does Botox freeze your face

Looking younger is one of the top cosmetic concerns for men and women alike. As a double board-certified plastic surgeon who specializes in facial rejuvenation, I spend most of my time working toward this goal for my patients. In over twenty years as a plastic surgeon, I’ve heard just about every question you can imagine about facial rejuvenation. Chances are that you have some of the same questions my past patients have had, so to help you learn more about your options, I’ve compiled and answered some of the most common questions I hear about aging.

What’s the best age for a facelift?

Some patients expect that there’s a general age at which most people are ready for a facelift. In reality, everyone ages at a different pace, so the number on your driver’s license has nothing to do with determining which cosmetic procedure will best suit your needs. Instead, it depends on the unique signs of aging you have and how severe they are.

Many patients who first come to me haven’t yet aged enough to warrant a traditional facelift. For these patients, my specialized Band Aid Mini Facelift can offer natural-looking results with half the recovery time, minimal scarring and swelling, and gentle numbing rather than general anesthesia.

Does Botox® really freeze your face?

Botox® and Dysport® does reduce wrinkles by relaxing the muscles that have become tensed and wrinkled by repeated facial expressions. However, if it’s injected by a board-certified plastic surgeon with a skilled technique, Botox® and Dysport® can reduce your wrinkles while letting you still feel like you can make natural facial expressions. When either is administered well, you’ll look younger and more refreshed but no one will recognize why.

Will a facelift get rid of age spots?

Facelifts address the shape of your skin, but age spots (or liver spots, which are caused by sun damage) are formed by excess pigment within the skin. As a result, a facelift doesn’t remove age spots. If you want to reduce sagging skin as well as age spots, I typically recommend a facelift followed by Band Aid Laser Skin Resurfacing. It’s a minimally invasive treatment that breaks down the excess pigment in age spots while also reducing fine lines, wrinkles, in addition to tightening the skin and rebuilding collagen.

Why does it seem like I have extra skin as I age? Is my body producing more skin?

The amount of skin you have doesn’t increase as you age. Instead, your skin becomes thinner and starts to sag. If you take a ball of dough and hold it up by just the top, the lower part will get longer and thinner. This is the same thing that happens to your skin as you age. A facelift removes the sagging skin and lifts the remaining skin and other tissue to a more youthful position and shape.

Can Botox® or Dysport® prevent wrinkles?

There’s a growing trend of preventative Botox® or Dysport®. These injections don’t just relax wrinkled muscles like those that form crow’s feet, frown lines, and forehead wrinkles. They also keep those muscles from continuing to tense and to form worsening wrinkles. In this way, starting Botox® injections in the early stages of aging can keep wrinkles to a minimum.

Will taking collagen supplements make my skin firmer?

Collagen is the protein that keeps your skin young and firm. However, in order to make your skin look younger, there are specific ways to cause your body to produce more collagen within the skin. Some companies sell supplements and even beverages that contain collagen, but this will not rejuvenate your skin.

While you can’t stop time, you can control the way your body responds to it. By taking preventative measures and learning about all your options for looking younger, you can remain your most confident and beautiful self for years to come. If you want to reduce aging that has already appeared, schedule an appointment with me, Dr. John L. LeRoy. For more facial rejuvenation tips, follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.