Botox Before and After: What Honest Results Look Like
Dr. Jong Seon Kim · Director, Gangnam HERA4 min read
On this page
I'm Dr. Jong Seon Kim, a plastic surgeon at Gangnam HERA in Seoul and a board member of the International Petit Medical Society. "Can I see before and after photos?" is the single most common message we receive. It is a fair question — and also the one most often misread. Let me explain what those photos actually tell you.
When do botox before-and-after changes actually appear?
Movement begins to soften at three to seven days, and the result peaks at about two weeks. Anyone showing you a dramatic "after" taken the same day is showing you swelling, not botox. That is the first thing to check when you look at any before-and-after set: how long after treatment was the photo taken?
What a good before-and-after actually shows
- Same angle, same lighting, same expression. A softer-looking forehead under flatter light is a photograph, not a result.
- Movement, not stillness. Botox changes how a face moves. A still photo at rest hides the very thing being treated.
- The whole face. A cropped forehead tells you nothing about whether the brow dropped.
You can see the case records from treatments performed here in our patient case gallery, filterable by treatment.
Who it suits — and who it doesn't
Botox works on lines caused by movement — forehead, frown, crow's feet — and on muscle bulk such as the masseter or calf. It does not fill volume loss and it does not lift sagging skin. If your photographs show hollowing or laxity rather than movement lines, I will point you toward filler or lifting instead, and say so plainly.
What we do in the room
At HERA, botox is physician-injected. Which product, how many units, and which points are clinical decisions made after I watch your face move — not a fixed menu. We follow a genuine-product protocol with opening, serial and record handling, so you can verify what was used on you.
Why two people with the same units look different
Units are not a dose in the way patients imagine. The same number placed in two faces produces different photographs because muscle mass, muscle strength, skin thickness and how deeply the lines are already etched all differ. A strong frown muscle needs more product to soften than a weak one; a line that has been folding for fifteen years has a skin component that no amount of botox reaches.
This is why I am wary of anyone quoting you units before seeing your face move. The number follows the assessment, not the other way around.
Static lines versus dynamic lines
Look at your face at rest in a mirror. Now frown. If the line only appears when you frown, it is dynamic and botox addresses it well. If the line is visible at rest too, part of it is etched into the skin and botox will soften but not erase it — that residual part needs resurfacing, boosters or filler depending on depth.
Patients who understand this distinction before treatment are never disappointed by their two-week photograph. Patients who do not are the ones who ask for more units chasing a line that was never a muscle problem.
What patients ask me next
- "Will my face look frozen?" Not if we treat the muscles that need it and leave the ones that do not. Frozen is an outcome of over-treatment, not of botox itself.
- "What if I don't like it?" It wears off. That is genuinely reassuring and it is why I prefer to start conservatively on a first visit.
- "Can I combine it with other treatments on the same trip?" Usually yes, and we sequence them so downtime lines up with your travel dates.
The honest limits
Results are temporary and are maintained, not finished. The degree of change varies between individuals — the same units in two people do not produce the same photograph. And the most common cause of an unnatural result is not the product but over-treatment. I would rather do less and have you come back than freeze a face you have to live with for months.
The clinical detail of the procedure — who it suits, how a session runs, recovery and the honest limits — is set out on our Botox page.
Book a consultation
If you would like me to look at your case, send us a message and we will arrange a consultation — in person in Gangnam, or by photo first if you are still abroad. An English interpreter joins every consultation, and you receive an itemised written estimate before anything begins. International and local patients pay exactly the same.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1When will I see botox before-and-after changes?
Movement begins to soften at three to seven days and the result peaks at about two weeks. A dramatic change photographed on the day of treatment is swelling, not botox.Q2How long do botox results last?
Results are temporary and maintained rather than permanent. The interval differs by person and by treated area, and I will give you a realistic one for your case at the consultation.Q3Why do before-and-after photos look so different between clinics?
Angle, lighting and expression change a photograph more than most treatments do. Look for the same angle, the same lighting, the whole face in frame, and an interval stated in days.Q4Will botox fix sagging skin?
