Devotees of Botox and other forms of cosmetic surgery are turning to so-called power massages to bring their frozen faces back to life, according to reports Sunday.
Muscles paralyzed by Botox injections are repeatedly pummeled by hand to make up for the exercise they lack and to restore blood circulation.
Some treatments involve massaging the cheeks from the inside of the client's mouth.“The skin becomes dull and waxy looking with Botox,” said Nichola Joss, a beauty therapist who charges more than $305 for a 90-minute facial, including the power massage. “The skin needs to be fed, and the massage gets blood flow back and skin tone and color is improved.”
Joss, whose clients include Kate Moss and Liz Hurley compares the massage technique with a gym workout.
“If you want a toned, defined body, you work out; the same goes for the face,” she said. “If you are a Botox user, your muscles are not getting the chance to be worked.”
Cyrille Blum, a west London-based cosmetic surgeon, is skeptical about the benefits of massages for patients who do not have the cigarette-paper-thin skin that can result from using too much Botox.
“If you inject Botox and massage at the same time it makes no sense,” he said. “It’s like hitting the brake at the same time as the accelerator.”
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