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COVID-19 has taught us to be resilient. We learned how to bake our own bread and cut our own hair, but how many of us earned a medical degree during the lockdown? Show of hands?

OK, then. Medical procedures are delicate processes that should only be entrusted to qualified, board-certified professionals. Even though Botox is a safe, proven enhancement, it still requires precise subdermal placement along with the patient’s fine musculature network. 

Do you feel confident putting your health and wellbeing in the hands of your neighbor Becky? How many glasses of Chardonnay has she had (today)? If you are unsure about your injector’s credentials, please let your wariness be your guide.

WHAT’S A BOTOX PARTY?

A Botox party is a casual get together where attendees administer neuromodulator treatments outside the safety and sterility of a clinical setting. A neuromodulator is a concentrated serum that immobilizes facial muscles to eliminate the unwanted, persistent contractions that cause deep creases.

Every time you smile, wink, and frown, those expressions pull at the skin on your face, resulting in fine lines and wrinkles. Over time, those facial marks become more pronounced. Botox disrupts the release of acetylcholine at the neural junction. When properly injected, Botox delivers serene, smooth results. But we must place a massive emphasis on the “properly injected” turn of phrase in the previous sentence. Injectables involve an exact science and are not to be underestimated… or overdone. 

Botox is sold in finite units, each of which delivers a specified degree of relief from muscular tension. In order to calculate the number of units required to deliver the results you want, you must possess an intimate and vast knowledge of Botox’s capabilities. Unfortunately, you will not find such a résumé at your garden variety Botox bash.

Case in point: a recent party in San Diego left one 28-year-old woman with a frozen upper face that lasted several months. Her “practitioners” used 40 units of Botox on her forehead, rendering her basically expressionless. She couldn’t even show her friends how mad she was!

But she was actually fortunate when you consider the damage that could have resulted from amateur injections. Rachael Knappier was not so lucky. At her Botox party, Rachael received a neuromodulator treatment in the forehead without any major issues… but then she had some alcohol. The Prosecco convinced Rachael to get a filler injection to enhance the look of her top lip, which is when calamity struck. 

Rachael’s pal accidentally hit an artery when delivering the lip filler, causing her face to balloon beyond recognition. The incident almost cost Rachael her top lip; she had to rush to a doctor to dissolve the filler and repair the split developing in her soft tissue.

Rachael had not signed any consent forms, nor was she properly counseled on the risks of injectables. Her beautician “friend” turned out to be an ex-convict, and she was unable to help Rachael recover from the disastrous debacle. It took almost three months for Rachael to fully recover from her Botox party nightmare – how festive!

WHO IS LICENSED TO INJECT BOTOX?

According to the Medical Board of California, a licensed professional can administer Botox outside the confines of a clinical setting if one of the following holds true:

• She or he is a licensed physician
• She or he is a registered nurse
• She or he is a physician’s assistant who is working under the watchful supervision of the doctor for whom they work

The best way to verify a medical professional’s credentials is by gazing up at the diploma(s) on their wall. You can also do some online sleuthing and search for their board certification (if they have earned such a distinction). The aforementioned Medical Board of California has made the verification process easy by creating an app that allows you to browse for licensed professionals to make sure that your doctor and/or nurse is more than just a Botox party animal.

STAY SAFE…LY APART

One major problem with at-home Botox parties is the “party” part. We should still be practicing social distancing, so why do some groups feel emboldened to gather in clusters and inject one another with neuromodulators?

Botox Cosmetic is a miraculous solution. In addition to providing wondrous aesthetic results, Botox has the power to ease migraine pain and even stop excessive sweating. But Botox does not protect against COVID-19. This message bears repeating: Botox cannot prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus at any gathering, even if it is a medically themed one.

When you embark upon an enhancement regimen, you want to be confident in the safety and qualifications of the professionals aiding your quest to be the best. Dr. Binder responded to the stark realities of the pandemic with compassion and care. He predicted the surge in demand for certain signature aesthetic treatments and planned accordingly. Our Beverly Hills clinic strictly adheres to all safety and health protocols to ensure that you can receive quality cosmetic improvements with a healthy dose of peace-of-mind.

We sterilize every shared surface daily, enforce social distancing practices in our common spaces, and require masks to be worn at all times when your face is not being actively enhanced by Dr. Binder’s skilled, artistic hands. 

Can you be sure that your next Botox party can boast the same precautions? Are you tired of our rhetorical questions yet? Tell us how you feel by contacting our SoCal office at your earliest convenience. Your facial rejuvenation journey demands the utmost attention and expertise. Don’t be a party pooper – skip amateur hour and leave Botox to the professionals.