Before and After Botox Treatment Advice

Before Your Treatment

For 3–5 days before treatment, avoid blood thinners like NSAIDs (including Advil, aspirin, and Aleve) and fish oils. Any blood-thinning medication can increase the risk of bruising and swelling after your Botox treatment. If you need to take an over-the-counter pain reliever, take Tylenol instead. (Talk to your provider if you take prescription blood thinners, these can sometimes be paused for Botox.)

To further lower your risk of bruising, avoid alcohol for a few days before your Botox injections.

Pause your retinol regimen for two days before Botox.

On the day of treatment, eat a healthy breakfast. You want your body operating at 100% before treatment to help prevent side effects. Having food in your belly can also help prevent lightheadedness during your injections.

Aftercare

• Don't lie down for the first few hours after your Botox treatment
• Leave your treatment area alone, avoid any physical pressure, lying down on your face, or rubbing the injection area for a few days. You don't need to avoid making facial expressions; frowning, smiling, and other expressions can help encourage your Botox results to show up sooner
• Avoid yoga or other rigorous exercise activities, extensive sun or heat exposure, and alcoholic beverages for the first 24 hours after treatment
• Headaches are common. Botox is even used to treat headaches. If you have a headache, avoid NSAIDs or aspirin-containing products. Use Tylenol and/or cool compresses instead. If headaches continue or worsen, contact your provider
• Wait 2 days to reintroduce retinol into your skincare routine

FAQ

Results of your treatment may take up to 14 days to take full effect, although many people will recognize the benefits in 3–5 days after treatment.

Botox is a temporary procedure. In most people the benefits of Botox last about 4 months. Sometimes a few wrinkles may start to return in 2–3 months. The effectiveness of Botox lasts longer with successive treatments.

Initially, your provider may want to see you between 2–4 weeks for a brief touch-up and check-up of the procedure. If you allow Botox to completely wear off, it is difficult for your provider to see how your individual muscles reacted, and therefore optimal results for your face can be harder to achieve.

Makeup: wait 12 hours after the treatment before applying makeup.

Cold compresses: may be used 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off, to reduce swelling 2–3 times per day during the first 1–2 days if needed.

Look forward to seeing you soon, your Tallahassee Concierge Nurse Practitioner.