Bad Botox Stories

– I have had botox several times before and only experienced mild side effects. This time I was taking a tetracycline antibiotic (doxycycline) at the time and the side effects are horrendous – anxiety, nausea, insomnia, flu-like symptoms, sinus infection etc etc etc.

And the effects of the botox have been exacerbated – I only had 15 units in total dispersed across my frown lines, above my eyebrows, crows feet and bunny lines. Not a lot for all of these areas.

My forehead is like cement, my face has dropped (I think partly due to bad placement of the crows feet shots) and I feel completely weak and fatigued but can’t sleep. I thought my anxiet was because I hated the result but now I think it is the product itself, especially because I had been taking antibiotics. Anyone else with the same problem?

Botulinum Toxin Type A Before And After Forehead

– I took Avelox AFTER having Botox which made me feel better for a couple of days after finishing treatment. My immune feels out of whack still though. Stomach problems and anxiety. It’s been 7 months now.

– I was taking mepron and zithromax for lyme disease when I recieved 30u of cosmetic botox 10 days ago. I have felt like I have severe flu, weakness,can’t sleep, severe anxiety, and no appetite – I have lost 8 lbs in 10 days and have been to the ER twice. Please tell me that your flu symptoms have subsided. I feel like I am going to die and don’t think I can make it if the sx last the duration of the botox. My face also feels like cement. I will never do anything like this again!

– I too had A HEADACHE like the devil from day one and a fever til day 5 then my eyebrow drooped and my right eye lid swelled up…. so I looked online and all i saw was take lecithin( the botox uses choline channels to bind and destroy nerve endings) … so fill up the channels and slow down the nightmare … ecercize the muscles( lip botox doesn’t last cuz of all the movement) so frown raise eyebrows opne eyes wide and close em tight over and over … hot showers sunshine.. lots of water…. fight back ike it was an infection cuz it kinda is…. I asked here they told me nothing will work well it is working… that and I believe prayer is too… amke fun of me but my eyes are not swollen the left is drooping but not as bad as it was and my headaches and fever are gone…. I would have tried anything to get rid of this stuff so i did…. The only fear left is the throat soreness that lingers( hard to swallow)…. I’m still praying!!!!

Dr John Mesa, MD, New York Plastic Surgeon – Reversing ‘Surprised’ Eyebrow Look By Lowering Eyebrows With BOTOX

– Although I have not suffered any anxiety from Botox, I do regularly experience “flu like” symptoms a few days after the procedure.

– Right after getting Botox 6 days ago I felt sick, the injection sites swelled and became red. I couldn’t eat, had a weird medicinal taste in the back of my throat and had trouble eating/swallowing. I was tired and weak and had mild muscle aches/weakness. The following night, the left side of my face became numb and tingly. My stomach was sensitive and I couldn’t keep any food in me that I did manage to get down. I ended up in the ER after my heart started racing, my mouth (especially my tongue) became dry. Urine test and vitals came back normal, and I was put on steroids and an antacid. I still have anxiety, rapid heart beat, and a dry tongue. The numbness and tingly comes and goes. I was healthy before the injections and have never had allergies before. There is no doubt in my mind that all my problems are the side effects of Botox. I know you are a doctor, and think you know more than the patient, but all of us sufferers cannot be wrong. I seriously felt like I was going to die and now I have to wait it out and hope that my symptoms don’t become worse in the days and weeks to come. I reported my issues to the FDA and Allergan. Open your eyes and don’t let the dollar signs cloud the truth!

Dr Ronald Shelton, MD, Manhattan Dermatologic Surgeon – 39 Year Old Woman Treated With Botox

– I too have had flu-like symptoms after Botox (tremendous fatigue, nausea, headache, muscle soreness) and was also told by my dermatologist that I’m coming down with the flu and that it is a coincidence. I have no fever. It’s August 13th. I don’t in the least believe this is the flu. She also said that my now-puffy eyelids also had nothing to do with the Botox although I never had puffy eyelids before. I’m very disappointed in her lack of integrity. If she merely said: “Yes, these side effects sometimes happen” I’d feel she was ethical. Now I’m worried about how long this extreme fatigue will last. The other symptoms worry me less.

