Fifteen years on, what long-term Botox use looks like

CHRISTA Billich was one of the first people to use Botox when it arrived here 15 years ago. She reveals what it’s done to her face.

Christa Billich, known for her role on Real Housewives, has been using Botox for 15 years.

IT’S enough to raise eyebrows. That is, if the eyebrows haven’t been paralysed.

Despite its omnipresence in pop culture and beauty mags, Botox has only been around for 15 years.

Yep, this month is the birthday of the game-changing, wrinkle-smoothing, injectable wonder, which — in April 2002 — got its official government go-ahead for cosmetic use, a move that turned it into one of the most successful pharmaceutical brands in history.

Since its introduction in Australia we’ve been ranked as one of the world’s biggest spenders on the injectable. And one of the very first Australians to undergo the procedure was colourful Sydney socialite — and both Melbourne and Sydney Real Housewives regular — Christa Billich.

“It was really just one of those things,” she remembers. “A cosmetic surgeon in LA was a collector of my husband, Charles’, work, and I remember him raving about Botox — the ease of the procedure and its little to no downtime. It sounded amazing and I was SO ready to have it done! So when I heard it was on its way to Sydney, I jumped on it.”

Christa Billich pictured recently with her husband Charles, a famous artist.

Christa and Charles Billich in the year 2000, before Botox was available.

While admitting to undergoing various other procedures before the availability of Botox (“I wasn’t going to wait around for its miracles!”) she admits to being nervous ahead of her first injection.

“I’m not scared of needles, but I certainly don’t like them,” she says. “I had a champagne en route to the clinic — maybe two — which I’d probably not recommended, but whatever works, right?

“After the treatment, I was completely shocked when I looked in the mirror — I was expecting smooth skin right away, and instead had strange bumps where the needle had been. I was assured they’d do gown and surely enough, they did.

“It took longer for the effects to kick in than I thought, but that’s how Botox works, it needs a little time to start working its magic. Wrinkles start to soften and they don’t start coming back, as long as you keep up with the treatments.”

Christa on The Real Housewives of Sydney. Picture: Foxtel

For Christa it marked the beginning of a 15-year-long love affair: “I was and am hooked!”

HER CHANGING FACE

Christa, 70, doesn’t want to even contemplate what she’d look like if Botox hadn’t come along when it did.

“Are you kidding, darling!” she laughs. “Never think about the what ifs. I’m very happy it arrived though. My face now looks natural, tight, smooth and youthful.”

Christa before Botox, in March 2000. Picture: Frank Violi

This facial rejuvenation is also something she credits with attracting the attentions of younger admirers.

“I think younger men think I’m younger than I really am because of it,” she says. “I get messages on my Facebook and Instagram from younger guys all the time, and there’s nothing to not like about that!”

Though married to her controversial artist husband, who made his millions by painting and sculpting nudes, the couple have an open relationship, which allows Christa to indulge in these cougar tendencies.

“We’re both open to dating others and have been throughout our marriage,” she reveals.

“We’ve been called ‘Sydney’s most famous swingers’, which is rather flattering. We just do what we want and, like Botox, if I want more, I can always have it,” she says with a wink.

Christa and Charles have a famously open relationship. Picture: Christian Gilles

HOW BOTOX BEGAN

Although the product’s use in the cosmetic world is still in its infancy, Botox has had a long history that stretches all the way to the 1820s when a German scientist discovered the first strains of the toxin in off sausages, while trying to ascertain how the rotten pork product was making people sick.

Seventy years later, another doctor — also investigating food poisoning — expanded on these findings, discovering seven strains of botulinum toxin, four of which were harmful to humans.

In the 1950s researchers discovered that injecting small amounts of one of the strains (Botulinum toxin type A) into hyperactive muscles relaxed them. Fast-forward to the 80s, the toxin was approved as a treatment for everything from facial spasms and eyelid twitching, to cerebral palsy.

It’s also around this time that it got its more user-friendly name: Botox. However, the real breakthrough for the injectable as a cosmetic was made in 1987 by two married Canadian doctors, who accidentally discovered the wrinkle-fighting properties of the toxin after noticing that patients who were receiving injections for facial spasms were also losing their frown lines.

A BOTOX REVOLUTION

Dr Rohit J Kumar, a Sydney-based cosmetic plastic surgeon and owner of Sydney Cosmetic Sanctuary, has been injecting patients with Botox since its introduction to the market and its quick uptake in Australia didn’t surprise him.

“It delivers clearly visible results,” he explains. “So it’s no surprise then that it was taken up so phenomenally. The longer you use it, the less new wrinkles form, plus the old ones are held at bay.”

Over its 15-year evolution, the price tag has seen a huge reduction meaning that the prospect of youth in a needle is in reach of most. In fact, nowadays, for many people a Botox top-up is as routine as a trip to the hairdresser.

“At first it seemed to be only for the wealthy or Hollywood stars,” recalls Dr Kumar.

“In the early days many people who had the treatment went to pains denying that they had. It has been a very interesting journey … watching the destigmatisation of it.

“Now, it’s as much a part of their anti-ageing regimen as their skincare range and sunblock.”

Dr Kumar injecting Botox into one of his patients.

Christa agrees. “It has come a long way,” she says. “It’s just something that’s part of my routine. And it’s not just women either, I’m seeing more men now than ever in clinics.”

Indeed, Botox for men, or “brotox” as it is now known, is a legitimate trend with more men, both here and overseas, undergoing the procedure.

“While women still outnumber the men in terms of patients, as Botox has become more and more normalised it is easier for men to discuss it and seek treatment,” says Dr Kumar.

INJECT WITH CAUTION

While most studies show Botox to be very safe for long term use, there’s still a need for caution, particularly given the increasing number of injectors on the market as prices for treatments have plummeted over the years.

“Making it more accessible means there’s also an issue with quality control,” explains Dr Kumar.

“If the injector doesn’t have the appropriate training then it is easy to end up with asymmetry, also too much injected into a particular muscle can lead to it wasting away, leaving ‘dents’ or contour irregularities.”

Another solid reason for making sure that the practitioner is fully trained and experienced is the dreaded “poker” or “joker” face. Given its paralysing effects, a larger dose can rob the ability to express emotion, meaning that, when it comes to Botox, less is most definitely more.

For Christa, the only negative is its longevity: “Apart from a short hour or so of downtime to let the Botox soak into the skin there’s no downsides — except, it would be fabulous if it lasted longer!”

BOTOX AT 30?

With the rapid progression of anti-ageing technology and the increasing introduction of new, cutting-edge treatments, will Botox be around in another 15 years’ time? Dr Kumar believes so, but perhaps in a different form.

“I think we’ll still be using it,” he says. “However, the way the product is delivered may change. I see a potential trend away from injections towards having Botox incorporated in a cream to make delivery easier and more regular. This can also be packed with more active ingredients that will combat ageing on more than one level.”

And until there’s a superior alternative, Christa is adamant that she’ll be getting her regular jab for the foreseeable future: “Not unless something more fabulous comes along!”

15 years later, Christa is loving it. Picture: Instagram