Some mothers spend thousands on plastic surgery to stop looking tired. Words Natasha Hughes

THINK muscle relaxation injections and you probably think corporate high-flyers or celebrities whose fortune relies on their faces, but it’s another type of woman who is responsible for the huge rise in demand for “non-surgical cosmetic procedures”. Ordinary, everyday mothers – the ones who do the school runs and maybe juggle a part-time job with home and family responsibilities – are wanting to reclaim what age and children have ravaged. And they are somehow finding the time and the money to do so, even if they’re not always telling their partners about it. “There’s the phenomenon of the mother who comes in and says, Just do what it takes,”‘ says Marilyn Cassetta, cosmetic nurse injector. “It’s about themselves, not about anyone else. They’ve gone through all the pregnancies, the breastfeeding and sleepless nights; the attention’s all been on the baby; they’re not feeling good and they think, What about me? And they’re doing something about it.” This includes immobilising frown lines and crows feet, defining lips, plumping facial folds and treating skin with chemical peels and laser treatments. Many mothers spend $1500 every four to six months to look their best.