1870 replies to this topic

[chi-town37]

sup all? well after reading about smoothbeam laser I made an appointment with a derm who offers it. he's charging me 300 dollars per treatment (whole face) and im doing a total of six treatments. as of right now im suffering with an oily face, the occasional breakout, scars and some redmarks. I know my face wont look 100% but as long as SB revives my face after all the years of BP etc i'll be happy. my first SB treatment is next thursday 7/19. i've read some mix reviews on here but everyone is different and im hoping since I have mostly shallow scars SB will do it's thing. if SB helps with the oil (reason why I think I breakout) on my face and helps reduce my shallow scars i'll be a happy camper.

im getting tired of putting on tropicals which I think leads to more breakouts in new spots rather it be from over drying etc...luckily my derm has a payment plan which I can go up to 12 months with no interest. the real reason why I chose SB was because of the fact I have an oily face and it shrinks your oil glands which in return causes less breakouts. so im pulling for something good and I understand that it can take a while before the collagen fully grows etc...nothing happens overnight. if I think SB did its thing, i'll continue to get treatments maybe 2-3 times a year.

[heidi07]

what are the possible side-effects of smoothbeam done at lvl 13 or 14?

[chi-town37]

not sure but by reading this thread I would imagine blistering?

[heidi07]

not sure but by reading this thread I would imagine blistering?

can blistering result in scarring?

i would love to try smoothbeam, but only if it's done at a high setting. ive read through this forum and came to the conclusion that anything less than a 13 would be a waste of money. i actually want to start at 14 if possible.

btw im going for partial treatment (cheeks) for the scarred pores and couple ice picks

[heidi07]

btw how often would i go in for a treatment..once a month?

[chicagonick]

i dont think you should focus soo much on what setting its on. and instead find a doctor who has more experience treating scars.

i used google to find a doctor whos website showed some focus on treating acne scars. made an appointment with him and he did two tiny test patches (1 acid, 1 smoothbeam) to see which treatment would work best for me.

[chi-town37]

yeah I agree with the above poster, I did the same for my current derm (searched google) and found his website along with some pics of his actual treatments. when I was scheduling my appointment with one of his nurses she told me depending on which day I pick either the derm will do the smoothbeam or his nurse. I asked which is a better option and she told me that the nurse has done alot more than the doctor but either are just as good. some derm's may use a higher power rating but might not do the correct procedure and it may be harsh on your face. I would say just try finding a good derm who offers smoothbeam, talk with them and ask for pictures etc...the place I go to now has two derm's who are father and son with 3 different locations.

the internet is a wonderful thing, use google to search for derm's who offer smoothbeam in your area. some may have websites (like mine does) http://lakeviewderm.com/ and will have lots of information about them on it. good luck

[heidi07]

ive tried googling and there is one doc who offers smoothbeam, but i can't find much info about him except at his website (which ins't very informative). i tried searching him at this forum, and no one has mentioned his name here. dr. sire is in my area and i know he has been mentioned here several times, but he does not offer smoothbeam. i want to go to a well-established derm..maybe i should broaden my search area bc im having a difficult time finding one

[chi-town37]

well yeah the area you live in will def give you more/less results. I live in the city or chicago so it's not really hard finding anything here...best of luck to you though, hope you find one that you can count on.

[ciro]

Smoothbeam absolutely SUCKS! Don't get your hopes up. This laser is what clearasil is to pimples, it absolutely does nothing! Retin-a flattens your scars way more than smoothbeam. Save your money people even if youre getting a deal it ain't worth it.

[heidi07]

^what about those who received good results and shared their experiences here?

[chicagonick]

have you tried local universities? here in chicago a few universities have medical centers/hospitals which of course are broken down to different areas of specialty... often some of the best doctors in the area might be at the university medical center. call around and make appointments to speak with the doctors who catch your interest. most will consult with you for free or only charge you the copay.

[chi-town37]

I really think getting smoothbeam treatment in chicago is a big plus just for the simple fact chicago is well known for some of the best doctors, hospitals and treatments in the United States. example being we we have the best children's hospital and cancer treatment centers. I think the results has alot to do with the person doing it. speaking of which im going in for my first smoothbeam treatment today at 3:15pm. they want me to apply the numbing creme 3 times (half hour apart) before I step into his office. hopefully it isn't too painful with all that numbing creme on. anyways ill post back once I get back from my derm today and let you guys know whats up.

although my derm said smoothbeam is perfect for the type of scars I have im also thrilled because one of my main concerns was an oily face. im going for the full 6 treatments by the way. I have a piece of paper with a bunch of questions I wrote down to ask while im there also. the more info you know the better

[chi-town37]

ok so I just got back from my first smoothbeam treatment. the pain was tolerable and wasn't nothing like I was expecting so it should make my second visit alot more easier. they took pics of my face because he says they do a before and after shot. the power setting he used was 13.5 and did 250 pulses or whatever its called on my entire face (more on the right side of my face because of the scarring being worse than the left). my face had a bunch of red spots from the treatment but dissapeared by the time I got home. my face is just a little red and so far everything seems to be ok. i'll post in a couple days to give you guys some more feedback.

oh yeah the head of laser said 6mm, I remember reading something about the sizes of the heads they used.

