Couldn't Wait to Try It- Now the Waiting for the Effect Begins! - San Antonio, TX

I had the first series of injections yesterday. My doctor was one of the doctors who did the clinical trial and he's pretty much upfront about what the 'reality' vs. the 'marketing' of the product was all about. First, he said that the bruising, redness and swelling are much greater than you may be led to believe. IT all goes away but better to be prepared than to be shocked. He said that the swelling will decrease over time but it's not an instantaneous fix- it can take weeks or months to be fully effective. He also said that the medication is no joke- it's not like botox where it wears off after a while- it's a permanent fix. (and why it takes longer to see the impact of the treatment. The entire procedure took maybe 10 minutes. They washed my neck area thoroughly then marked the areas where the nerves and muscles are, marked where my thyroid is, where my jawbone is and in the space left- is where the injections go. He was very careful to ensure that none of the risky areas for damage was anywhere near where he did the injection. He also said that he wouldn't do the injections without anesthetizing the area first- his experience with the clinical trial was that people found the injections could be very painful without numbing the area first. I didn't feel any pain at all- pressure, yes- pain, no. I slept slightly elevated on two pillows as recommended. I iced the area off and on for a few hours- it was tender as the numbing stuff wore off. Today, less than 24 hours in, it's very swollen. In fact it's way worse than the before which is pretty funny to see what I've hopefully avoided. I fully expect to be swollen for about a week and that the full impact of the procedure won't be known until October. It's very tender. He also won't schedule the second set until he sees how the first set is working. My doctor did say that for some of the patients in the trial, four sets of injections were needed but most people were successful after two. It's not an overnight miracle though, and it's not a quick fix. In fact, in the information packet they straight up tell you not to do this right before any kind of fancy function because you won't look right! So- that's it so far on Day One. I'll post pictures when I upload them from my camera. Like one of the other people posted- I'm not sure that I'll be exercising in public- I do a daily vinyasa flow yoga and feel like being upside down might feel weird. I'll do some at home yoga for the first couple of days, I think!

So, it's Day Two - Swelling has not yet started to go down. It pretty much still looks (and feels) like there'a water balloon in my chin. It's definitely tender to the touch. I did do yoga yesterday and other than getting some side-eye from my regular yoga instructors it was fine. (They didn't ask, I didn't explain) It actually felt pretty good to move. I also jumped in the pool and it felt weird against my chin- kind of like the spot was floating, independent of the rest of me. It probably was- it's that swollen and puffy. Definitely not the prettiest I've looked but I'm still looking forward to the results!

So, it's Day Six. Swelling is gone. My chin is still numb-ish. I can't really explain it. You know something is happening but you can't tell yet. No more redness either. I've done yoga every day- being upside down isn't a problem. I went back to see Dr. Davis on Monday (procedure was done Friday afternoon) as requested. The area was still hard to the touch then. Now it feels like jelly. Not bad, not good-it just is. My next appointment is the first week of October so I'll post pictures as time goes on.