Have You Heard About Natural Botox?

Ditch cosmetic procedures for natural botox

If you’re looking for a non-invasive lift to the face, Natural Botox may be for you.

Natural Botox is a term used for Cosmetic Acupuncture; a popular holistic, natural beauty treatment that can replace cosmetic botox.

In 2018, Australia became one of the top five nations around the world having more cosmetic procedures than any other country, even superseding America, with around $1 billion being spent on cosmetic procedures.

I spoke with 31-year old Aussie Cosmetic Acupuncture expert, Dr. Stephanie Flockhart, who is a Registered Acupuncturist Bhsc (Acu), on what Natural Botox is and why you should consider it as an alternative to cosmetic botox.

Have you heard about Natural Botox?
Recently moving to LA to continue her career in Cosmetic Acupuncture, Stephanie studied Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture for five years at the Endeavour College in Sydney, and graduated with a Bachelor of Health Science and doctorate of Chinese Medicine.

Obtaining a doctorate in Chinese Medicine is where a student deeply explores areas of Traditional Chinese Medicine such as psychology, oncology, gerontology, acupuncture detox, research and the classic texts that first recorded the principles of this powerful and ancient system of medicine in Chinese culture.

It was on this journey Stephanie found her passion for Cosmetic Acupuncture.

What is Cosmetic Acupuncture?

Cosmetic Acupuncture is a non-invasive treatment which involves using acupuncture needles on the face to improve skin, fight the ageing process, reduce wrinkles, diminish fine lines, remove age spots and can even assist in lifting droopy eyelids.

Using key techniques and rituals from century old practices, when Cosmetic Acupuncture is applied to modern day beauty and wellness practices, the two make a powerful combination of holistic alternatives to achieving natural beauty.

A Cosmetic Acupuncture treatment generally involves the following:

  • Lymphatic Drainage: This involves massaging the face gently with a Jade Roller, which promotes circulation, tightens pores and helps with the natural process of draining excess fluid around the skin. The jade stone has been used for many years as it exhibits anti-ageing benefits through its cooling effect on the skin.
  • Cosmetic Acupuncture: This is a combination of small, fine needles and intra-dermal needles which are utilised to stimulate specific acupuncture points to assist in treating individual concerns. Skin needling is administered to initiate ‘micro-traumas’ in the skin, particularly the dermal layer to instigate the skin’s ‘natural healing process’ and stimulate collagen and elastin production in the skin.
  • Depending on what are is being treated, needles can be left on for anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour.
  • Body Acupuncture: Certain Acu-points are chosen on the body to assist in improving any deficiencies or imbalances.

Stephanie’s Background:

From a young age, Stephanie knew she would one day work as a health practitioner in some capacity. Her mother was an acupuncturist and healer, and her family incorporated natural medicine into their health plan in an integrated and seamless way.

She studied at the Endeavour College of Natural Health and whilst she was fortunate to have Chinese Medicine ingrained into her upbringing, it wasn’t until Stephanie was a teenager she began to truly understand the intricate patterns and potential for healing, ancient practices such as acupuncture really had.

“I always had a passion for Acupuncture, hormone balance and skin health. So, following my degree I embarked on further study in the area of Cosmetic Acupuncture. I’ve been treating in clinics for almost ten years now. However, I only started specialising in Cosmetic Acupuncture four years ago.” she says,

“Truthfully, it was always the tools and teachings of Chinese Medicine that brought me vibrancy, energy and balance each time I felt I had drifted out of alignment with my health. It was this love and respect for Chinese Medicine now permanently in my heart, that saw me qualified as a registered Acupuncturist as a young adult.

Soon after I embarked on a career treating, caring and connecting with women from all around Australia. I now live in LA, where my love for learning has seen me perfecting my holistic beauty skill set and expanding my client base globally.

Chinese medicine approaches its remedies and perspective on beauty with an emphasis on ritual. I feel this is something that has been interwoven into the beauty regimes of many cultures and has transcended time, until now.  

Many people are feeling increasingly disconnected and stuck in a never ending stress state, glorifying being “busy” and jeopardising our health in the process.”

For many women, the art of the beauty ritual has been lost due to the pace of every day life in the western world. Stephanie feels that sense of personal luxury, and the investment in self, increases radiance and femininity, and in turn self confidence.

Stephanie in action treating a client with Cosmetic Acupuncture
Stephanie treating a client with Cosmetic Acupuncture.

How Cosmetic Acupuncture works:

“The treatment itself works on everything from fine lines, drooping/sagging skin, dryness, flakiness, dull complexions, hormonal acne, pigmentation, scarring, facial tension and uneven skin tone.

The tiny needles used are extremely fine and inserted with a painless specialised technique. They are inserted into the fine lines, motor points, and other areas of concern.

This creates a tiny “microtrauma” to the area of insertion which prompts the body to produce collagen and elastin in response. Another technique we use works to specifically target sagging and drooping by needling into facial points to stimulate the muscle to tighten and strengthen, lifting certain areas of the face.

Both of these techniques result in an increase of skin density and elasticity, resulting in the improved overall plumpness, radiance and firmness of the skin.” Stephanie tells me,

Although it’s difficult to argue with the instant results achieved from more mainstream methods of botox, Stephanie explains how natural botox results are better for longterm beauty achievements.

“Compared to normal botox, Cosmetic Acupuncture in comparison produces a more natural and longer lasting change. The treatment is completely natural, holistic, and comes with zero side effects. On average the results of Botox last about six months. In comparison the collagen production produced by skin needling usually lasts between five and seven years.

For many there are still safety concerns with Botox, with recent research showing that it does in fact impact and interfere with the functioning of the brain, which are not present with Cosmetic Acupuncture.”

Stephanie has been experiencing an increase in client bookings for Cosmetic Acupuncture (natural botox). And with it being trendy amongst a few popular celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Katy Perry, Angelina Jolie and Kim Kardashian, regular sign ups for people wanted to get treated using more holistic methods has never been more popular.

“I am such an advocate and supporter of encouraging anyone to do whatever they deem to be the right decision for them. However, I feel there are still a multitude of other alternatives to consider before resorting to Botox and Fillers.

I swear by Cosmetic Acupuncture, and also Gua Sha, Facial Yoga (which incorporates Chinese Medicine theory), Facial Cupping and Jade rolling to prevent ageing.

All of these techniques are easy to do as apart of a daily or weekly ritual, and Cosmetic Acupuncture is gaining popularity. I feel as people are made aware of natural alternatives, more will choose them over injectables for their beauty needs. If you can look great, with no side effects – why wouldn’t you?”

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Rebecca Wilkinson

Beauty Editor

Rebecca is a freelance content creator and beauty editor for Bondi Beauty. She is a pescatarian, who may yet become vegan. She loves all things beauty, health & travel, has a weakness for coffee and is obsessed with cats and yoga. If she's not answering her mobile - it's probably because she's trying out the latest beauty trend, like massaging crushed pearls into her skin for the ultimate collagen and vitamin boost to skin cells.

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