hey JA1, I am thinking of going with Green Cream for now...but would like to start at the level 6

How is your skin fairing on it? I will only be using it 2-3 times a week max

thanks

pinned.

crzyakta, It's defiantly a step up from the Level 3. My skin and pores are looking great BUT I have redness...noticeable redness.

I have been applying it everyday for at least 7 to 8 hours per day. I will continue to do so in hopes that my skin can adapt quickly. For now, I will work my schedule around it...cancel appointments ect.

Based on how you describe your skin, I think GC is what you're looking for. I can't say what Level you should start off with because I don't know how you react to retinols ect.

The GC site mentioned that most people can start with level 6 unless they have sensitive skin ect. My skin isn't sensitive at all and rather tough to be honest. I usually tolerate topicals known for being harsh quite well but something about Vitamin A topical get to me.

Years ago I was on Retin A for a long time and was always red from it.

thanks for the reply JA1, you mentioned "cancel appointments ect"

is it that severe? because I work 9-5 and goto grad school twice a week...my rolling redness wasnt that bad...but if i look burnt then its an issue

but you mention you use it daily...I will at most use it 3 times a week...so it might work out, will let you know

No, it's not that severe. It stands out is all. I have seen people give me double takes in the last few days.

The area around my nose in particular is more red than the rest of my face. It doesn't look natural...as if I'm treating my skin with something for something.....if that makes sense.

.

Thank you for the great post. There's a lot of useful stuff here.

Backstory:
I had TotalFX five months ago and it improved the appearance of my scars by quite a bit. I'd say 40-50%. I'm feeling really encouraged by the results and I now want to continue treating my scars. I've tried a lot of things in the past five years or so (dermabrasion, ACV method, Fraxel Re-store), so I told myself that if TotalFX didn't work, it would be the last thing I'd do to try to fix my scarring and I would give up. And I'm so happy that it DID work!! For the first time in so long I feel encouraged, like there is really hope for acne scar sufferers.

Recently, I've been reading a lot about dermarolling in articles and in the forums here. Before dermarolling, I had read about self-needling and was very squicked by it. I thought, "there's no way I could do that myself. I need someone else doing it for me." But when it's attached to a roller, it somehow seems doable. I don't feel so intimidated and afraid by it... Anyway, since this method seems to work in a very similar way to the TotalFX laser that I've had success with, I'm really interested in trying it out. It seems like it could give similar results at a much smaller price. I haven't bought anything yet, but I'm considering the 1mm or 1.5mm 3-line roller.

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I'm just wondering why it's okay to use a dermaroller every 6 weeks, but it's recommended to wait 6 months between laser treatments? I was under the impression that collagen built up slowly over the 6 month period, but it seems that those who use a dermaroller don't wait that long between treatments. I'm just wondering why that is.
I'm also a little confused about after treatment. Should I use a vitamin A cream, CP cream, or both?

Sorry for the long post and I wish everyone the best with their scar treatments!!

what do you guys think about using the 2.5 to 3 mm rollers for deep scars?Would those be too damaging/painful?

just a quick update on my use of Level 6 GreenCream. After a lil over a week of everyday use, my skin has adjusted to it.

The noticeable redness is gone with only a minor amount of pink tone to my skin. My skin in general looks great since using GC. The pores are significantly less noticeable and my overall skin tone is even and healthy looking.

I alternate through out the day between GC and Super CP Serum by Skin Biology ( something like 11 hours of each during a given day).

I will be moving up to Level 9 within about 1 week.

BTW, I just want to make this point again to anyone using GC, regardless if they are using it as part of a scar revision therapy or not. You will get immediate results if you combine using the GC with a small dermaroller ( something in the size of .15mm, .25mm or 0.5mm).

You will probably get results in days with a roller than you would have had in a month of applying it topically alone ( if not longer). The uptake/absorption is that much greater.

All the best

munsoned: Can you also add a "Buying Guide" to your original post, and recommend trusted eBay buyers, other retailers. There are so many, everybody gets confused on who to believe. I only have the Leaf and Rusher one

Thanks to everyone’s comments/thoughts I’ve read so
far. New to the forum and my first post. I have no
science background, just my trial and error stuff.

My scarring is left cheek mainly, I’ve had dermabrasion,
collagen injections, and chemical peels. I am soooo
thankful to see the info on rolling, which I’m gonna
start doing in a few days. On a scale of 1-10, my acne
scars are a “3” now.

Beta glucan has recently been touted as a collagen builder,
also with immune system enhancer. Here’s a really
good general article about it (just scroll half way down
for skin info)…. Also a good article about orally using
it for immune system. My understanding is that its
water soulable. All beta glucans are not created equal
(see below journal article).

www.youngagain.org/books/betaglucan.pdf

chaper 5 p. 27

the product I will use is made by “transfer point”

a study in this journal reflects its high quality:
p.25

I’ve been warming water a small amount of water in the
a.m. and rubbing some on my face. Its non acidic, and
can’t even tell its there.

