I’m Turning 40, and I Don’t Want to Age Naturally

I'm approaching 40 this year. On April 11, I'll be welcoming my fourth decade in this lifetime and honestly, when you phrase it like that, 40 sounds delightful. It feels like reaching level four in a 10-level video game. You're not even halfway there yet, but you're getting closer - and the closer you get, the more skilled, knowledgeable, confident, and accomplished you feel.

That's how I believe we should all look at aging. We need life experiences to truly understand who we are and what our purpose is, yet society continues to condition people - women especially - to fear aging past 25. How sad would life be if we knew we were only meant to live until 25? And yet, that's how we behave every time we panic about getting a year older instead of genuinely celebrating it.

The truth is, there isn't a single blueprint for how we're supposed to live our lives. We don't need to be married with children by a certain age. We don't need to hit specific career milestones or be making six figures by a certain point, either. We're individuals meant to live lives designed specifically for us - so we can find and fulfill our purpose during our time on Earth. That's what I genuinely believe, and it's why my soul isn't afraid of getting older. I'm not afraid of turning 40. In fact, I've been looking forward to it for the past year. I've already started making thoughtful tweaks to my health, fitness, and beauty routines - small but intentional changes that I believe will set me up beautifully for the next decade of my life.

But here's the thing: While I deeply respect women who choose to leave aging up to nature, that's not how I want to approach it. I plan to age with intention - prioritizing my health, fitness, and a dedicated beauty regimen that includes high-quality skin care, innovative at-home devices, supplements, and cosmetic treatments that help me age slowly and elegantly.

And while I still don't have a single fine line or wrinkle anywhere on my face, I've finally started thinking about preventative treatments I'd like to embrace this year, so my skin can stay healthy and radiant throughout my 40s.

As far as injections go, the only thing I do is Botox on my chin twice a year to relax an overactive muscle that used to cause me to scrunch it. And while I'm committed to that, I don't want injections anywhere else. Instead, I want something that actually improves my skin over time. So at the beginning of January, I got my first Softwave treatment at Aethos Spa on Fifth Avenue with my favorite aesthetician, Ewa Pietri.

If you haven't heard of Softwave yet, let me put you on to it. The treatment is one of the newest and buzziest skin-tightening procedures out right now - and celebrities like Khloé and Kim Kardashian swear by it. FDA-cleared in 2019 to treat the face, neck, submental area (the skin beneath the chin), arms, and abdomen, Softwave uses synchronous parallel ultrasound energy combined with heat to stimulate collagen and elastin production. The result is improved skin quality over time, which is why full results typically aren't visible until about three months post-treatment. My goal is to see my full results by my birthday in April - almost exactly three months after my Jan. 9 appointment.

The treatment costs around $2,500 per 45-minute session, but you only need to do it once a year to maintain results. I see it as a preventive measure - a way to start building what they call your "collagen bank." So I targeted the areas I want to preserve most: my jawline, submental area, cheeks, and the area around my mouth, where nasolabial folds - or "laugh lines" - tend to develop. While the results are very subtle immediately after the session, I did notice instant tightness around my jawline and submental area, along with a gentle lift in my cheeks. What fascinated me most was the ultrasound they performed before starting the treatment. The ultrasound checks the thickness of your dermis - the goal being to thicken it over time so your skin appears smoother, firmer, and more youthful.

Getting lymphatic drainage massages on my body also taught me the importance of doing them on my face, too. So for $116 a month, I became a Facegym member. After just one Signature Sculpt - which uses hands and pro tools to sculpt, lift, and reduce puffiness - I realized how much more defined, sculpted, and radiant my skin looks after a facial lymphatic drainage massage. These treatments don't just reduce puffiness and water retention; they also help reduce inflammation, which can contribute to acne, irritation, fine lines, and dullness.

I also plan to finally dive into microneedling with biostimulators and exosomes at least twice a year.

To be clear, I'm not chasing a "forever 35 face." Even as I approach 40, I still get mistaken for 30 - and in some settings, even my late 20s - but I don't see a surgical facelift or liposuction in my future. But is it really so wrong that I'd like to always look and feel five to 10 years younger than my actual chronological age? This is the body and face I was born with - and the body and face I'll live and age in, and I want to live a life where I genuinely love what's looking back at me in the mirror. That's the kind of self-love I choose to embrace.

From high-quality skin care and at-home facial devices to supplements, here are the beauty and wellness products I'm using to get my 2026 glow-up on track for my 40th birthday this April.