At the age of 55, a mother made the choice to stop Botox after 20 years of regular injections. But what are the repercussions and side effects on his skin? Cosmetic surgeon and Botox expert Alexandre Koutsomanis explains everything to us.
If Botox injections are a great way to reduce facial expression lines while offering an almost immediate result, the effects on the skin only last a few months. But what happens when you inject frequently for more than 20 years and suddenly stop? Can expression lines reappear? Cosmetic surgeon Alexandre Koutsomanis, specialized in aesthetic medicine procedures for the face, answers all our questions.
After 20 years of injections, this 55-year-old woman suddenly quits Botox
On TikTok, Blenda Blay, a 55-year-old mother, posted a video in which she reveals having stopped Botox injections overnight after 20 years of sessions : “I quit to keep muscles active and prevent skin thinning” she explains in the comments. If her publication has made almost a million views, it is because the effects on her skin are spectacular.
It is well known that as the injections wear off, fine lines become more and more apparent. However, this mother shows us that seven months after stopping the injections, her face is still frozen. No forehead wrinkles, perfectly smooth skin and above all… immobile muscles. Frowning is an impossible mission for her and Internet users did not fail to show their astonishment: “Wow, but why does your face stay frozen like that ? Will you stay still forever?”
What are the effects on the skin after 20 years of botox? The answers of a plastic surgeon
According to cosmetic surgeon Alexandre Koutsomanis, if Blenda Blay has chosen to stop injections after 20 years of sessions, her face will not deteriorate all of a sudden, but his wrinkles will still reappear over time : “Botox is a toxin that is injected into a muscle so that it can no longer contract. From the moment she stops the Botox, the muscles of expression will inevitably reactivate, and by reactivating , they will cause the skin to wrinkle and therefore gently but surely cause wrinkles to appear.” But her wrinkles will still be less pronounced than those of a woman her age who has never had an injection. And for good reason, Botox “blocks the aging time of the treated area” according to the professional.
In her video, Blenda Blay explains that seven months after stopping Botox sessions, she still has no visible wrinkles. The expert points out that seven months is too short a time to see the appearance of the first wrinkles when injections have been made over a long period. So that the muscles of the face again generate expression lines, it actually takes several years : “For her skin to be impregnated with the movement of her muscles, and therefore for the first wrinkles to remain marked on the epidermis, she will have to wait two or three years.
As for his muscles, the expert explains that the fact of not having been able to achieve certain facial expressions under the action of Botox for so many years means that the body loses the habit of activating certain muscles : “Scientific studies show that the muscle is not damaged by the action of Botox but we lose the habit of using them and mobilizing them. We have the impression that we have lost our strength and power, but This is not the case.” Brenda Blay will therefore be able to frown when his body gets used to it.