The Botox Effect

As promised, the story about the Botox.

About 11 years ago, my last trip to Mayo, the doctors said they could Botox the good side of my face to help add symmetry.  At that time they said it was an option to reduce some forehead wrinkling, but they were concerned how the Botox would travel through the structure of my face.  Since part of it is paralysized the doctors were not certain that the Botox would stay where they wanted it. Never did they say anything about using Botox to add symmetry to my lower lip.

Fast forward 11 years to 2 weeks ago.  The doctor in Boston mentioned that using Botox on the good side of my lower lip could help with some symmetry.  The issue, she explained, is that the good side is too strong and it pulls the weak side over.  Below is a picture of me trying to show my bottom teeth without any treatment (no Botox).

Botox use, in general, isn't quite as scary in 2013's society as it was in 2002, around the time Botox was mentioned at Mayo.  Times have changed.  While I was very skeptical about using Botox in 2002 (when they weren't even sure how it would react), I felt very confident with the doctors in Boston.  They offered to give me a shot of Lidocaine so I could temporarily see what the Botox would do.   The Lidocaine only lasts 2-3 hours. My thought was, "What would it hurt to try this out and see what it does?"  The answer is this:

My mom and I immediately why the doctor had suggested this.  My brain is telling my muscles the same thing in both of these pictures.  Only in the second picture, my good muscle isn't pulling as hard on the weak side.  I can still pull the good corner of my mouth over further than is shown in the after picture, but if I'm just trying to evenly show my bottom teeth, this is the result.

Ultimately I did go ahead and get the shot of Botox about 10 minutes after the Lidocaine (while I was still numb).  Realizing the Botox only lasts 3-4 months, I wanted to bring this change home with me to give it a real test drive.  If I want to continue to get the Botox shots I can.  The doctor said if I still like the results after about 4 shots (a little over a year), she could go on the inside of my upper lip and snip a couple muscles to make it permanent.

Who has noticed this change?  Mostly only the women in my family - mom, sister, grandma - have noticed any change.  Showing your bottom teeth isn't necessarily something you do every day; modest reaction is to be expected.

I am just so thankful to the doctors who were smart enough to ease me into the process with the Lidocaine.  It's nice to have a 2-3 hour sample.  It's nice to be offered little baby steps towards change.  I can see how it feels and help predict what it will be like if I do have surgery and if it is successful.