TrapTox has changed my life — my shoulders never looked better
In March, Los Angeles-based beauty influencer Lucelys Alvarez noticed she that she carried the lingering stress of the pandemic — coupled with living over 3,000 miles away from her family in the Dominican Republic and grieving the death of her great-aunt — in her shoulders.
The yearslong tension buildup had manifested in her trapezius — the superficial, trapezoid-shaped muscle that spans the upper back, shoulders and neck — causing large bulges to appear along her neckline.
Alvarez first spotted the unsightly masses, which she sarcastically nicknamed “my hunchback,” after seeing a candid picture of herself in an off-the-shoulder top.
“I saw that photo and thought, ‘Whoa, my traps are wild,'” Alvarez, 29, told The Post. “I began worrying, ‘How long have I looked this way? Have people noticed and just never said anything out of kindness?'”
So, she turned to Botox — more specifically, TrapTox.
For $960, Alvarez had 80 units of the drug — which is derived from the same toxin that causes botulism and is often used to treat facial wrinkles — injected into her traps at Le Jolie Medi Spa in West Hollywood on May 18. She booked the procedure through Upkeep, an app that assists beauty-enhancement enthusiasts in finding cosmetic specialists who suit their aesthetic needs.
Almost immediately after her appointment, Alvarez noticed a big improvement both in how she looked and in how she felt.
“[It] helped relieve tension in my shoulders,” said Alvarez, who suffered from headaches before getting the procedure. “It’s given me better posture, and it makes me look and feel more confident about myself.”
TrapTox has been around for roughly a decade and has roots in Korean culture, but doctors say it’s been trending as people get back out there post-pandemic and want to look lean and elegant in the neck and shoulders, not bulky and bunched up. On TikTok, #TrapTox has over over 463,000 views.
Lara Devgan, a board-verified plastic surgeon based in the Upper East Side, has noticed an uptick in requests for the procedure — which typically takes less than 20 minutes, is virtually painless and costs between $500 and upward of $5,000 — of late.
“Trapezius muscle Botox can be used for both functional and cosmetic reasons,” she said. “It’s great for relieving tension, improving posture and giving people an elongated, swanlike neck.”
But it’s not a one and done fix. Ideally, a patient gets it done several times a year.
“Doing it every three months can create this muscle atrophy that will create this beautifully aesthetic outcome,” said Devgan.
Devgan, who had the procedure herself in 2020, added that it’s imperative folks practice good posture — sitting up straight, walking upright and resisting the urge to hunch their shoulders — after getting pricked to avoid rebuilding the muscle in a bulky fashion.
Sarah Allison, 32 and a lifestyle influencer, told The Post that a “beautiful long neck” wasn’t the only benefit she gained after undergoing TrapTox in May. Like Alvarez, she booked her appointment for the jabs via Upkeep.
“It’s also helped flatten my abs,” said Allison, from Malibu.
“When your shoulders are hunched forward, it puts your abdominals in a weird position [and accentuates your belly fat],” she added. “But now that my shoulders have opened up since getting the Botox, my abdominal muscles are stronger and in the correct position.”
OnlyFans model Lexi Gage said she’s had a “huge confidence boost” since getting the procedure in March, at a cost of $1,200.
“[It] has helped me feel so much more comfortable in my own skin,” said the 21-year-old from South Carolina.
But, the procedure comes with some minor risks.
“Patients may experience weakness in shrugging, neck extension and turning,” Rachel Ho, an aesthetic physician based in Singapore who’s administered TrapTox shots for several years, told The Post. “There is also a risk of injection related side effects like transient swelling and soreness.”
But, Alvarez has no regrets and says getting TrapTox was one the best decisions of her life — especially with summer on the horizon.
“I’m so excited to wear all the strapless and off-the-shoulder dresses and tops.”
