Baby Botox Softened My Fine Lines Without Freezing My Face

Like anyone with a front-facing camera, I’ve noticed (and hated) the way I knit my eyebrows together. It happens when I think, read, look at my phone, or hold my face. I spot it every time I walk past a reflective surface. You’d think I was constantly in a state of confusion, the way I like to mash my left and right eyebrow together in a holding pattern at any given time.

With the launch of our new site, The Looker, I wanted to look my best, especially in my complexion. Given all the transformations I’ve seen and written about thus far, I know that introducing an expert’s opinion into the mix could provide me with guidance (and options) that could more effectively take care of my nonstop furrowing than, say, trying to be “mindful” every minute of the day.

Enter Douglas Monasebian, a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York City. As a beauty reporter, I’m lucky enough to get access to some of the world’s best plastic surgeons as sources for stories. I interviewed Dr. Monasebian previously and always appreciated his more conservative approach and quick, to-the-point fact-checking.

I’m not looking to do anything drastic; in fact, I highly value the opinion of someone who is willing to say “enough is enough” and stop patients from going overboard. Therefore, Dr. Monasebian seemed like a natural fit, so I called to schedule a quick Baby Botox session ahead of a vacation abroad.

Quick note: While I was willing and able to pay for this treatment, which costs around $600 in New York City (prices in other cities may vary), Dr. Monasebian’s office kindly offered to comp my service at checkout.

What Is Baby Botox, and Why Would You Get It?

As a concept, I’ve always really liked “baby Botox,” which involves injecting smaller amounts of the muscle-freezing neuromodulator Botox. For one thing, it’s a cheaper option if you go to a place that charges per unit, whereas some newer med spas have “all-in” pricing where you pay by area. Plus, it also feels less scary and drastic than, for lack of a better term, big Botox.

“All [Baby Botox] really means is we’re giving a little less-than-normal,” Dr. Monasebian said at my appointment. He typically injects around 20 units in the area between my eyebrows—also called the glabella—instead, because I opted for Baby Botox, Dr. M gave me 8-10 units.

I’m in my early thirties and don’t think I need enough units to make a place with “all-in” pricing economical for me yet. (That said, if you’re looking to get your money’s worth on one unit and really freeze everything, that route might be better for you.) I would always prefer to achieve 90% of my desired look rather than push to 110%, if that makes sense. “Baby Botox” allows for a more conservative approach.

I’ve had one session of Baby Botox in the past, and I liked that it softened up my frown lines, yet I could still be expressive. It wasn’t like in TV shows where someone’s face is so frozen you can’t tell they’re crying.

My Baby Botox Appointment

I headed over to Dr. Monasebian’s practice, Park Avenue Plastic Surgery, with Tara, our video producer, who was filming the deal. I ate lunch as usual and made sure I didn’t drink any alcohol (it was 2 PM on a workday after all) or take blood-thinning medications. I wore some makeup to my appointment, but knew to ask for a makeup wipe before the actual injection.

The injections themselves didn’t hurt. While it might be called “Baby Botox,” many providers, like Monasebian, use different brand names for neuromodulators, such as “Newtox,” the nickname for Jeuveau. If you’re a brand-name devotee, you may want to call ahead and make sure your provider has whatever brand you’re looking for.

After removing my makeup with a Neutrogena wipe, Monasebian offered to apply a topical numbing cream to my skin. I know from experience that I don’t really need it, and also wanted to gauge what it would feel like without it (for you, dear reader), so I opted out.

The good news: It was pretty painless! You can feel a slight pinch, but the needle itself must be so thin that you can’t feel anything.

(In the days that followed, I wound up getting vaccinated for the flu and COVID-19. Surprisingly, those needles felt bigger by comparison. In short, if you’ve received a vaccination, you can probably handle Botox jabs.)

Then, Monasebian had me frown so he could see my muscles, and then after a few little pinches, I was done. The pain was such that I was able to talk through it, if that helps contextualize things as well.

Afterward, my aftercare instructions were to avoid massage or manipulation of the muscles for 3-4 hours, stay upright (no reclining!), and to use the affected muscles repeatedly to “work in” the neuromodulator for better absorption. Easy!

My Baby Botox Results, Day by Day

The next morning, I woke up to a text from Monasebian asking how I was feeling. My answer: I felt amazing...and ready to be 30% less frowny. I decided to take photos of myself recreating my harshest, furrowed-brow look over the next week.

Here’s how my results played out, as documented in a series of very grumpy-looking selfies.

The Verdict on Baby Botox

One week out and my results are exactly where I want them to be: I no longer have a harsh skin-fold of a frown line at the head of my left eyebrow, and I’m still able to have some expression. The goal isn’t to look frozen in place for me, just less cartoon-like in my expressions.

All in all, my baby Botox experience was a success, and I’d gladly do it again.