- Do not firmly rub or press the injection sites when washing or applying makeup. The AAD allows makeup after treatment, while some clinics recommend waiting until the next day.
- Exercise and lying down have different waiting periods across guidance. The AAD advises two hours before strenuous activity; Mayo Clinic recommends two to four hours before lying down.
- Follow the instructions for your treatment on alcohol, smoking and saunas. If you also had filler or another injection, distinguish that aftercare from Botox-only experiences.
- Get emergency medical care for difficulty breathing, swallowing or speaking. These warning symptoms can occur hours to weeks after injection.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Mayo Clinic: Botox injections (2024-11-19) / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare / BOTOX Cosmetic US prescribing information and patient guide (revised 10/2024)
Can I carry on with my usual activities today?
You can return to daily activities, but do not firmly rub or massage the treated areas. The instructions you need will depend on whether today’s plans include makeup, a workout or drinks.
Read the aftercare instructions your clinic gave you. It matters whether you had facial Botox alone or also received filler or another injection. Do not apply the shortest waiting period you find online to a different treatment.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Does that mean I cannot touch my face when washing?
Gentle washing and firm massage are different. The AAD advises against pressing or rubbing the treated areas even when applying makeup.
Mayo Clinic recommends avoiding rubbing and massage for 24 hours. If you have a facial massage or gua sha appointment, tell your treating clinician the area and time of your injections and ask when to resume. Also ask about hats or glasses that press on an injection site.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Mayo Clinic: Botox injections (2024-11-19) / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
I have plans today. Can I wash and wear makeup?
Some guidance allows same-day makeup, but clinics do not all give the same instructions. The AAD permits makeup after leaving the treatment room, with no pressing or rubbing. Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic recommends gentle washing that day and makeup the following day.
Two Gangnam Unni jaw Botox reviews describe being careful with makeup and being able to wear it that day, respectively. The first review does not say makeup was prohibited. The second reviewer’s statement about having no side effects describes that individual experience.
These are Gangnam Unni users’ jaw Botox experiences. Follow your treating clinic’s instructions for your own makeup timing and aftercare.
If you need makeup today, ask your treating clinic: “What time can I start for the area treated? Are the washing and makeup times different?”
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
I have drinks planned tonight. How long should I avoid alcohol and smoking?
Check the alcohol restriction for your treatment before changing tonight’s plans. Solin Clinic’s body Botox event and Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic’s instructions advise a week without alcohol or smoking. That is not a universal interval for every Botox treatment.
When a review mentions a period, distinguish a clinic’s instruction from time the writer chose to abstain. Both reviews below describe Botox combined with other injections and date from more than two years ago.
The 2023 review describes a two-week alcohol and smoking restriction after combined contour injections and Botox. The 2024 review describes not following advice after chin filler and Botox. “After two days” is not a clinic-approved interval.
If you also had filler, ask: “Until when should I avoid alcohol and smoking separately? Is the interval different because of the other treatment?”
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Can I go to the gym or sauna after work?
Organizations give different advice about restarting exercise. The AAD recommends two hours before strenuous activity. Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic and Solin Clinic’s body Botox instructions restrict strenuous exercise and saunas for a week. Do not turn the AAD’s two-hour interval into permission for saunas or every body treatment.
A 2016 expert consensus found no evidence supporting previous recommendations to avoid pressure, strenuous exercise or air travel. This does not mean a trial proved every activity safe after treatment. PMID 26910696 is a review of literature and expert recommendations.
There is therefore insufficient support for claiming that a single sweaty workout necessarily spreads the toxin and cancels its effect. This is also not a reason to ignore individualized exercise restrictions. Tell your clinic the activity and intensity you have planned and agree on a restart time. The professional sources checked do not set a 24-hour ban on yawning or laughing.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare / Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Global Aesthetics Consensus (2016), PMID 26910696
I lay down briefly at home. Have I done something wrong?
Briefly lying down does not establish that your treatment failed. Mayo Clinic recommends staying upright for two to four hours; Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic advises three to four hours. Follow the interval given by your treating clinic.
If you did not follow that interval, tell the clinic when you were treated and when you lay down. Posture alone cannot establish toxin movement or a need for another injection. The 2016 consensus also highlights limited support for previous pressure and exercise restrictions.
Sources: Mayo Clinic: Botox injections (2024-11-19) / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare / Global Aesthetics Consensus (2016), PMID 26910696
Whose advice should I follow when instructions differ?
Ask the clinician who knows your product, treatment area and any combined procedures about today’s plans. Combining jaw, forehead and trapezius advice into one rule, or using someone’s combined-treatment review as Botox-only guidance, changes the conditions.
Do not determine a product’s indications or authorization from an area name alone. Check your treatment record for the product and area, then ask for an explanation. A US product’s safety document does not establish the Korean authorization of every product.
