Some questions answered 

Will my insurance/medical aid pay for Botox?

Being a cosmetic procedure, it is unlikely that your insurance provider will cover the costs of Botox. However, if the drug is needed for medical purposes, your insurance is likely to cover the costs. It is best to speak to your insurance company to see what is covered.  

Where is the Botox procedure performed? 

Botox should be performed in the sterile rooms of an aesthetic doctor or plastic surgeon and will last typically between 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the procedure and dose.  

How long will it take me to look normal again?  

Many people fear they will look ‘frozen’, however this is not the goal of Botox and when administered by a trained medical professional, should not be the result. The effect of Botox is related to the level of dosage. Apart from some expected redness and swelling, your face should return to normal within 72 hours. If you walk out of your treatment looking like a ‘frozen’ villain from an animated movie, something has gone wrong and too much Botox was administered. 

What is the difference between Botox and fillers? 

Botox is used to treat dynamic lines which appear when the muscles contract through frowning, smiling, laughing etc. Whereas both Botox and fillers reduce the effects of aging, Botox reduces the activity of the muscles that lead to wrinkles, and fillers are able to fill the wrinkled areas which in turn helps to stimulate the collagen growth in the face as well as plumping and lifting the area. Fillers eliminate signs of aging due to collagen loss as well as other causes for volume loss such as fat pads and even skeletal changes.     

What is collagen? 

Collagen is a structural protein that can be found in the skin as well as other connective tissues. It provides the structure and substance that holds the body together and is composed of amino acids.   

What causes wrinkles? 

Wrinkles are a natural result of aging. Other contributing factors can include sun-damage due to over exposure to the sun or UV lights, unhealthy habits such as drinking and smoking as well as a reduction in the elasticity of your skin.  

Wrinkles are a result of the collagen in your skin being depleted through the contraction and movement of the muscles in the skin. When we are young, we only have dynamic lines on our face, being those that show when we make various facial expressions and move the muscles in our face. These eventually lead to static wrinkles as each time we use a facial muscle, a groove forms under the skin’s surface. As we begin to age and our skin starts to lose its elasticity and collagen, it can no longer bounce back as quickly and the lines start to become permanently etched into our skin, forming the static lines.