Preserving our youth is a concept that has been around since before our parents and grandparents were born. Smooth baby-bottom skin is desirable because it’s the opposite of insecurities from wrinkles, fine lines and sunspots. Today, technology and medicine have evolved anti-aging services.

There’s a newer movement. The pro-aging movement is about loving your body, gracefully aging, and appreciating that things change. It’s more popular now to hear this viewpoint than in the past. So let’s compare the two and how they differ. It will bring more clarity to those that aren’t sure what resonates with them.

Pro-aging movement

Pro-aging is a beautiful concept. It can bring peace and solidarity with yourself as you age. It’s natural to have anxiety about our appearance when we get older and our bodies' limitations. Today, you will notice many older women and men modeling on TV for beauty and makeup commercials. Here is what the philosophy is and is not.

What it is

The pro-aging movement is done with the challenging task of looking 16 years old forever. Instead, it’s about eliminating expensive and painful procedures with adverse long-term effects. This includes botox, surgeries, and other semi-permanent or permanent procedures. Instead of getting liposuction, you’ll find someone who is pro-aging, embracing their weight loss through exercise or other methods like saunas and a healthy diet.

Holistic and natural

Pro-aging can involve several holistic approaches that include more natural self-care. That’s why doctors or specialists can recommend getting or giving facial massages to yourself. This is why quartz facial rollers and Asian skincare has become such a big business.

Don’t forget protective sunscreen, to avoid getting wrinkles and fine lines, as much as possible. Sunspots start to occur from damaged skin. A good sunscreen and some reapplying can help prevent this.

What it is not

The pro-aging movement is not about avoiding self-care or beauty in general. You’ll find that people who are embracing this path support cosmetic companies because makeup and skincare products are a great approach. This is not as great for pharmaceutical companies that provide any procedure.

You’ll find them using powerful ingredients in their skin routine, such as retinoids, acids, and vitamins (Bs, C, D, and many more.) Multivitamins for women are a big part of this, like using Biotin for strong nails, hair, and clear skin.

Anti-aging movement

Having said that, don’t knock your head at the anti-aging movement. It is incredibly helpful for many women and men and has significant benefits. In addition, the anti-aging movement does include some procedures and therapies to help keep yourself looking and feeling great.

It’s desirable for a reason, as at least three million people get botox a year, according to The National Library of Medicine. It’s by far the most popular non-surgical procedure in anti-aging beauty offered. Also, the price of botox is lower than more intensive surgeries.

What it is

The similarity because the two approaches are that you will also find anti-ageists using makeup and some of the same products. But you will find them turning it up a notch. So, for example, instead of doing their eyebrows or lips shades daily, they may do it permanently or semi-permanently.

These are procedures like microblading and tattooing the shades of color on your lips, eyeliner, and much more. They are not pain-free and can be expensive. They also need retouches, which can also be said for botox.

These procedures are slightly more effective and efficient than if you were to apply the product every day. However, they have great results and truly can help preserve your youth.

What it is not

The not is pretty clear when it comes to the anti-aging community. They are open to doing a lot more procedures than someone who wants to age. This approach isn’t bad unless it hurts your mental and emotional health. However, because it’s not entirely affordable to everyone, we may find a client going to someone offering a lower price and less qualified. This is the downside.

The recommendation is always to take baby steps no matter how qualified your doctor is. Less is more, and you can always come back. You probably will!

Embrace yourself

Regardless of which route you find yourself going down, it is important to embrace yourself. If you feel guilty for going to anti-aging services, you will struggle to enjoy the beautiful work. It’s also critical to research and get recommendations if you choose this path. The worst thing you can do is get bad work done and regret it.

Pro-aging focuses on loving yourself. Enjoying the process is almost as important as loving the results. These results may not be powerful, but being happy with where you are is always fulfilling. Beauty is what you make of it, not someone else.