Abby Borbon-Roaquin, manager and clinician at Ulan Medical Spa in San Diego, California, has been a registered nurse for over 14 years. She is experienced in providing many types of medical aesthetic procedures. Here, she discusses the tell-tale signs of Botox and Juvederm and how to avoid them.
Medical spa procedures are designed to tighten, lift, rejuvenate, or refresh our skin — not to make it look fake or stiff. So if you overdo it, the results aren’t pretty. Here is my guide for avoiding the pitfalls of Botox and Juvederm (and how to tell if someone else has fallen prey to over-injecting):
Tell-tale Signs of Botox
Botox is an injection mainly used in the upper face meant to smooth moderate to severe frown lines in between the eyebrows, crow’s feet, and forehead wrinkles. It is derived from the purified protein of clostridium botulinum bacterium. In small quantities, it relaxes muscles so that wrinkles and frown lines normally caused by facial expressions do not appear.
There is a “fine line” (pun intended) between good use of Botox and bad use of Botox. When someone is “over-botoxing,” you can really tell. For instance, when the forehead does not move or looks completely paralyzed, it gets that “waxy” look. You want to be able to maintain your facial expression, but you also want your wrinkles to disappear. Botox works in injectable units, with about 20 or 30 units per area, depending on the need. An experienced clinician knows how many units it takes to relax each area, and doesn’t inject more than what is necessary. But sometimes people themselves will ask for more than is needed.
Tell-tale Signs of Juvederm
This injectable gel, made from hyaluronic acid, is often used to smooth the smile lines around the mouth. As opposed to Botox, which addresses wrinkles that are caused by muscle movement, Juvederm works on the folds that are not caused by muscle movement, but by a loss of volume or structure underneath the skin — the nasolabial folds, or the “parentheses around the mouth.” It works by instantaneously adding volume and the results are seen immediately. Results continue to improve for up to two weeks from the injection date, as hyaluronic acid absorbs up to eight times its weight in water. There is minimal to no downtime.
Some people use Juvederm to reshape their lips and make them look more plump: Who doesn’t get Angelina Jolie envy sometimes? The unfortunate downside of this is that sometimes it can make your lips look … well, too plump. An experienced clinician at an established facility such as Ulan Medical Spa will know how to make lips look fuller and natural at the same time. But watch out and make sure you don’t overdose on the filler.
Then again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
