AS she racked up £9,000 worth of Botox and fillers over five years, writer Julie Cook, 46, would tell her kids she was off to the dentist rather than confess she was having the beauty treatments. She says...
I HATED lying, but I had to. I felt ashamed to admit to my two children, then aged six and 11, that Mummy was off to blow the family finances on vanity.
My husband Cornel, 42, a musician, has never baulked at my little secret, though, which can see me spend £250 on Botox in my forehead and another £200 on filler in my lips and cheeks.
In fact, he says I look “tons better since having the ’tox”.
I first started Botox when I turned 41. I’d always had forehead wrinkles due to having an expressive face, but as I aged, those lines became permanent – and I hated them.
So I bit the bullet and went to a GP who did aesthetics.
Five days after the Botox was administered, it was like fairies had got to work on me overnight.
The lines? Gone. The skin? Smooth as silk, with an almost glass-like look.
From then on, I was addicted.
I had Botox every three months, as I didn’t want the spell to break.
Then, when I was 42, I realised my cheeks were looking a bit flat, so I had £200 worth of filler injected into them.
The result was instant: Fuller cheeks, higher up, and a rounded face. There was only one problem.
Whenever I came back from having my tweakments, I’d have swelling or marks on my face from the needles.
One day, when I had particularly swollen cheeks, my son asked what was wrong.
“Dentist,” I blurted out. “Anaesthetic. It’ll go down.”
A few months later, I had lip fillers. My lips used to be full, but age had rendered them thinner.
Later, when my daughter asked me what was wrong, I repeated my old refrain: “Dentist.”
And so the lie continued.
Not only did I feel guilty, but I also didn’t want her growing up thinking this stuff mattered, or was what women did.
Unlike the wave of honest stars now, a few years ago celebs who had clearly had work done would deny it. There was shame there.
A few months ago, I felt my jowls falling a bit, so I had a thread lift. This involves inserting tiny threads into your skin, which then stimulate collagen production.
Afterwards, I looked in the mirror and gasped. I had red pock marks all over my swollen face.
When my kids, now ten and 15, saw me, they gasped.
Thinking quickly, I said: “I had acupuncture for teeth grinding.”
Another lie, but they believed it.
Mum friends who also had Botox were in the same shoes.
“I never tell my boys,” one told me. “I don’t even tell my husband,” said another.
Then, earlier this year, my daughter was off school when I had a Botox appointment. I tried to rearrange it, but couldn’t, so I reluctantly took her with me.
She shrieked
When we got there, I thought of putting her in the waiting room, but didn’t like leaving her alone.
So I told her the truth that I have Botox.
She shrieked and cried: “Like people on TikTok?!”
“Er, yes,” I replied.
She was shocked and it took a few minutes to calm her down.
I had the tweakment with her in the room and she was fascinated, rather than repulsed.
When I told my son, he just shrugged.
Now I feel relieved I can be open about Botox.
Pretty much every friend I have has it and there’s really no judgment among women.
More celebs are being honest about having Botox, too, and in recent years it’s become less of a shameful thing to admit.
If my daughter wants these treatments when she’s an adult, I’d be totally OK with that.
Tweakments really are the norm now and I don’t think women should be judged for wanting to look their best.
I am just relieved I no longer have to spew out fibs.
In fact, like many of us in the Botox Anonymous group, I can now say: “My name is Julie and I have Botox.”
FREEZING our faces is becoming the norm, with more than a million Botox jabs dished out in the UK each year.
The tweakments are now so common celebs are happy to talk about the secrets of their wrinkle-free faces.
Harley Street cosmetic surgeon Dr Riccardo Frati says: “More and more are admitting their nips and tucks. It’s transformed Botox from taboo to trending.
Singer turned actress Lily Allen, 39, last week said she was going for pre-holiday Botox, saying: “I need to have my Botox topped up. I need to get rid of these wrinkles.”
Actress Angela Bassett, 61, has also had the procedure, saying: “Botox is no surprise! I’m a big supporter of being natural, but I’ve done it twice. Just a little bit, not too much — I still need to express myself.
Reality star Kim Kardashian, 43, recently said, “Half of my neck muscles are probably Botoxed”, while former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne, 71, claimed Botox is “one of the best things that’s ever been created.”
Oscar-winner Olivia Colman has said she’s had “loads” of Botox.
And Only Murders In The Building star Selena Gomez hit back at an internet troll who claimed she’d had cheek fillers, writing: “Hahahaha I’ve had Botox bb girl.”
But This Country Bafta-winner Daisy May Cooper last week said she went too far with the jabs and had to quit after her agent warned her she’d no longer be able to act.
“I literally couldn’t move my eyebrows,” she said.
“It killed me because I loved not having any creases in my forehead.”
So with everyone seeming to be in on the act, could you tell if your friends or colleagues were secretly dabbling with the skin-smoothing jabs?
Here, Dr Frati gives readers five tell-tale signs to look out for . . .
1. OVERARCHED EYEBROWS
DO your mate’s eyebrows look like they are being pulled by puppet strings?
It’s a surefire sign they have just had an injection or two.
Dr Frati says: “Looking a bit more surprised than usual is a typical feature associated with Botox overdose.
“Too much injected in one area can pull in the wrong places and produce the ‘Joker’ appearance.”
2. BUNNY NOSE
THE scrunched-up look might suit your pet rabbit, but it’s not great for us humans.
Dr Frati says: “When Botox is injected close by the nose, like the cheek or lip, the fine lines around your nose become more obvious as your face muscles work extra hard to make expressions like laughing or squinting.
“Keep an eye out – bunny noses are hard to miss.”
3. FROZEN FACE
LOTS of people have Botox to make their face look young and wrinkle-free, but banishing fine lines can have a chilling effect.
Dr Frati says: “Well-done Botox should look natural, but getting too much can cause your face to ‘freeze’, as your muscles can’t work as well as they used to.
“When an area of the face is paralysed with absolutely no wrinkles, you can assume they’ve had Botox.”
4. SHINY SKIN
IF you go overboard with Botox, your skin can look and feel overly smooth, a bit like a porcelain doll.
Dr Frati says: “That extra smooth skin causes light to bounce off the tightest points, like your forehead, nose and cheeks, and makes the skin appear unrealistically shiny.
“If a friend’s face is quite literally dazzling – especially in social media snaps – it’s very likely they’ve had Botox.”
5. FACIAL BRUISING
POKE, prod and prick your skin enough and you’ll get a bruise. It’s common after any needle injection, but more obvious in the face.
Dr Frati says: “Many people will apply concealer to try and mask their Botox bruises, but there will be tell-tale shades of red and purple below their make-up.
“The bruises will fade quite quickly – within the first 24 hours – so you’ll have to be extra vigilant to spot them.”
