Part 1 - The Decision.
Considering botox but a little apprehensive? If only someone else could have it done first and tell you all about it - exactly what happens, what to expect, whether it hurts and whether it works! Read on to hear about botox from a patient's perspective.
So, botox…..there must be a lot of us out there who have considered it for one reason or
another. I certainly have, and yes, I’ve decided to go ahead. After a good few months of
deliberating, I’ve finally plucked up the courage to go ahead with it.
I’ll be honest, I haven’t told many people. When I first mentioned I was considering it
some time back, I was met with mixed responses from friends and family, so I’ve kept
quiet about it ever since. Then, when on a particularly stressful day at work, a colleague
asked ‘You look really cross, are you ok or has something upset you?’ I was genuinely
mortified. For the record, I was neither cross, nor upset - that was just my ‘I’m really
busy and I'm concentrating’ look, that until then, I hadn’t even realised was in my repertoire of ‘looks’.
I was really upset that as a 30-something-year-old, my natural ‘I’m concentrating’ look meant I
looked angry and resulted in people feeling they had to ask if I was ok. It played on my
mind for ages and for the first time ever, I became really conscious about how I was
aging and how people perceived my looks. Even the fringe I had cut in to hide the frown lines
doesn’t quite do the job sufficiently well! So, I’ve decided, this week I am taking the-plunge.
I have to admit I’m a little anxious. But a much bigger part of me is very excited to see
what kind of a difference it will make. I initially wasn’t going to tell my partner, just to
see if he would notice, but then I was so excited, I couldn’t help myself! I’m not too
worried about the procedure itself. I’m not concerned about needles generally, and I’m
not expecting it to hurt (is that a little naïve of me?). I suppose I’m more concerned
about whether it will look too obvious – you know, that sort of ‘plastic look’ you see a lot
of celebrities sporting these days. I don’t want my face to look fake; I just want it to look less
‘angry’. I exercise, although not perhaps as much as I could, I eat relatively healthily,
although I don’t mind admitting I am rather partial to the occasional sweet treat and I try
to drink plenty of water, but honestly, I prefer wine. And those things make me a happier
person – I’m not sure changing them in any way would get rid of my ‘frown lines’ and
make people think I was feeling less cross with the world!
I’ve done a lot of research and I wanted to make sure I chose somebody professional and
fully qualified and I liked Beeston Dental Practice’s ethos of ‘less is more’. So,
tomorrow, I’m booked in at The Studio for my consultation appointment. Botox is so
accessible these days, if it is something you have been considering, I thought it might be
helpful to share my experiences with you, from start to finish, from a patient’s
perspective.
So, until tomorrow…..
(Keep scrolling for parts 2, 3 and 4)
Diary of a Nottingham Botox Patient
Part 2 - The Consultation Appointment.
So, as promised, here’s how the consultation appointment went when I attended The Studio at Beeston Dental Practice yesterday to discuss having my first ever botox treatment.
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this appointment and I have to admit, I’m not the
biggest fan of the dentist’s chair, so I was a little apprehensive. But I was met by a very
friendly and welcoming dentist, Dr Patel, who immediately put me at ease and spent
plenty of time explaining to me all about botox, how it works and what the procedure
involves.
I began by showing Dr Patel the area of lines I’m most concerned about. Trust me, there
is more than one area, but for my first ever botox treatment, it is just the forehead ‘frown
lines’ that give me that ‘angry look’, (and make people think I’m cross when really I’m
not), that I’m most keen to try and banish. Dr Patel was very honest and said that one
session of botox will not completely get rid of the deepest line I have, but all of the area
should appear noticeably relaxed and within a quick timeframe. I should see a difference
within a couple of days and then the full result will be visible after approximately 2
weeks. And I was surprised to hear that it lasts for up to 6 months. I was shown some
before and after pictures and honestly, I was truly amazed at the dramatic, yet natural
looking changes achieved after just one session.
After seeing the pictures, my initial fear of looking ‘plastic’ had subsided but I still raised
it as a concern. I was reassured I won’t come out looking fake or unable to raise my eye-
brows as The Studio has a policy of not injecting more than necessary – phew! I had read
that during my research, but it’s certainly good to hear. They prefer to put a little more in
at the two week follow-up appointment if needed and actually, it’s great to know that you
can have a little bit extra at that point and do it gradually.