[heidi07]

^
YAY! pls let us know how the treatments work out for you

[chicagonick]

i think chi-town forgot to update us

[chi-town37]

i think chi-town forgot to update us

I didn't forget! i've been washing my face only once a day (at night), spot treating with the benzaclin and applying the kick ass moisturizer I bought from my derm's office and my skin has been looking alot better. alot less breakouts although I don't know if its from the smoothbeam or the once a day washing but im loving it so far. to be honest I think its once a day washing that has def helped me out...if I do get a breakout its a very small zit which goes away within 1-2 days with the benzaclin. as for the smoothbeam it looks like its starting to help with the scars, some look not as deep as before and this is after only one treatment. so overall im pretty happy for now, i'll keep updating. one thing that I think was causing more breakouts was the fact I was washing my face two times a day and applying too much crappy moisturizer that irritated my face (I felt a burning sensation). I think I was ripping my face of the natural oil and just applying all these chemicals to my face causing irritation without letting the treatment actually work. so this is why im thinking me cutting down on only washing at night as helped a lot.

for those who are looking for a kick ass moisturizer http://www.greatskin.com/detail/DC-131.html is what I bought from me derm's office. its more of a gel type, goes on nice and smooth and doesnt leave an oily face...im glad I bought this stuff.

oh yeah so far im having alot of confidence in my current derm, for those who are looking for a good derm try steven mandrea (773)281-9200. they have 3 locations but the one I go to is at 3000 N Halsted. it's him and his father who run all 3 offices.

edit: the power ratings that my derm used was 13.5 and he sent 250 pulses to my entire face. my next appointment is august 18th which his nurse is going to do the treatment so I can get in and out fast unlike the first trip I waited forever since he had to go from room to room seeing his patients. he told me the nurse actually preforms the smoothbeam alot more than him and she does an excellent job. im just going to make sure when I get into the room the machine says 13.5 like it did the first time. I like the fact that they use a higher power rating and causes no harm to my face after the treatment. this is why having the right people doing the job means so much. I think this may be a reason why some may not get good results with smoothbeam, you need the right person doing the procedure.

[ylem]

Smoothbeam absolutely SUCKS! Don't get your hopes up. This laser is what clearasil is to pimples, it absolutely does nothing! Retin-a flattens your scars way more than smoothbeam. Save your money people even if youre getting a deal it ain't worth it.

I agree. It did nothing for my active acne or depressed scarring, even after 10 treatements. I lost so much money several years back when I had this done.

For those of you who think you see improvement after the first treatment, it is largely due to a thing called 'microswelling' You'll learn a lot about this phenomena as you progress in your different treatments. Took me a long time to learn about it. It gives you that illusion of imrpoevemnt, but usually subsides within a couple of months. You must give every treatment several sessions and at least 6 months to judge true results. GOOD LUCK!

[chi-town37]

Smoothbeam absolutely SUCKS! Don't get your hopes up. This laser is what clearasil is to pimples, it absolutely does nothing! Retin-a flattens your scars way more than smoothbeam. Save your money people even if youre getting a deal it ain't worth it.

I agree. It did nothing for my active acne or depressed scarring, even after 10 treatements. I lost so much money several years back when I had this done.

how old were you when you had it done? i've heard the older you are the harder it is to get results or the results YOU'RE looking for but I may be wrong, im 22 years old...smoothbeam will only work on mild acne. I had a little zit on my chin which he zapped and it went down the next day. to be honest just after one treatment I think im starting to see some results. scars are starting to look more even and are blending in. I can't wait for my 2nd treatment, anxious to see how much my face improves.

you're right about the microswelling though, my mother just told me today that my face looks more puffier, I plan on getting 6 treatments by the way.

[ylem]

Smoothbeam absolutely SUCKS! Don't get your hopes up. This laser is what clearasil is to pimples, it absolutely does nothing! Retin-a flattens your scars way more than smoothbeam. Save your money people even if youre getting a deal it ain't worth it.

I agree. It did nothing for my active acne or depressed scarring, even after 10 treatements. I lost so much money several years back when I had this done.

how old were you when you had it done? i've heard the older you are the harder it is to get results or the results YOU'RE looking for but I may be wrong, im 22 years old...smoothbeam will only work on mild acne. I had a little zit on my chin which he zapped and it went down the next day. to be honest just after one treatment I think im starting to see some results. scars are starting to look more even and are blending in. I can't wait for my 2nd treatment, anxious to see how much my face improves.

you're right about the microswelling though, my mother just told me today that my face looks more puffier, I plan on getting 6 treatments by the way.

I was 20 when I had it done and threw my money away. Age has nothing to do with it. TRUST ME! You have microswelling right now.