How Botox Changed Jenny Mollen's Relationship With Her Skin
Of all the days of the year, November 20 is the most popular one to get Botox. Something about it falling right before the holidays and the fact that the neurotoxin injectable takes about five days to kick in, making it the busiest day for appointments. With this in mind, Allergan, the manufacturers of Botox, is celebrating National Botox Cosmetic Day on November 20 — and teamed up with Jenny Mollen to help kick it off.
But Mollen, who you may know as a New York Times best-selling author and extremely funny person and mother of two on social media, admits she doesn't plan her Botox appointments around any one day or holiday. Instead, "I like to think of my Botox situation as I'm in year-round school," she says. "Whenever I need it, I just gotta go in and replenish. I don't ever plan it. I just think of it as an ongoing situation. I hope I'm ready at a moment's notice."
Mollen, 40, is notably open about her love of injectables, particularly Botox. She often shares her experiences on her Instagram Story and definitely didn't hold back when we recently sat down for an interview. As we chatted, I realized where her transparency comes from: She grew up without believing stigmas against fillers because her parents have always been fans of cosmetic enhancements.
"When I saved my placenta, my mom was like, 'Can I have it to inject into my face?'" Mollen recalls. "I'm like, 'I'm pretty sure that doesn't happen, but where are you going to get that done?'" Her New York City-based dermatologist, Patricia Wexler, joined us — Mollen is on a nickname basis with her, simply calling her Pat — as I got a deeper look and understanding of Mollen's journey with injectables.
What is your relationship like with your skin?
Jenny Mollen: "When I was younger, even throughout high school, I never struggled with acne. When I turned, I would say 27, 28, I started to get cystic acne. Because I didn't have the experience to know what to do or how to treat it, I would just dig in and just start picking. I got myself in a lot of trouble. Even at my wedding, I had a scab on my chin that I had picked. If I had a life experience with having acne I think I would've known better at that point. So, I dealt with that, and I've always stayed out of the sun. I'm sort of afraid of the sun. I've always worn sunscreen and hats. I'm not into tanning at all.
And then, 29 was when I first started using Botox Cosmetic. That was the first time I started to think, Okay, wait, this could look softer, or I could get rid of this line. Or, maybe if I did a little bit up here, these lines wouldn't be so intense when I was raising my brows and just emoting. I started doing that; that was my first intro into injectables. It wasn't until I met Pat that I also started trying out different lasers and things of that nature. [Also,] I got the picking under control."
Was there anything specific that helped you stop picking?
Mollen: "Well, no. It's not that I don't want to do it. It's just that I'm afraid of Pat's wrath if I do. You need somebody like that in your life that can hold you accountable. Otherwise, if I'm just there I could sit in front of a mirror for hours finding things."
Wexler: "I told her she should come in when she saw something and wanted to pick. She should get it treated in the office, so she didn't have to feel anxious about it."
Before you started getting Botox, did you have any skin insecurities?
Mollen: "No, I just was like, Wait, this could be better. Always in life, I'm like, Oh, is there something that would make this look a little bit more to my liking. It wasn't really, Oh, I hate this about myself. It was, Let me see what I can do. I think you just kind of have to accept and embrace what's happening to you naturally. And, if there's something that you can maybe lessen, cool. But you sort of have to just ride the wave. That's the exciting part about living in this age — solutions are popping up all the time, and Botox has been around long enough that I feel extra safe."
"I think you just kind of have to accept and embrace what's happening to you naturally."
What was your first Botox experience like?
Mollen: "I wasn't scared because my parents both did it. I was in [Los Angeles] where it wasn't such a big deal. I'm trying to remember. I think it was with Dr. Rosenbach in L.A. It was very easy, very chill. At 29, I wasn't treating a lot. At the time, it was just my forehead."
Which injectables do you get now?
Mollen: "Now I do the whole shebang, wherever Pat says I can put it."
Wexler: "You don't overdo anything. In fact, I took her filler out."
Mollen: "I had filler [in my laugh lines]. I had always had deep lines there, even when I was in my 20s. And I had them filled in L.A. at the time, but it just looked too full."
Wexler: "When she smiled, [the filler] went to the sides [of her laugh lines] and she had ridges there. She didn't need it, and it was very noticeably improved when the filler was taken out."
Mollen: "She also dissolved the filler I put under my eyes. I've tried that out. [Before, the area] was sunken in and I thought, Oh, maybe if I fill it, but it wasn't for me."
Beyond injectables, what is your skin-care routine like?
Mollen: "It depends on the time of the month. When I'm hormonal and PMSing, that's when I tend to see little undergrounders appear on my chin. I love Drunk Elephant. I use all their products. And I don't wash my face in the morning. But at night I'll wash with their cleanser. And then I like this glycolic product, the [T.L.C. Framboos Glycolic Resurfacing Night Serum]. Then I do their marula oil, which I love. They also have a peptide lotion that I sometimes apply just because I run really dry. And for acne I love Patricia Wexler's Acne Overnight Repair. I spot treat with it."
Wexler: "I use it all over my face because it makes my pores invisible."
Mollen: "My stepbrother, who's 18 and at college, was like, 'How do I get more of this, 'cause I can't find it?'
Wexler: "It's just in my office. I give it away now because I'm not selling it."
Are there any injectables you wish existed? Maybe to replace one of those skin-care steps?
Mollen: "If there was something that could really curb my acne without having to go on an antibiotic, something like that. I'm not consistent with taking pills. I can't finish the full course of anything."
No matter which day of the year you like to visit your dermatologist for Botox, you can shop for a special deal on National Botox Cosmetic Day for your next appointment. On November 20 — and November 20 only — you'll receive an additional $100 gift card for every $100 gift card purchased on botoxcosmeticday.com.
Read more about Botox and other injectables:
Now, see a dermatologist's full beauty routine from day to night:
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