How has botox improved the quality of my life?

While I’m writing this, my jaw hurts. It makes me anxious and my whole face feels stiff. It’s creating this tension in my head that is giving me a headache.

I’m trying to concentrate on work, but it’s only making it worse.

My jaw muscles are exhausted. Getting them loose and relaxed is all I want. It’s like they’re running a marathon, but don’t know how to stop. Today I woke up feeling the work I’ve done during the night. It’s honestly embarrassing, annoying and painful.

That’s why I take botox.  For this cursed condition called bruxism. Because when nothing else helps, it does.

It’s funny how some of you find your way to my blog by searching “botox for bruxism gone wrong”. Because I have not gotten any side effects from botox. Nothing bad to say. It has only worked for me, better than expected. I never knew I could get so much help from it.

How has botox improved the quality of my life?

With botox I can live a normal life. Pain-free. Botox makes my jaw muscles smaller and that way my teeth grinding decreases or stops altogether. It is amazing, really. The difference is like night and day. With botox I feel like a normal person. Without it I get these aches and muscle pains and they are a weekly thing, if not daily.

I think anyone who suffers from chronic pain can understand what I’m talking about. You learn to live with it, but not really.

With bruxism it’s even worse – I feel like I’ve failed at life, since I have this problem. Why am I grinding my teeth at night? Why do I clench my jaw when I’m stressed or focused? It’s like my body is not working the right way and it makes me disappointed in myself.

At the same time I realize it’s not really my fault.  It’s just something I do, unconsciously.

So I’m not ashamed of taking botox for it. If it’s the thing that helps me and improves the quality of my life so much, it’s worth it.

Here the ‘without botox’ picture is actually taken quite recently. I could both see and feel that the botox has worn off. My jaw is more bulky and puffy without it.

It’s also crazy how much botox affects my appearance. I recognize myself on each of these photos, but I do feel most comfortable, when my muscles are not overgrown and when my face is more petite. But if it was just for my appearance, I’m not so sure I would take it. The leaner face I get from it is just bonus.

Video of the botox treatment for bruxism

I filmed my latest visit, so if you want to see how it’s done, check out the video. The video is not perfect, as I filmed it myself, while trying to concentrate on the procedure. But you get the idea.

How long do the results last?

With me, the good effects last for about six months. I’m happy with that. My first ever time the effect only lasted for 4 months, but after that, once we got the right dose for me, it’s six months pain-free life.

Luckily yesterday I got botox done again, so I’m now just waiting for the pain to leave. This time the time between my last appointment got a bit long (longer than six months), so that’s why right now the situation has gone a bit bad again. I can feel the effects in a few days. After a week it’s already quite good and by the time a month has passed from the appointment, my face is leaner and pretty much the problem is gone.

The place I still go to, is Ebeling dentists. Botox for bruxism there costs 399€. I’ve managed to get you a discount, so by mentioning my blog’s name Charlotta Eve, you get -50€ from your first botox. As I’ve said before, I trust my dentist Sakari Ebeling and he has done this treatment for quite some time, so he knows what he is doing.

https://www.ehammas.fi/

So far I know quite a lot of you has tried botox, with good results. I love hearing your experiences (because I really relate to them), so keep sending me messages if you do end up trying it!

Me & botox

botox bruxism my experience

 

This post is almost overdue, since I have gotten so many questions about my botox treatment. So, let’s talk botox AKA my favorite substance in the world. Just kidding – or not. As someone who really has suffered from bruxism, you can’t blame me for feeling so deeply about it.

Botox for bruxism – my experience

I first took botox last spring and I wrote about my first experience in June. I told you how long I had dreamed about it (I realize that some of these sentences only make sense to other heavy teeth grinders) and how excited I was to try it. And the results! I didn’t expect them to be that good. I also was shocked to see the change in my face. My face got leaner, my cheekbones got even more visible and most of all – the pain and aching was almost all gone.

On my last post I wrote:
I am both a bit scared and excited to see, how long the effects will last. It’s – again – personal, and can’t be promised. But what I do know, is that as soon as my pain starts to come back, I’m heading back to the needle.

Well, I wasn’t lying there. After about four months the pain came back and I booked my second appointment immediately.

The pain felt awful. I had forgotten how it felt to wake up in the morning and having pain in your teeth and jaw and head. It’s just not a nice feeling to be waking up at. The fact that the pain started to come back made me appreciate the results even more. Seriously: as soon as the botox was gone from my jaw, I realized just how much it had helped. It helped massively.

Luckily I didn’t have to suffer for long as I got the appointment quite quickly. And the apppointment is quick. This time my dentist Sakari and I decided to try a bigger dose. My jaw muscles were again quite strong, but not as strong as they were the first time.

The botox started to help again week by week. After about a month, it was all good again. My face felt awesome. Honestly, I could just write the same things all over again here. After my first appointment I wrote:

I could feel good results after a week or two. It got better week after week. I noticed, that I didn’t wake up with a sore jaw or sore teeth anymore. I didn’t complain about headaches. And best of all: my jaw felt quite relaxed during the day. This all felt amazing. For once in my life, I didn’t even have to think about bruxism.

And that’s how I felt after my second appointment as well. But to sum up everything, here are the questions I get asked all the time and my answers.

my experience botox bruxism

Frequently asked questions about botox treatment for bruxism

How many times have you gotten botox?
I’ve now gotten it two times.

How long did the results last?
They lasted for about four months. I think that’s pretty good, considering the promise is 2-6 months.

Would you still recommend it?
Absolutely. Obviously I want everyone to do their research and decide for themselves, but if you really are suffering from bruxism, you might want to try it. It has helped me so much. And it’s the only real thing that has helped, really. Nightguard does help a little, but mostly it just protects my teeth. And massaging your jaw… well, I guess it helps for the moment you’re massaging it.

How much botox did you get injected?
It’s hard to say, as I let the professional (my dentist) decide it. But it’s always personal. The first time I got the so called ‘regular’ amount and the next time I got a bit more. I have a feeling it’s a process you can’t necessarily get right right away. You need to start somewhere and see how it works and then you can try bigger doses.

Does it hurt?
The process is so quick, I don’t think it hurts that much. But I do feel a small sting when the needle goes through my skin. Pain is personal. But it’s totally worth it, which makes me want to say that it doesn’t hurt.

Where do you go for botox?
I go to Ebeling dentists. My dentist is Sakari Ebeling and he is the one doing botox treatments there. I can warmly recommend the place. It has a nice atmosphere, which is important for someone who has a bit of a dentist fear and the staff are friendly and professional. Also, when you compare the prices, they are pretty fair.

How much does botox cost?
It depends on the place, but where I go it costs 399€. A bit pricey I know, but since it helps so much, I think it’s worth considering.

Me and my sister in Paris. She has also taken botox two times already because of bruxism. #botoxsisters

I guess that’s pretty much it! If you have any more questions, please leave them in the comments so I can answer them and possibly update this post.

And if you didn’t already, go read the first post I wrote about the subject. Sakari also answered some questions there about botox and bruxism, so I have some professional information there also.

 

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