We take a closer look at some helpful pointers regarding botox and how safe it really is.
Time is such a strange phenomenon. Depending on various factors, you get a feeling it’s extremely slow, and sometimes you just can’t catch up with how fast it passes. You wake up and realize how days pass, months, years…
You look at yourself in the mirror, and you see your face has changed – wrinkles, pores, and frown lines, your skin just doesn’t have the same texture and elasticity it used to. You may not feel ready to give up your youthful appearance just yet, and that’s where this interesting drug called Botox comes in.
Made from the Botulinum toxin, Botox is a protein/toxin which, when used correctly and in the right dosage, can have both medical and cosmetic uses. Using small amounts of Botox, doctors can nowadays reduce the appearance of wrinkles on your skin. Let’s talk about a few different uses for the drug, and just how safe it is.
How It Works
Botox is essentially a neurotoxin. Neurotoxins, as you may or may not know, target and disrupt processes in the nervous system that stimulate the contraction of muscles. This is how Botox causes temporary muscle paralysis. Injecting this drug will prevent the release of chemical ‘messengers’ that travel from the brain to the muscle and cause it to contract and shorten.
In this way, as your muscles stop contracting, they will become less stiff. The procedure itself usually takes from 24 to 72 hours to take effect, and then it lasts from 3 to 12 months, depending on the treatment.
Just How Safe Is It?
There has always been much confusion and misinformation regarding the administration and usage of Botox. The fact is, when administered professionally by trained medical practitioners, Botox injections are safe as can be. The problem is that it can be hazardous when used in excess dosages, and that’s when you can experience some of the popular side effects you may have seen in movies like Botox freezing your face, so you can’t smile or move a single muscle.
People in bigger, hasty cities, like New York City, have mostly stopped believing in myths following the Botox culture and destigmatized the usage. So, if you decide on going for treatment with Botox in NYC, don’t be worried about people being judgmental. There has always been a lot of talk about people developing an addiction to the drug, but this is just a common misconception, followed by the fact people return to get more treatment every 4-6 weeks or so.
This is not caused by addiction, it’s just how the treatment plan works when particularly designed to solve one’s problem.
Possible Side Effects
While most people usually tolerate it well, and however uncommon they are, there are possible side effects to using Botox. Some of them are:
- Dry eyes
- An upset stomach
- Swelling, bruises, and mild pain around the site of injection
- Eyelid drooping (temporary)
- Numbness
- Temporary weakness and paralysis in muscle nearby to the injection
- Double vision or spatial disorientation
- Arrhythmia, myocardial infarction, or similar cardiovascular events
People who are sensitive or allergic to Botox shouldn’t use it. Also, if there’s an infection at the injection site, the treatment should be stopped.
Another possible event that can occur is people developing antibodies and rendering subsequent treatments ineffective.
Benefits of Using Botox (Besides Cosmetics)
You might be interested in the fact that Botox can help relieve migraines. If you’ve ever experienced a migraine, you know it’s not a simple headache, it lasts much longer and the pain can be pretty severe. Botox is actually considered the number 1 prescribed treatment for chronic migraines, and it can prevent up to 8-9 migraine days (people with migraines usually experience the pain 15 or more days a month) so you can imagine how effective the drug is.
Botox can also help prevent hyperhidrosis, a medical condition that causes a person to sweat unpredictably and excessively. Besides the fact it can act as a shield for the sweat glands, Botox can prevent the brain from sending information/directions that reach intended muscles, hence diminishing or solving the sweating problem. The treatment must be repeated every few months in order to prevent the problem from reappearing.
This drug can also work wonders in stopping eye twitches/squinting. You may not think this is a big problem, but constant eye twitching can become painful and annoying and can also have a harmful effect on a patient’s vision.
So, if you’re thinking about getting an injection, whether for cosmetic or other purposes, this text hopefully alleviated some of your worries. Of course, you should approach it carefully, to test if you’re allergic to the treatment or have any underlying conditions that may cause unwanted harmful effects.