No. Botox works on movement lines and muscle bulk. It does not fill lost volume or lift lax skin — those need filler or lifting, and I will say so if that is what your face actually shows.Q5Can I see real cases from HERA?
Yes. Our patient case gallery holds before-and-after records from treatments performed at HERA, filterable by treatment type.
Real stories
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On YouTube
Hear it from the doctors before you fly
Our doctors explain HERA's main treatments, lifting, filler and skin boosters, on camera, so you know who you are meeting and how they think before you land in Seoul.
Korean audio · auto-translated captions available on YouTube
16 videos
- 6:24Filler
Dr. Kim and Dr. Lee sort out how fillers, collagen injections and skin boosters differ, and which concern each one is for.
Dr. Jong · Dr. Jong - 7:36Clinic & doctors
HERA podcast ep. 3 — Dr. Kim and Dr. Lee look at the same face and explain the treatments they would choose, and why.
Dr. Jong · Dr. Jong - 8:07Lifting
What APTOS threads are, who they are recommended for, and a real patient's treatment and before-and-after.
Dr. Jong - 5:44Lifting
How APTOS compares with other lifting threads, what recovery is like and how long results last.
Dr. Jong · Dr. Jong - 4:20Filler
Dr. Kim shows how injection technique changes with the amount of filler, and how filler dissolves.
Dr. Jong - 5:50Filler
What a hollow upper eyelid is, filler vs fat grafting, how long it lasts and what to watch for.
Dr. Jong - 5:20Filler
Dr. Kim breaks down lip proportion, volume and mouth corners using well-known Korean celebrities' lips as examples.
Dr. Jong - 5:39Skin & boosters
Hydration, pores, breakouts or tone — matching the skin booster to what your skin actually needs.
Dr. Jong - 6:05Skin & boosters
Dr. Lee explains how Lituo and CaHA work, how they are injected and how often.
Dr. Jong - 5:00Skin & boosters
What Juvelook Eye is, what it is used for, how many sessions it takes and how long it lasts.
Dr. Jong - 5:56Lifting
Why lines form around the eyes, which treatments are combined, and Eye Thermage vs Eye Ulthera.
Dr. Jong - 4:58Lifting
Why Dr. Lee cares about lifting, and what he looks at first when he sees a patient.
Dr. Jong - 3:30Clinic & doctors
Dr. Han talks about what matters most in a consultation and the approach behind every treatment.
Dr. Jin - 5:29Skin & boosters
A tour of HERA's main devices and which skin concern — pores, texture or firmness — each one helps with.
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Three areas brides care about, recommended treatments, and what still works with a month to go.
Dr. Jong · Dr. Jong - 4:39Clinic & doctors
What an AI skin scan measures — wrinkles, pigment, firmness, pores — and why a doctor's consultation still matters.
Dr. Jong · Dr. Jong
Shorts
One question, under a minute
HERA TV
The doctors explain it on camera — then in writing
Each piece is written by the doctor from their own YouTube video: the patient question, why it happens and how we approach it.
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Dr. Jong Seon Kim6 min read
5:14non surgical body contouring koreaNon-Surgical Body Contouring in Korea: Injections Plus Devices
How Gangnam HERA combines the Sok-Sok fat-dissolving injection with body-tightening devices for stubborn arm, belly and thigh fat — how the injection works, what recovery really looks like, and why your own effort still matters.
Dr. Jong Seon Kim6 min read
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Is PLLA a filler? Two Gangnam HERA doctors sort out the three injectable families that confuse most patients — filler, collagen boosters and skin boosters — and how to combine them by area.
Dr. Jong Seon Kim7 min read
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Find Gangnam HERA
In Seocho-gu, Seoul, a three-minute walk from Gangnam Station Exit 9. Tap the map for directions.
Address
4F, 9 Seocho-daero 73-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Opening Hours
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday: 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM; Monday, Friday: 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM; Saturday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; Lunch break: 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM; Closed on Sundays and public holidays
