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A guide to maximizing your med spa consultation — what to bring, what to say, how to assess provider quality from the conversation, and how to avoid leaving with an unnecessary treatment plan.
· By MedSpot Editorial · 5 min read
A good med spa consultation is where the value gets created or lost. This guide is about how to approach it as an informed patient — what to prepare, how to evaluate what you're being told, and how to recognize the difference between a provider who's thinking about your face and one who's thinking about revenue.
Med spa consultations are more clinical than a day spa visit. Come prepared with:
Medical history relevant to aesthetics:
Knowing your previous filler history is critical. If you've had filler at other practices, you need to disclose this — the provider needs to know what's already present before adding more.
The most useful thing you can tell a provider is not "I want Botox" but rather:
"I'm bothered by _____ and I've been noticing it more when I see photos of myself."
Describe the concern, not the treatment. Let the provider tell you what treatments address it. This does two things:
If you say "I want my lips done" and the provider does your lips without ever asking why, examining your lip anatomy, or discussing your overall facial balance — that's a provider focused on execution, not assessment.
A quality provider will look at your whole face before recommending treatments for any individual area. This matters because:
Listen for whether the provider explains the relationship between areas. "Your nasolabial folds are partly caused by midface volume loss — if we restore the cheeks, the folds will improve without needing to inject them directly" is a sophisticated answer. "We can fill those folds" is a simpler one.
Recommending more than 2–3 treatments at a first visit A provider who recommends 6 treatments without knowing your goals, budget, or how you respond is pattern-matching to revenue, not to your face.
No discussion of what you already have If you have prior filler and the provider doesn't ask about it or assess what's there, that's a problem.
Pressure to book before leaving "We have a special only today" or "I can do you right now" are sales tactics, not clinical recommendations.
No discussion of downtime, risks, or alternatives Informed consent requires that you understand the risks and alternatives. A provider who skips this is either rushed or not concerned with your understanding.
Before/after photos that only show fresh results Fresh results (same day, 1 week) look different from healed results (2–4 weeks). Portfolios that only show fresh photos hide healing complications, settling, and swelling outcomes.
For any treatment:
For injectables specifically: 6. Are you seeing any filler already present that I should know about before we add more? 7. For Botox: based on my muscle strength and movement patterns, what dosing do you recommend?
For a new practice: 8. Who is the medical director, and are they accessible if I have a complication? 9. What device/product will you be using, and is it FDA-cleared for this indication?
Good signs in a consultation:
Worth being skeptical of:
It's completely appropriate to consult at more than one practice before booking a treatment. This is especially wise for:
Tell your second provider what the first recommended — their agreement or divergence is informative. If two experienced providers recommend the same treatment, your confidence in that recommendation is higher.
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