Dr. Bita Farrell decided to be her ‘own lab rat’ and injected half of her face with Botox to show the drug’s effects side by side ‘for the sake of science’.
Botox has various purposes
The prescription drug botulinum toxin has various medical purposes, but most people are more aware of its role in the world of cosmetics as many celebrities inject the neurotoxic protein into their faces to get rid of wrinkles.
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It temporarily paralyzes muscles
Botox injections get rid of wrinkles by temporarily paralyzing the muscles in the face. Its results only last for months at a time and keeping its effects requires upkeep.
It blocks signals being sent by the nerves to the muscles, thus stopping the muscles from contracting, which gives the skin a smoother look.
The doctor showed its effects
Knowing the effects of botox is one thing, seeing them side-by-side is another.
Dr. Bita Farrell decided to be her ‘own lab rat’ for ‘the sake of science and education’ to show people online what Botox does to the face.
She injected them herself
The board-certified physician has worked the craft for over 20 years, so she was able to inject her own face with the drug.
In a video she posted on social media, Dr Farrell explained that two weeks prior to filming, she had injected the lower muscles on the right side of her face with Botox.
She showed the effects of the drug
Explaining exactly what she did, Dr Farrell said she injected the DAO muscle, which pulls down the corners of the mouth, and the platysma muscle, which plays a part in facial expressions and movement of the mouth.
“Now for you, two weeks later, I present my results as I try and contract my lower face muscles,” she said in the video.
The results are certainly visible
The California-based medic then tried to pull down on the lower part of her face, but only the side she didn’t inject with Botox showed expression.
The right side of the lower part of her face, which she had injected, didn’t move despite her efforts to pull her mouth down.
Dr Farrell explained what happened
“You can see that the platysma muscle on this [left] side is really contracting and pulling my jawline down, and so is my DAO, pulling the corner of my mouth down,” she said.
Referring to her right side which wouldn’t budge, she said, “I’m really trying to pull this side!”
“See that this cheek rides a bit higher, this nasal labial fold seems softer and so does my shadow at the marionette on this side,” she added of the area she injected.
Dr Farrell further explained the effects of Botox
In the caption, she further elaborated, “Muscles of the face either pull up or pull down. When the muscles that pull the lower face down (platysma and DAO) are injected and relaxed with a Neuromodulator such as Botox, the muscle that pulls the mid face up (zygomaticus or cheek muscle) dominates and pulls the face up!”
People were impressed by her video
“Results last average 3-4 months, and any of the FDA approved Neuromodulators can be used,” she added, before joking, “Now, I better go inject the other side to even things out!”
Viewers were impressed with the doctor’s video, with one person writing, “Wow… a doctor willing to show a test comparison on themself? That just gained a lot of my respect. Thank you Doc!”
Some weren’t aware of how big the results would be
One person wrote, “Un-injected side looked way better! I was surprised when she said the other side. Thanks for the demo!”
Another admitted, “This is an amazing demonstration of the effects of Botox. It really is amazing! Thanks for doing this. I am actually shocked to see how big of a difference it makes.”
