick. ​

Immediately after treatment, the area looks like it's been stung by bees. This is now my favorite type of bee sting because a) you can't feel anything and b) the bumps and redness disappear within 10 to 15 minutes.

Immediately following treatment - the bee sting effect!

There is no downtime as such with Botox, but there are a few instructions that should be followed post injection:

• Keep head upright for 4 hours
• Do not rub area, massage or apply pressure with hats or headbands until the next day
• No strenuous exercise for 24 hours
• No facials, waxing or laser for two weeks
• Avoid sun, extreme hot or cold temperatures for 24 hours

It takes three to four days for the Botox to settle and show the effects and two weeks to be fully effective. A new feeling occurs when you attempt to pull faces! For me, when I raise my eyebrows it feels like someone is holding my forehead in place. An attempt to frown is hopeless, it's like I lost the muscular movement to do that... adds a whole new meaning to the term "flat-lined"!

In my experience, I found it a challenge applying mascara as I couldn’t raise one of my eyelids to the same degree as before due to different muscle strength on one side of the face to the other. My eyebrows were still perfectly aligned, and although I felt like I was pulling faces, I was no longer scaring small children! A good practitioner, such as Nurse January at spa810 will have you back for a checkup and any "tweekments" necessary at two weeks. These types of adjustments can fix any irregularities that may have occurred. 

​Let’s take a look at some before and after pictures: 

​Raising my eyebrows creates a lot less movement in the forehead and even my “elevenses” are smoother although not invisible.

​Much less creasing even at the sides.

It’s clear to see that Botox really does create a smoother appearance. These comparisons were taken right “before” the procedure and two weeks “after” the procedure, no need to say which is which! Recreating the same facial lines is virtually impossible after the Botox has kicked in even though I am attempting the same expression.

Would I do this again? Yes, absolutely I would!
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If you’re in Arizona and want to try Botox, spa810 is a relaxing spa establishment where you will find Nurse January, a fully qualified and skilled injectable practitioner. spa810 is offering my readers a 10% discount on the first set of injectables by mentioning ABOVEANDBEBLONDE when you call 480-210-1001. If Botox isn’t your thing, check out the spa for their other services, they have some amazing treatments that will leave you feeling and looking your best. Shani and Andrea the owners, make it their priority to ensure every guest has an amazing spa experience, you will not be disappointed.

Spa 810 Scottsdale, AZ - Shani (co owner) and Nurse January

As always, thank you for stopping by

Thank you to spa810 for sponsoring this post. The words and results herein are my own experience and the photographs are my own and have not been modified.