You got engaged!!! How to look your best on your wedding day.

Congratulations on your engagement!  Now is the time to start preparing to look and feel your very best on the most special day of your life.  Hundreds of pictures and videos will document your joy, along with your face and body, for decades to come, so it's worthwhile to make sure you are picture-ready.

The most important thing to start right now is a healthy lifestyle, to achieve beauty that starts within and will be an investment in your future.  Minimize alcohol, optimize sleep (7-9 hrs), exercise every day, and of course, drink your water (about 64 oz).  Any weight loss program should plan to achieve weight stability by at least 4-6 months before the big day, since dress shopping and fittings need to happen well before the wedding.

Your face will appear in most of the pictures and may be featured close up, so your facial complexion and skin need to be flawless.  While a facial a couple days before the wedding can improve your appearance, we reccommend seeking the advice of a professional aesthetician 6 months prior to the wedding to optimize your skin care regimen (including sun screen!).  The best option is to see an aesthetic provider (a doctor, NP or PA) who can discuss more in-depth treatment options such as laser skin rejuvenation, photofacials and peels as well as fillers and wrinkle relaxation with neuromodulators (like Botox).  Depending on your age and natural attributes you may not need much of anything done, but it is important to know what the options are for getting your face as close to perfection as possible.

Laser treatments for your face often come in sets of 3 monthly treatments which should be completed 2-3 months prior to the wedding for optimal results.  Fillers also have optimal results 1-3 months after the treatment (depending on the type of filler and location treated), and you definitely need to leave at least 3-4 full weeks to heal any bruising (6 weeks is better in case you need more filler at your follow up).  Botox or Xeomin ("tox") also are best well ahead of the wedding day (4-6 weeks to allow touch up treatment at the 2 week follow up) but need to be done within 90 days to avoid any wearing off of the effect.  Tox is a cost-effective way to relax your frown and squint lines and make your smile appear more relaxed in your photos. 

You should also have your hair and make-up done exactly like you want for your wedding look at least a week ahead of time to see how much time is required and to be sure you like it.  If you love it, put on your wedding gown (carefully!) or another favorite outfit and have a friend take some low-stress close-up phone photos to compliment the formal wedding pics.  If you don't like the final look, or it took a ton more time than you thought it would, you still have time to fix it. 

So you now have a game plan for your face, but what about that dress which highlights your arms and hugs your tummy?  Yes, eat right and exercise, but also think about enhancing your hard work with EMSCULPT NEO which can tone your arms, flatten your tummy or lift your bottom in just 4 pain-free sessions of 30 minutes.

Last, but definitely not least, comes the Honeymoon.  Let's not neglect the pelvic floor, which not only allows you to control urination, but is the location of the muscles that contract during orgasm.  The Emsella device provides the equivalent of 11,000 Kegel contractions during a 28 minutes session, fully clothed!  We recommend 6 treatments over 3 weeks, a month or two before the Honeymoon.

Again, congratulations!  We look forward to helping you reveal your best self!

Author

Rachel Chastanet MD Dr. Chastanet is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine. She practices at Chesapeake Weight Loss & Aesthetics in Chesapeake, VA.