By: Susan Stuart, MD

I was surprised recently to hear about a mother in England who bought her teenage daughter a course of BOTOX® Cosmetic treatments to get rid of the wrinkles in her forehead. In last week’s post on this topic I outlined some of my doubts, and now I want to offer yet another reason for teens to skin the San Diego BOTOX® Cosmetic treatments.

Deeper Issues Need to be Addressed First

Teens who think their face looks wrinkled or old may just be hypercritical of themselves or may even have more serious psychological concerns such as body dysmorphic disorder. The bottom line is that when I see a patient who I believe is obsessively concerned with real or imagined defects in their appearance, I have to push the pause button.

As a dermatological surgeon and San Diego facial rejuvenation specialist, I can tell you that treating patients of any age who are overly critical about their appearance is a bad idea.

• These patients tend to have unreasonably high expectations for how their treatment will fix their life. Given their relative immaturity, teens especially can expect results that just aren’t realistic.
• Performing the treatment might reinforce – not reverse – the ideas that feed into the patient’s preoccupation with their appearance.

Parting thought: Studies show us that body image and self image can change dramatically from adolescence to adulthood, and stepping in at this point with “corrections” that may not even treat the problem just doesn’t make sense.