– There is major problems with this stuff! I’m a 5 year user of Botox!!! Most doctors are not informed because either A. they don’t use this poison! Or B. They do and they deny it because of the $$$!

Now I get the major blurry vision and horrible and I mean horrific headaches when I come down off the crap. Like the 4th month or so. I was recently bed ridden with headaches and anxiety attacks (which I NEVER get by the way!) I never associated it to the Botox until the past two times I had used it. I was in denial because I desperately thought I needed it to turn back the hands of time! Well obviously not if I become blind over this crap! I also understand the the FDA has approved botox for migraines. What about for wrinkles and the constant usage. I remember not even 4 years ago, that the FDA used to make it mandatory for doctors to pass out a release sheet to their patients before given the botox. Now that does NOT sound like the FDA really backs up this poison completely. I WILL never has the crap put in my head again!

Wrinkles Botox

Thank God for the internet. I see more and more negative posts about Botox every single day!

– Never had anything like this happen before. Almost at 2 months post botox and after 1 accupunture treatment I started feeling better. All I have left is the wierd feeling, light headed All the head stuff is gone, sinus pain, stuffyness and HEAD ACHE but I am not sure for good. It tends to come and go.

– mine typically lasts 6 weeks, the first few times i had no side effects, then I got over injected, at only 35 units, but I was only doing 18 before, so double the stuff, and I had every bad symptom all at once, nausea, it felt like I had spackle on my head, sinus infection (this all started 3 days after injection) numb on half my body, anxiety, insomnia, the works! Then I gave ia a shot a couple more times, thinking if i used less, waited a few years, etc, and twice I did not get anything except anxiety and insomnia, which is debilitating, the world sleeps and u take every pill known to man, and sleep exactly 1 hour than up the rest of 23, with all this medication, melatonin, and benzos in u , so u really feel like crap. I found the melatonin worked better than the benzos, cuz medication messes w ur hormones, I also found weed to help, better than sleeping pills…last time i tried a tiny amount of dysport hoping this would be different, I did about what would be equal to 6 units of botox, and that evening I felt this weird rush in my brain, no ability to have fun or laugh, then 6 weeks of insomia, the dysport did last 7 mos, however, I just can’t go through that, and it boggles my mind, why I WAS able to do it, and now this bs, and why all my friends can do it no problem. I’m annoyed no one is looking into WHY these side effects occur, just no answers anywhere.

Botox For Forehead Wrinkles

– After 16 months I still have symptoms and my life is changed.I was a very fitt fitness instructor before Botox….

– I am definitely fairing better than I was around this time 3 years ago but I will say that the whole experience forever changed my life. I still have bad anxiety, depression, a compromised immune system, and sinus issues, all due to the Botox. My circulation is still pretty bad as well (limbs fall asleep very easily). I still get foggy headed and heavy headed at random times. The muscle fatigue I had isn’t as bad which is relief. Running and eating as clean a diet as possible helped the most. I had to get on anxiety and depression meds which also helped…

– Feel paralyzed and ache all over, hurts to move, tire easily. Now had over 2 yrs. No social life at this point. It sucks.

Botulinum Toxin Type A For Face

– All these symptoms you are experiencing are indeed a direct resultant of botox injections in so many, many hundreds of cases. You are so not alone here. The symptoms you are experiencing are NOT uncommon and anxiety, post botox, is very, very real – and if you explore (even) this site alone – NOT uncommon. Doctors are obviously staying ‘on side’ with the manufacturer’s of Botox, ALLERGAN, to continue feeding their huge money-making-machine. As far as the doctor saying “… it has had a positive track record for decades…” – that is what they tell the public, what the marketing machine proclaims… It is purely because (until now) victims of bad botox experiences have been too intimidated, too embarrassed, too scared to tell the truth about this toxic, unsubstantiated ‘cosemetic enhancement’ procedure. The reality of botox’s true side and adverse effects are now, slowly, slowly (and with horrific realisation) coming to the fore. The real, long-term side/adverse effects of botox are simply unknown.

