I Got Botox At 23. Here’s What I Thought Of The Procedure And Why I Chose To Have It Done

It’s the age of the selfie and we live in a time where we see our faces through the front camera lens on our smartphones on the daily. Arguably, we’re so much more aware of how we look than ever before, and I for one am not afraid to admit that when I see my face in all its glory, be it in the mirror or in a selfie, I notice my spots and small lines.

Naturally then, when Stellar.ie was contacted by Thérapie Clinic to try out their new painless botox injections I was intrigued, so I did my research and after much deliberating I decided to try it out. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking, ‘you’re 23, you don’t need botox’ and you’re right; I in no way needed it but I also saw the small lines forming on my forehead and my expression lines deepening and I figured this was a reasonable, albeit temporary, solution to the problem. 

The consultation

I had my consultation with Dr. Sarah-Kate in Thérapie Clinic on Molesworth Street. I took a seat, filled out forms and read the information leaflets throughly before being called into the procedure room.

First, Dr Sarah-Kate took profile shots of my face, one of me smiling, relaxed, tense and angry. It was a bit of a laugh actually. She told me the photographs were for my file to see the before and after shots should I return to the clinic.

Then I aired my concerns. Would the injections affect my acne? Would the bruising be super noticable on my pale skin? Dr Sarah-Kate assured me neither of these would be an issue.

Next, She talked me through the process of the anti-wrinkle injections. Basically, they’re injected directly into the facial muscles and soften fine lines and wrinkles by preventing facial contractions. Smart, huh? Truth be told, I was looking forward to having a permanent resting bitch face.

The set up

Next, Dr. Sarah-Kate explained where I would get the botox. We decided I would get six injections on my forehead and one injection between my brows, and she explained that they treat the forehead lighter so it doesn’t look ‘frozen’.

The blueprint for Ciara’s injections.

The procedure

The treatment itself took a maximum of three minutes. I lay down on the bed and Dr. Sarah-Kate took off the make-up on my forehead. She used an antiseptic to make sure the area was super clean, and then outlined where the botox would go with a white pencil.

Outlined and ready to go

Next she inserted the first injection into my frown line between my brows. I did not feel this at all, which explains how I was able to take a picture while she did it. 

Attempting to take a picture of the process

The next six injections on my forehead I could feel, probably because the skin is much more delicate. It felt like someone pinched the skin on my forehead for a second. And then we were done. I couldn’t get over how little time it took. Dr. Sarah-Kate even said that people come in on their lunch break to get it done and I can see why; five minutes after the treatment the little red dots went down and you wouldn’t even notice I’d had something done. 

Just after the injections

Like most procedures, there are a few do and don’ts after the injections, such as do not exercise for 48hours (well if you say so), do not rub or massage the area for 48 hours and no aesthetic treatments for two weeks post-treatment. Naturally, I abided by the rules. 

The results

Dr. Sarah-Kate said that the botox would be in full effect two weeks after the treatment. I eagerly stared at my face on the daily to see if I could see a difference. For a few days after the procedure my forehead felt strange, like there was something in it and it was tight. When I laughed hard or was tense it felt very tight, all of which I was told was completely normal. I noticed a difference about a week after the treatment, but I wanted to wait until the full two weeks were up before making my full judgement.

So, drumroll please, here are my before and after shots:

Contracting muscles before and after

As you can see there is a huge difference. Obviously when I want to contract my muscles on my forehead I can’t. I can raise my eyebrows and it feels like I am using my muscles but you cannot see them.

Smiling face before and after

Here is my normal smiling face. You can see the very slight lines on my forehead in the picture on the left and the super smooth forehead on the right. This is what I like the most about the anti-wrinkle injections.

Now that my forehead is smooth I can’t help but notice the other expression lines on my face. It’s as if the botox made one part of my face perfect but highlighted the not-so perfect parts. I can see how people can get addicted to this, it’s a slippery slope, and when I’m chatting to people I’m very aware that I may not be able to express myself fully. If they are telling me something sad I don’t feel like my face looks like I’m being sympathetic. That being said, I’ve been told that the results look very natural.  

Would I get it done again? I personally don’t think I need it again after this round wears off but I would definitely think about it in the near future. 

Anti-Wrinkle injections cost €140 for one area and the effects last from four to six months. For more about this treatment visit Thérapie’s website here.

• Anti-wrinkle injections
• botox
• skincare
• Thérapie Clinic