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| Botox in its powered form before saline is added |
WARNING! This post contains photos of me with no filter, editing or face makeup!
I have a very expressive face – in particular my forehead. I didn’t really realise this until I started watching my talking snaps back on Snapchat. My forehead was raising up and down like a yo-yo when I was talking about normal things, let alone when I was excited or irate – it was like watching Jim Carrey (but not as funny)! That coupled with being 33 years old has resulted in forehead wrinkles. I admit that they weren’t that bad but they did bother me and more importantly I was worried about them getting worse…..
As you can probably tell from the heading of this post I had Botox*. OK, so it might be a bit controversial with some of you, but each to their own and all that……
Lots of people have Botox now and it isn’t just for the rich and famous. Most high streets will have a centre offering injectables of sorts. But when it comes to my face I wanted the best of the best, so I visited Dr Mark Holmes at the McIndoe Centre – which is a private cosmetic surgery hospital. Mark is a medically trained doctor, is a member of the American Academy of Anti-Aging, has worked in the plastic surgery department of the McIndoe Centre for over 10 years, and now trains other doctors in advanced techniques of cosmetic injectables. As you can see with a CV like that I knew I was in good hands.
Every appointment I had with Mark was extremely thorough. I had an initial consultation to discuss the procedure and what I wanted to achieve. This meeting was also for Mark to assess what I needed done and if I was the correct candidate for Botox, so I had to answer a few health questions. My second appointment was the treatment itself, followed by a third and final appointment to check everything is as it should be, and I was happy with the outcome. You don’t see any immediate results with Botox. It takes up to 2 weeks to see the effects, hence why you go back for a follow up appointment. I know a few friends that have had Botox and it’s usually a quick in and out 10 minute appointment, so I was really pleased at how detailed Mark was with every appointment.
Originally I had only thought about having Botox in my forehead, and to be honest I didn’t really think you could have it any where else. After speaking to Mark he suggested a few other areas that could be beneficial to me so I ended up having it done in 4 places – on my forehead, in between my brows/ eyes, to the side of my eyes and on my chin – this was to stop the dimpling I get on my chin which I hate.
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| Dr Mark Holmes adding saline to the Botox |
Botox or botulinum toxin (it’s full name) relaxes the muscles in the treated areas, softening any fine lines. It’s been used for over 25 years on millions of patients and has few side effects when administered correctly. I had 1 ml of Botox injected into my face – all 4 areas. When you think a teaspoon is 5 ml you can see that it’s a tiny amount. Botox comes in a bottle in a powder form which must be kept refrigerated. It’s so tiny you can’t even see it in the bottle in the photos I took for this post. To create an injectable form it has to be mixed with saline.
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| Before & After in the forehead area – As you can see when I raise my eyebrows there are a LOT less lines than before. I wanted to keep a few to keep it natural. |
The procedure was pretty much pain free. Mark applies numbing cream on the areas he is going to inject so you hardly feel it. Its just like a small sharp scratch and each injection lasts for seconds. When he showed me the needle he uses it didn’t surprise me that I could hardly feel it, as it was so fine.
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| Me frowning before and after Botox. After having treatment I literally can’t frown – my eyes just look small and squinty! |
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| Before and after in the crows feet area – lines gone!! |
I went back after 2 weeks to review my results. I was thrilled with how the Botox had worked for me as it looked so natural. I’ve not told any of my family I’ve had Botox and none of them have noticed – and I’ve seen them loads since I’ve had it done. They don’t read my blog so I doubt they will ever know! I didn’t want it to be so harsh that people would say “you look different” or “what have you had done?”. Luckily that is very much Mark’s approach to Botox too – he wants to achieve the best natural look for all his patients. If however you did need a bit more Botox (as some people may need a little more than others), then Mark would give you a top up in the followup appointment at no extra charge.
I couldn’t be happier with what Botox has achieved for me and I’m so glad I went with an experienced and qualified doctor like Mark, as my story could have been very different if I hadn’t! The Botox should last around 4 – 6 months, so I will definitely be back to visit Mark again once the effects have worn off.
Dr Mark Holmes charges from £190 for Botox and offers free consultations which can be booked here.
Have you had Botox? Would you consider it?
As a side note…. drawn on eyebrows look flipping awful when you don’t have a full face of makeup on and yes….. I have lots of freckles! Thank god, I can work miracles with makeup 🙂
Have a great day everyone!
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Items marked with * were gifted to be for review purposes.