Deep Forehead Wrinkles

– One week ago I was given Botox at the Mayo Clinic to treat a Dystonia. I was told before recieving it that the only issues they have ever seen with botox is “flu like symptoms” A week into this I am now experiencing these flu-like symptoms hence why I did a google search and found this site…these symptoms have been terrible and getting worse. I had a bad feeling about this crap (botox) and every doctor I was sent to before being treated at the Mayo Clinic raved about how great this stuff is with the mayo clinic being the only place that mentioned any side effects at all. I already regret taking this stuff for some reason it seems doctors are bit too trigger happy to want to give this stuff out…must be a huge profit margin. The only reason why I took this stuff in the first place was because I was forced to by my workers compensation insurance company…when I refused it the first time I was refused benefits as I was labeled “refusing treatement” and that this stuff was the cure for me.

Dr. Douglas Wu, MD, San Diego Dermatologist – 38 Year Old Woman Treated With Botox

– I too got hurt at work and ended up with Dystonia. I have a contracted ankle and get 300 units of botox into my ankle and leg. Two days after the shots I thought I got the flu. No signs of a cold so I just thought it was the flu. I feel like I have been run over by a semi and it drags me along with it. I don’t feel any better, but the aching in my whole body feels worse than the Dystonia at time.

– I fell at work and injured my ankle and leg. After Workman’s comp not getting me the proper care, my ankle ended up curving in I was told that after physical therapy my ankle would go back to normal. Well let’s just say I didn’t get physical therapy for about six months later. Then it was too late. I now have nerve damage and dystonia. It is very painful. Botox is supposed to relax the muscles in my ankle and leg to give me some relief. I get 300 units at once! This was the third time I went through this process and after two days I felt like someone ran me over with a semi! I have all of the symptoms of the flu times ten. The Botox helps with the neuropathy I now have in my foot for a few months. ( the neuropathy feels like someone is burning your feet with a lighter )! I got the shots on Friday and started feeling like crap Sunday morning. Today is Thursday with no relief. I am on antibiotic and still feeling horrible. There is a connection and one day the “Botox” companies will pay everyone they harmed I’m sure! Blessings to all!

Dr. Marguerite A. Germain, MD, Charleston Dermatologic Surgeon – 39 Year Old Woman Treated With Botox

– I reported my adverse event to Allergan, the FDA and the TGA (Australian version of the FDA). I believe adverse botox events are significantly under-reported, which is why doctors can continue to make unchallenged assertions about how the safety of botox. Botox users either do not recognise the side effects as connected to botox, or their concerns are dimissed by doctors (as above) or they don’t want to report it because they don’t want to admit to using botox especially for cosmetic purposes. If enough people report adverse events to the FDA (including experiencing side effects) then it will not be possible for doctors to continue to deny they exist. Is botox as safe as doctors repeatedly claim? Maybe. Or maybe it is more a case of the statistics not reflecting reality. Who knows? Nobody will ever know until adverse events are reported properly and real data is available. How many units did you have for a dystonia? I had 15 units 4 weeks ago and some of the flu-like symptoms have decreased. My botox was administered concurrently with a contraindicated antibiotic (tetracycline) so the botox went crazy. The same doctor who gave me the antibiotic also gave me the botox. She ‘didn’t know’ that tetracyclines can potentiate the effects and side effects of botox. My face is living proof that they do. The physical effect is grotesque and the side effects have been horrendous. I am stuck looking like this for months.

Botox For Face

– I just had 750 units for Dystonia. I am shaky, My chest feels like I have a really bad case of something really BAD?? I was not like this before my treatment. Only alot of Sweating!! I was not sappose to get about 600 units. I will not do this again if the symptoms get any wosre. I have research all of the types of Botox. Botox A! I had Flu-Like symptoms for Months after, Stopped it! Myobloc~ Got from 500 units to 750 un. in my neck was not seeing any impovements Swithshed To Dysport, Done better.. not saying much, Headaches calmed down, Now I am sooo sick I have been doing this over a year & I am really thinking this is not worth the side-effects, Just be carefull Yes~ Red Flags LOOK WHAT YOU SIGN BEFORE YOUR TREATMENTS…. This is ALL TRUE. But is it worth is just to sometimes PAIN FREE FOR 3 months after?? I will let you know cuz I am SICK~ GOING Back to sleep ya all take care look a the small print I have. Look up the # of study’s & see what they say. BOTOX.COM I think.