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare / BOTOX Cosmetic US prescribing information and patient guide (revised 10/2024)
Can bruising wait? Which symptoms need prompt medical care?
Get emergency medical care for difficulty breathing, swallowing or speaking. In South Korea, call 119 for help. Do not stay at home waiting for a reply from the clinic.
The patient guide in the manufacturer’s US BOTOX Cosmetic prescribing information warns that these problems may occur hours to weeks after injection. Promptly report sudden generalized weakness or changes in vision or voice to a clinician, and provide the injection date and product name.
Distinguish small bruises and local swelling from systemic symptoms. Solin Clinic’s instructions describe bruising and swelling resolving in about one to two weeks. Contact your treating clinic promptly for severe or persistent pain, heat or swelling, as Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic advises.
Sources: BOTOX Cosmetic US prescribing information and patient guide (revised 10/2024) / Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
What should I ask during the consultation?
- Which product and areas were treated today? Did I have any other injections?
- What time can I wash and apply makeup separately? Which movements should I avoid?
- When can I restart my workout or lift heavy items? Does sauna use have a separate interval?
- How many days should I avoid alcohol and smoking separately? Does a combined treatment change this?
- Until when should I avoid lying down or massage today?
- Which number should I call for worsening pain or swelling, and how do I get care after hours?
Where should I start in my situation?
| My situation | What to discuss first |
|---|---|
| I need makeup for an appointment today | Ask your treating clinic whether and when it is allowed. Even if allowed, do not firmly press or rub the injection sites. |
| I booked a workout and sauna tonight | Describe the type and intensity of exercise and ask about each restart time. A two-hour exercise interval is not a sauna clearance. |
| I also had filler or contour injections | Follow aftercare that covers the combined treatment. Do not shorten the interval based on a Botox-only experience. |
| I briefly lay down at home | Tell the clinic the injection time and when you lay down. Posture alone does not establish failure or a need for more treatment. |
| My calves or trapezius were treated | Ask about activity restrictions for that area rather than using facial aftercare advice. Solin Clinic’s body event restricts strenuous exercise for a week. |
| I have trouble swallowing or breathing | Emergency care takes priority over routine aftercare. In South Korea, call 119 and provide the treatment date and product name. |
Check aftercare times against today’s plans
Avoid firmly rubbing the injection sites when washing or applying makeup. Follow the separate instructions you received for exercise, alcohol, saunas and lying down, including any other treatment you had. For breathing or swallowing problems, get emergency care rather than calculating an aftercare interval.
Related questions
Can I wash on the day of Botox?
Solin Clinic’s body Botox instructions and Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic’s guidance allow gentle same-day washing. Follow any separate instructions for your treatment area and avoid firm rubbing.
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Can I apply makeup immediately after Botox?
The AAD allows makeup after treatment and advises against pressing or rubbing. Some clinics, including Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic, recommend waiting until the next day, so follow your clinic’s timing.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Must everyone avoid alcohol for two weeks after Botox?
Distinguish alcohol restrictions for Botox alone from instructions for combined treatments. It describes contour injections combined with Botox. Solin Clinic’s body event advises one week.
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare
Can I exercise two hours after Botox?
Two hours is the AAD’s recommended wait before strenuous activity. Solin Clinic’s body Botox event and Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic advise a week; do not disregard your treatment area or clinic’s instructions.
Sources: AAD: Botulinum toxin therapy FAQs / Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Will lying down after Botox cancel the effect?
Briefly lying down does not establish treatment failure. Mayo Clinic recommends waiting two to four hours; if you did not follow your clinic’s timing, tell them the injection time and what happened.
Is aftercare identical for jaw and trapezius Botox?
Ask for instructions covering the treated area and any combined treatment. Solin Clinic’s event covers calves and trapezius, not facial makeup or universal rules for every product.
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
When should I ask the clinic about bruising or swelling?
Solin Clinic describes temporary bruising and swelling settling in about one to two weeks. Contact your treating clinic promptly for severe or persistent pain, heat or swelling.
Sources: Solin Clinic: Gangnam Unni body Botox event aftercare / Enter Plastic Surgery Clinic: Botox aftercare
Should I seek care for swallowing trouble several days after treatment?
Yes. Difficulty breathing, swallowing or speaking needs immediate emergency care. The manufacturer’s US BOTOX Cosmetic patient guide warns that these symptoms can occur hours to weeks after injection.
Sources: BOTOX Cosmetic US prescribing information and patient guide (revised 10/2024)
Explore other information guides
Sources and check dates
Underlying evidence checked 2026-10-24. US manufacturer instructions are not presented as Korean regulatory authorization. Original clinic and review materials may be in Korean.