By now you probably know that we use Botox for so much more than just those lines between your brows or those furrows in your forehead. One of the most common requests I get regarding Botox is for a 'brow lift'. And Botox can do just that. But sometimes a patient will come back ask for a little bit more Botox, so the brows will go even higher. And that's the myth!
Botox doesn't actually lift the eyebrows.
I know, I seem to be contradicting what I just wrote in the paragraph before this one. Yes, we use Botox to do brow lifts. But Botox doesn't actually lift the brows. Follow me here:
Botox works by stopping muscle movement.
Some muscles pull the eyebrows down (the orbicularis oculi and the corrugator muscles). Other muscles pull the eyebrows up (the frontalis muscles). These muscle groups work against each other. Botox can't make a muscle stronger, right? It can only make it (temporarily) weaker. So when we do a Botox brow lift, we put the Botox in the muscles that pull the eyebrows down. That lets the upward-pulling muscles do their job unopposed.
The Potential Problem 
Botox, then, will weaken the brow depressors, which allows the brow lifters to do their job without having to work against those depressors. But what if you don't have a strong lifter muscle (frontalis)--what if you frontalis muscles just aren't very powerful and can't pull your brows up much, even when unopposed?
Or what if your eyebrow position is so low that your lifter muscles (frontalis) just can't work hard enough to get them up where you want them?
Options
Adding more Botox won't fix either of those problems. And that's when a surgical browlift might be a good option for you.
Please don't read this and assume I don't LOVE a great Botox brow lift! I DO, very much, and I do it often! And I love that it's a great option for a lot of people. But every now and then it's good to revisit anatomy and explain how things work. It might also help you understand why I might mention a surgical option to you when you've "just come for Botox". Options are good to have and undertand.
To Your Health and Beauty!
Dr. K