Frown Lines Wrinkles

– I had Botox last Tuesday and 4 days later i woke up with a sore throat and flu symptoms.its now been nearly a week and i still feel a bit weird. I remember another time i had botox this happened as well. I got alot injected round my eyes and forehead. But i have just had one area at a time done and i have felt ok. im guessing i have had a bad reaction when i have my full forehead and eye area done. Im glad im not the only one experiencing the botox side effects. Apart from the flu symptoms and feeling a bit sick my wrinkles have gone…

– three week ago I was given Botox second time. I was told before recieving it that the only issues they have ever seen with botox is “droopy eyes”. But the symptoms I had were terrible. I regret taking this stuff second time. The first time it was about 6 month ago i was given a very little amount. I felt a bit tired, headache, sinus pain, but it was very mild and it didn’t last for too long, beside I did not connect botox to the way I was feeling. But the second time my doctor gave twice as much (witch i didn’t ask at all, I asked to give me as little as possible). The next day I woke up feeling very bad, sinus, dull head pain, very tired, nausea, heavy feeling in my head and ears. I was so tired I stayed in bed for two days. I was feeling like crap for a week and was not getting better at all.But Just to let you know that there is a solution, I went to my health shop and got lots of de-tox stuff, herbs, teas foods. I did that for a few days, and did a liver flash at the end of the week, it helped me a lot. I feel normal again, still a bit intoxicated, but at least i have more energy and can function properly. So my advise is do the detox program to get rid of this toxic crap. If you had the same reaction do that, it will help.

Botulinum Toxin Type A For 11 Lines

– I had a botox injection because of excessive sweating 3months ago.after one weak i had generalise weakness,insomnia,out of energy,dysphagia,nausea……. i was at hospital for 2weeks.and now still i have severe nausea,but other effects are disapeared.i wanted to know what were these drugs and do they help me after this time.i`m very disappointed of getting well.

– I just wanted to tell my story and express the extreme disappointment I have with that doctor and others who refuse to believe this side effect/condition exists. My mother has received botox injections for neck pain/migraines for about a year now every couple of months. This round (about three weeks ago), has completely debilitated her with flu-like symptoms. The fatigue, chills, anxiety, and exhaustion have been so bad that she had a full body MRI and CAT scan to check for endocrinal, and brain tumors among others, and has had every blood test that I’ve ever heard of plus more. NOTHING (according to tests) is wrong with her, and her symptoms started the day after she got the botox injections. My mother used to be a vital, exuberant and athletic woman of 49, and now, for three weeks, she has been a sobbing, anxiety-ridden, and bed-ridden woman. She was an exemplary “super-housewife” of over 25 years and now she can’t muster the energy to cook a thirty-minute meal, go to the store, or pick my ten year old brother up from school. She has been completely devastated. It is detestable that the doctor above could not admit, even so recently, that your symptoms, and thus anyone’s symptoms are unrelated to botox. As for him thinking that it is truly the flu instead of a side effect- my mother has never run a fever, and has had these symptoms (and been bed-ridden) for three weeks and counting- it is NOT the flu. My father is a very reputable doctor and he and his peers believe this diagnosis (botox “poisoning” or side effects) to be the only reasonable one at this point, so there is hope. People are coming around. The only loss of hope is that there is no treatment yet available to treat these symptoms.

– The side effects of botox are real. Please get your mother to report them to the FDA. If there are enough reports made of the same side effects then doctors will not be able to deny they are connected to botox anymore.