What I wasn’t aware of is that injecting the forehead area with botox produces a side-
effect of lifting the muscles above the eyes, which raises the eyebrows a little. Look
more awake? Oh, yes please! After two children and far too many sleepless nights, this is
a side-effect I will more than welcome!
Another possible side effect is one eyebrow might initially appear more raised than the
other due to the slightly non-symmetrical shape of my eye-brows (years of over-plucking
on my part no doubt). If this should happen, I am reassured it will settle down quite
quickly.
So, after all medical issues were disclosed, the consent form was discussed and signed.
Then I was asked to pose, well, more ‘frown’, for the ‘before treatment’ pictures, and that
brought a close to the consultation appointment. And as I’m fully happy to go ahead, and
confident I’m in good hands, the treatment is booked for tomorrow…
Just one slight issue though - wouldn’t you just know that the night before the consultation
appointment, a not-so-distant relative of Mount Vesuvius appeared slap bang between my
eyes. As this ‘spot’ is right in the middle of one of my frown lines and at the site of
where one of the needles will need to go, the treatment may be postponed for a couple of
days to avoid scarring. Better to be safe than sorry…but I can’t deny I’m not
disappointed. I can’t wait to see a smoother me.
Diary of a Nottingham Botox Patient.
Part 3 - Treatment Day.
If you're considering botox but just want some words of reassurance and to hear what it really feels like from someone who's had it, read on to hear all about the process from a first-time botox patient's perspective.
Today was the day for my first ever botox treatment! Once the not-so-distant relative of
Mount Vesuvius disappeared from my forehead, I've been all set to go ahead. I’m not
wrinkle free yet, and trust me I’ve looked enough times since the treatment earlier today
to check on my progress, but the botox is in there and in a few days, I should start to smooth out and
lose that ‘angry’ look. Thank goodness!
Admittedly, when I arrived at The Studio at Beeston Dental Practice today, I was a little
nervous. I think that was because I kept recalling how, somewhere around 10 years
ago, I’d always said I’d never have cosmetic treatment of any kind, and here I was about
to go against that (anyone who knows me will tell you I’m fairly stubborn and don’t like
to go against my word). But in the last ten years, rather a lot has happened to change my
face, and my opinions. Botox is extremely safe when done by a professional, plus, if
after 6 months, I decide I don’t like the look of it and decide not to have botox again, my
face will return to its pre-botox state. To be honest, my advice would be to ‘never say
never!’
Today was a very positive experience. I felt very relaxed in the dentist’s chair.
There’s no denying I looked rather silly with lots of little white marked-out dots pencilled on my
forehead marking the injection points – but honestly at one point I could have had a little
snooze. Dr Patel was very calming. She explained everything she was doing and why. It
put my mind at ease to see a new needle being used for each injection and to see Dr Patel
and her assistant wearing gloves. So I instantly felt happier knowing everything was
sterile. And of course having a dentist, someone very skilled and experienced in
administering injections, is also very reassuring.
I’m pleased to report it was not the slightest bit painful. Obviously I could feel the
needles prick my skin but that’s all it was, a few pin pricks! I was expecting to feel some
kind of pressure as the botox fluid was being injected but no, nothing at all. And the
whole procedure, from marking up the injection sites to completing the final injection
was done in around 40 minutes. It wasn’t my lunch hour, but it if it had been, I would have had chance
to have the treatment, eat a sandwich and be back at my desk within the hour!
I have been given aftercare instructions to help the botox to track and settle in the right
places…no bending forward, no lying down, no going to the gym. To be frank, other
than the ‘no lying down’ they all sound like the type of instructions I’d be grateful to hear
on a daily basis! My final instruction was to spend the hour immediately after the
treatment making my face overly expressive. As I drove home, the workmen at the
temporary traffic lights in Nottingham gave me some very strange looks – probably
because inadvertently I was doing the same to them! I’d forgotten I wasn’t
completely on my own and other people could see me frowning and raising my eyebrows
like it was a new Olympic sport…
Since I’ve arrived home, I’ve been very good. My fringe has been swept to one side to ensure my
forehead stays as clean as possible, I’ve not touched the skin, I’ve avoided getting down on
my hands and knees and bending forward to scrub the kitchen floor, and I’ve no plans
to go to the gym! I’ve continued to frown and raise my eyebrows too, thankfully though nobody can
see me now! So, hopefully, as I type, the botox will be tracking in the right directions.
