I was at the Westmeath Arena the other day arranging heavy tables when I began to sweat. A crazy thought came into my head. I recalled that Botox injected into your armpits would prevent someone from sweating. Even crazier was that I rarely sweat because I rarely work – ‘hard’ that is.
I just couldn’t get that provocative word out of my mind. I’ve noticed that so many women consider Botox as a miracle drug – able to transform them into being more beautiful and youthful. They can’t wait to get out of the closest with their craving for an overhaul or a new beginning – assuming too that they will be admired by men and envied by women. Many will squirrel away money in case the opportunity is favourable for a little plastic surgery.
Marvelously, Botox (a nerve toxin) works by blocking signals from nerves to muscles. When the muscle can no longer contract due to this barricade, the wrinkles relax and soften and look “filled in.” Who wouldn’t want results like that with so much concern about aging. We could now ‘age more gracefully’ as they say – this time truthfully.
Advertising aimed at women in this susceptible age group promise to eliminate wrinkles around the eyes, the forehead and even on the rest of their face – not to the point of becoming unrecognizable though. Supposedly safe and convenient, how could Botox realistically be not considered. There is one caveat – after getting injections near the eyes, there is an occasionally a chance of drooping eyelids or eyebrows resulting. Of course if the wrinkles provide a much more youthful appearance, the fabulous new look will distract from any drooping being detected.
Another popular feature of Botox is to enlarge the lips, especially widespread with actresses and newscasters but is now understood to be the secret wish of nearly all women, especially younger ones. Maybe these puffed-up lips will be more attractive and inviting but will they kiss any better? I haven’t heard feedback on that yet. One downside is requiring more lipstick and time apply it.
It turns out that a Botox can actually short-circuit a person’s ability to look unhappy on the surface. Because of the apparent, ‘Facial Feedback Hypothesis’, and since Botox eliminates wrinkles to prevent frowning, it also prevents one’s ability to fully feel the emotions associated
Marvelously, Botox (a nerve toxin) works by blocking signals from nerves to muscles. When the muscle can no longer contract due to this barricade, the wrinkles relax and soften and look “filled in.” Who wouldn’t want results like that with so much concern about aging. We could now ‘age more gracefully’ as they say – this time truthfully.
Advertising aimed at women in this susceptible age group promise to eliminate wrinkles around the eyes, the forehead and even on the rest of their face – not to the point of becoming unrecognizable though. Supposedly safe and convenient, how could Botox realistically be not considered. There is one caveat – after getting injections near the eyes, there is an occasionally a chance of drooping eyelids or eyebrows resulting. Of course if the wrinkles provide a much more youthful appearance, the fabulous new look will distract from any drooping being detected.
Another popular feature of Botox is to enlarge the lips, especially widespread with actresses and newscasters but is now understood to be the secret wish of nearly all women, especially younger ones. Maybe these puffed-up lips will be more attractive and inviting but will they kiss any better? I haven’t heard feedback on that yet. One downside with it. Now there is conflict: What if someone was pissed at someone but only a smile is projected, not the exasperation! It would almost be similar to Mr. Scheer’s everyday expression – smiling with us or against us.
Interestingly, if certain expressions can be paralyzed out of existence, then there might be a technique to simulate ‘happiness’ in those persons suffering from ‘depression’? Hannover Medical School in Germany smiled at such a challenge and did research on depressed volunteers by injecting Botox to smooth out their frown lines. Remarkably, 60% of the treated patients experienced a significant improvement in their mood. This could be trouble for the sale of prescription drugs if this method catches on!
Believe it or not there has been a steady uptick in men seeking Botox. Most were younger guys in their 30’s that start to see the early stages of aging and want to do some preventive maintenance. Some were starting a new stage of life, like a career change or divorce. Others were worried about being interviewed for a job, wanting to maximize their appearance during the interview process.
However for every enhancement in life style, there seems to be an equivalence of adversity. Because you can’t express yourself emotionally as easily with the Botox and the facial expressions not exactly displaying how one feels, raises other questions. How does it affect men and women in the department of sex. Curiosity stimulated a recent study with both sexes to determine if they now noticed any difference in enjoyment after the injections. The study established that pleasure indeed was reduced in the majority of the participants. In the cases of those with ‘crow’s feet‘ wrinkles, nearly 100% felt less satisfaction. What a bummer!
I would never encourage Botox injections to forfeit natural aging but there are other positive implications. For example, treatment of chronic pain, bladder problems, atrial fibrillation after heart surgery and so on. Happy Botoxing everybody.