For my skin I’m gonna use L-ascorbic acid, beta glucan,
and Green Cream (level 3 at first). Hopefully this combo
with rolling will add some collagen. Starting with a .5mm
Dr. Roller.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the acidity of our skin, which
is about a ph of 6 or 6.5. Blood, and I assume components, making
collagen are on the alkaline side at around 7.3 or so (somewhere
around there). Our outer skin is acidic for our protection.
In fact, just recently I’ve been using my water ionizer on the
acid setting after I shower to keep my skin’s ph on the acidic
side. Blood ph is a VERY narrow range. Once we puncture
our skin to me it makes sense (??) to match our bloods ph as
closely as possible with the nutrients we are putting on (“in”)
our skin. Last night I checked the ph of the L-ascorbic acid
I’m using on my skin, which is being absorbed (I assume).
The acorbic mixed with slightly alkaline water (ph 7.2) was
about 3.0 (1000 times more acidic than our skin). Tonight
I’m gonna mix the ascorbic with water at the highest ph level
(about 9.5-10) and see what the ph is of my solution is.

A link to possible collagan enhancers:

I’ve experimented a little with Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, its
a cousin to l-ascorbic acid, but not acidic. I think I’m gonna make
a real thick “paste” a few times just to see its effect (sleep with it).

I,m rambling so I’ll let yall go. The vitamin c I use actually melts
on contact into the water. Dissolves with out stirring, which leads
me to believe its easily absorbed. It acidic though.

Thanks so much for everyone’s help and thoughts. You’re the best.

INFECTION CONTROL WITH ROLLER

from



Heinz company spokesperson Michael Mullen references numerous studies to show that a straight 5 percent solution of vinegar—thekind you can buy in the supermarket—kills 99 percent of bacteria, 82 percent of mold, and 80 percent of germs (viruses). He noted that Heinz can’t claim on their packaging that vinegar is a disinfectant since the company has not registered it as a pesticide with the Environmental Protection Agency. However, it seems to be common knowledge in the industry that vinegar is powerfully antibacterial. Even the CBS news show “48 Hours” had a special years ago with Heloise reporting on tests from The Good Housekeeping Institute that showed this.


Also a nurse friend of mine told me they boil water, then add "distilled white vinegar" to
make a 50/50 ratio, and let the medical equipment soak for 30 minutes to disinfect.

TAKE NOTE HOWEVER, DO NOT USE HOT WATER ON YOUR ROLLERS! It's a big no-no, IIRC, it's noted in the dermaroller website / german blog or somewhere that it may loosen the needles or something.

Here's a YouTube video I've come across featuring Dr. Fernandes. He discusses the importance of Vitamin A and Vitamin C to the skin along with other information.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDaX1AWvsfQ

I dermarolled for the first time last night. Today my scars look worse/larger. I'm not sure if the scars actually look worse or if I'm just seeing puncture marks from the roller. ( I have rolling and ice pick scars)
Is this normal? I hope I haven't made them worse.

Hi,

How are you guys disinfecting your rollers? And how often?

Hey guys, can someone please tell me where I can purchase EMLA cream online? I have been searching and can't find anything. Thanks!

I'm like you, I've had laser treatment with some decent results. I'm also encouraged about improving my skin after many years spent thinking that it would never get better. I just started rolling and the way my skin reacted to my first roll reminded me a lot of how it looked after being lasered. So I'm hopeful and that in itself makes me feel good.

That's an interesting question. Anyone have an idea? Maybe it's bc there's a greater chance of pigmentation problems with lasers, I'm not sure.

Lamarr suggests using Terproline after rolling bc that's what his Dr. used. But I don't think they sell it in the USA. You might be able to buy the non-professional strength Terproline from UK amazon.com. I have read that others are using CP, I'm not sure what's best.




I think it's normal. Give it a few days and everything should be better.




I think you are supposed to soak it in alcohol and then let it air dry before putting it back in the container.

On the other hand, I believe I read somewhere on the board that Dr Chu is now only using the rollers once before discarding them due to health and safety reasons.

It's on ebay, but I haven't bought it yet so i don't know if those sellers are trustworthy.

After my first roll without any numbing, I am definitely going to look into emla cream. I wasn't able to go as hard as I wanted bc the pain got to me.

Has anyone else had any signs of scars worsening after dermaroller use? I used mine for the first time about 4 weeks ago, and I noticed that one scar filled in almost completely but there are other depressions now that weren't there before.

Anyone else have this issue?