Forehead Wrinkles Botox Before And After

– I have two little kids and was bedridden and unable to function. I am sending you my post because maybe it could help your mom. I cant remember the name of the vertigo meds – something like methyzine(ask doctor) but the 5th doctor I saw siggested and I was actually able to eat a few hours later and dizziness disipated. The accupuncture really worked. I had CAT scans, Brain MRI, saw neurologists etc. A SOLUTION I had awful reaction: dizziness, anxiety, overwhelming nausea, panic, chills, aches, etc I live in Los Angeles and have access to really good doctors. All of them basically told me I had to wait it out and could be weeks or months. BUT accupuncture really worked. I have gone every day for 4 days and today I am 75% better. The western med docs guessed that the botox paralyzed nerve(s) which caused my intense dizziness, nausea (didnt eat for 1 wk) and anxiety. The accupuncturist was able to help symptoms with treatment and herbal meds and also has been “re-awakening” nerves as well as trying to get toxins out of body. It really worked. It has to be an accupuncturist who knows how to not only treat symptoms but also understands body comprehensively enough to attack cause of symptoms. The first one I saw made minimal improvements but the second guy really knew what to do. Also one of the regular docs put me on vertigo medicine which made dizziness and overwhelming nausea reduce drastically. It made me really sleepy so only took at night.

– I had Botox done 4 days ago(only to area right above my eyesbrows and between them). I had a very small area treated but started to have flu-like symptoms within 24 hrs. along with nausea, anorexia, headaches and insomnia. It sounds like most of you had symtoms that started longer after the initial injection, so maybe mine is a bug, or at least I hope so. I don’t know how I would deal with these symptoms for months. I alreay had some anxiety issues before the injection but thoses have certainly gotten worse,wondering how long I am going to feel lie this. What did I do to myself?

4 Comments

  1. Doctor says:

    I am sorry that you suffered the flu soon after receiving Botox. However, I suspect that the Botox had nothing to do with your symptoms.

    Botox is incredibly safe. It has had a positive track record for decades. Occasionally, some of my patients develop headaches, bruising, numbness, or drooping from Botox, but not one (out of thousands) has ever developed the flu.

    It is flu season. Could you have been exposed to the flu, and then you happened to get Botox on the same day? Could the flu be a coincidence? Could the ER personnel have misdiagnosed you? (Most ER physicians would rarely, if ever, administer Botox, and most probably are not aware of its safety profile.)

    As you know, Botox is a purified protein. It is not derived from a virus, like the one that causes the flu.

    Regarding anxiety, some Botox patients do feel a certain “frustration” from being unable to fully express themselves. However, I have never had a patient whose anxiety could be largely attributed to Botox.

    Ultimately, I would recommend that you return to the surgeon who administered the Botox. He or she should assess your situation, and then you should decide whether or not you have had a (very, very) rare reaction.

  2. Richard says:

    Doc, I have to say that your answer is factually correct but functionally B.S. I have seen firsthand the effects of Botox on many individuals. Flu like symptoms and joint stiffness occur in all seasons of the year not just flu season. Swelling of the face and neck, difficulty swallowing, droopy eye lids are very common. As you should know, different people react very differently to proteins. There is a reason that venoms and all allergens are proteins, purified or not. I think Botox is a very bad idea, user beware. Too much Botox in any one area can cause permanent paralysis of that muscle. The doctors that I have dealt with have always denied the Botox could have caused these symptoms in spite of the fact they are listed in the literature for this drug. So please don’t discount the very real damage that this poison causes.

  3. Greta says:

    Doc, if you would please do some research on this instead of saying that none of our side effects are caused by botox. You can not be sure.
    It would be nice if we had someone at least do some research, you can see from the many posts that this is not just the flu or a coincidence. If you and some of the other doctors would try to go out of your comfort zone you may be surprised to see what you can find out, and then maybe some of you could help some of us.

  4. Eleon says:

    Doc, Your reply is a little patronising. We all know it is not the actual flu. It is ‘flu-like’ symptoms, which are a known and admitted side effect of botox. Muscle weakness, chills, headache, tiredness, fatigue, general body aches, stiff neck, sore throat, blocked sinuses etc. It FEELS like I have the flu. I don’t actually think I have the flu. I know I don’t. I have botox side effects. Read the side effects list from Allergan. It actually notes two of the side effects as ‘flu-like symptoms’ and ‘anxiety’. Why would Allergan list them as side effects if it never happens? Would you like to have a try at answering my antibiotic question as some of the medical literature I have accessed links concurrent administration of tetracyclines and botox to DEATH by repiratory depression and fatal apnea.