What to Know Before Botox

Maybe you raise an eyebrow any time someone admits to getting Botox (which would make physical sense, since skipping the injectable neurotoxin means it's probably pretty easy for you to move your forehead). But the treatment is not just for the Real Housewives anymore. In fact, 7,056,255 Botox procedures were performed in 2016 alone — and I was one of them.

Like most people about to jab their skin with a fancy-sounding liquid that effectively paralyzes the facial muscles for months at a time, I was terrified to make my first appointment. Will I look like a Stepford wife? What if I want to actually feign surprise at my surprise birthday party? Two years later, though, and I've all but converted to the church that is Botulinum toxin type A. Here's everything I wish I knew back then — the good, bad, and frozen (forehead) included.