My partner hasn’t looked at me so intently for a good while! Neither of us can see any
difference yet (my partner says he can, but I think at this stage it’s just him trying to
flatter me). Dr Patel has said it will take three days before I really notice anything and
two weeks before the full effect will be visible.
So watch this space Ladies and Gents. I’ll report back soon, and I might (might) let
Beeston Dental Practice post the 'before and after' pictures for you all to see.
Diary of a Nottingham Botox Patient.
Part 4 - The Results!
So, it’s now sixteen days since I visited The Studio at Beeston Dental Practice,
Nottingham and I had my first ever botox injections. Every morning has consisted of the
same routine - the usual trip to the bathroom. But this time, the first thing I have done is
checked my forehead in the mirror for any hint of a transformation. Instead of a weary,
tired and grumpy looking face staring back at me, what a difference I can see!
Dr Patel said I wouldn’t see anything noticeable for a couple of days, and true to her
word, there was nothing visible until day three when the deepest line started to look
smoother. My forehead felt a little ‘strange’ to begin with, I can’t really put my finger on
how, just a little ‘different’. It feels completely normal now and that ‘slightly different’
feeling lasted only a day or two. Every morning from day three, I’ve smiled at what has
stared back at me from the mirror. It has been like watching magic taking place before
my very eyes; like someone has taken a rubber to my forehead overnight and erased an
extra layer of wrinkle!
By day seven, the results were already really noticeable and by day fourteen I was so
thrilled. My deepest wrinkle, the one that made me look particularly angry, the one right
between the eyes, the first thing everyone sees when they stand and have a conversation
with you, has gone! Well, if I’m honest, it’s almost gone. It’s only visible to me, because
I know exactly where to look for it (and it really is only just visible). If I frown, it is
nowhere to be seen. I still have movement with my eyebrows and I can still express my
displeasure in something, just without all the wrinkles that went with it before (and then
stayed around a while longer than the actual frown). My eyebrows have definitely raised
a little, and finally I look more awake! My eyes look bigger and brighter and I generally
look fresher. This is my favourite part of the results. I have left the house without eye
make-up this last week on more than one occasion. And for me, that’s completely
unheard of!
Day fourteen saw my review appointment with Dr Patel. She was as lovely as ever. What
was great was there was absolutely no pressure to have any more botox added. We both
agreed the right results had been achieved. Dr Patel spent some time giving me advice
about how to get the best from the botox, for example the best type of make-up to be
using, and some much needed advice on ensuring I moisturise daily. The ‘after’ pictures
have been taken and will no doubt appear here very soon.
I can honestly say I never expected the results to be as good as they are. I am thrilled.
My confidence is booming, I feel younger and I really don’t mind looking in the mirror
anymore – even first thing on a morning!
If botox is something you have been considering, I would definitely say ‘stop considering
it and make an appointment!’ You know if you don’t, you’ll always be wondering what
kind of difference it would make for you. There is absolutely no element of the treatment
process I am disappointed with. From start to finish, the service from The Studio and Dr
Patel has been first class - very personal, caring, honest and sincere. The procedure itself
is not painful, neither on the day of the treatment nor in the two weeks afterwards, and
it’s absolutely fascinating watching the effects taking place.
Remember, Dr Patel can adapt the amount of botox used depending on what kind of
result you are looking for. And you can always add more at the two week review if you
want to. I wanted something very natural looking with the ability to still use my forehead
to give expression, a more wide awake look, with my frown lines significantly faded, and
that’s exactly what I have got. If I could have waved a magic wand, the results are just
what I would have wished for.
In the words of my father-in-law when he saw me on day twelve, ‘This stuff really
works!’
My frown lines before the treatment.
My frown lines after the treatment. Yes, I am frowning! Brilliant isn't it!