205 replies to this topic

[DudleyDoRight]

Cherry, I am very pleased with Re:pair, it has changed my life. I am probably the oldest person on these forums so I have additional concerns, hence the Plastic Surgery. I endured an era when there were no effective acne scar treatments so now I am here basically to say to people "hey look, you are luckier than I was". I tend to get on people who think their life is over because of acne scars. Re:pair was the greatest advancement that I have seen in my lifetime. Understand that I use Re:pair to define all ablative fractionalized CO2 lasers much like people call facial tissues Kleenex. Re:pair is what I know and have experience with. My Re:pairs are listed in my signature, and they number 5. For reasons I don't pretend to understand Re:pair seems to be the most intense of the lasers. I have heard people say they only had the numbing cream, and there is no way that would have been enough for Re:pair at the level I am treated at. I am the poster boy for my Plastic Surgeon, and she now only charges me $800 a treatment.

[CherrySoda08]

Cherry, I am very pleased with Re:pair, it has changed my life. I am probably the oldest person on these forums so I have additional concerns, hence the Plastic Surgery. I endured an era when there were no effective acne scar treatments so now I am here basically to say to people "hey look, you are luckier than I was". I tend to get on people who think their life is over because of acne scars. Re:pair was the greatest advancement that I have seen in my lifetime. Understand that I use Re:pair to define all ablative fractionalized CO2 lasers much like people call facial tissues Kleenex. Re:pair is what I know and have experience with. My Re:pairs are listed in my signature, and they number 5. For reasons I don't pretend to understand Re:pair seems to be the most intense of the lasers. I have heard people say they only had the numbing cream, and there is no way that would have been enough for Re:pair at the level I am treated at. I am the poster boy for my Plastic Surgeon, and she now only charges me $800 a treatment.

I am very happy that you have found a treatment that you believe to have so beneficial for you, that it has changed your life. That is amazing!

I can most certainly see an improvement in the picture, and it gives me alot of encouragement to know that in my lifetime, there are treatments available. It makes me so incredibly grateful to be alive at this point in time when there have been such advancements in cosmetic procedures.

Now, if you don't mind my asking even more questions, and I know that you do not claim to be a dermatologist, but do you think my skin has the ability to overcome its scarring, with the use of Re:pair? Now, I know that I am not going to ever have perfect skin, but do you really think something like Re:pair will work for me? I have wondered about seeking treatments other than what my cosmetic derm has recommended for me, because she seems to think my scarring is quite shallow, to put it in her terms. I'm just wondering what sort of changes Re:pair would make for my skin. I see that it's made quite a big difference for you, and that's quite uplifting to me!

Thanks once again for your patience, and time. Hope to hear from you again.

Cherry

[DudleyDoRight]

Cherry, there is no question in my mind that scars on the cheek are the most difficult to treat, but with the proper course of treatments you will realize amazing results. Don't let anybody sell you on the "One and Done BS". I realized a 30% improvement with my 1st Re:pair, and that is were people make the huge mistake of stopping. The reaction from people you don't see often, especially women is amazing. A woman at work, who notices everything, asked me what I was doing. My ex-boss saw me in the snack bar and remarked I look so smooth. One guy at a retirement party asked why I keep getting younger and everybody else keeps getting older. I am not satisfied YET, but those type of comments are ego boosters. Should you go past 2 Re:pairs the changes from subsequent lasers are more subtle, but they are cumulative, and they sneak up on you after you think improvement has stopped. A quote from Dr. Michael Persky Plastic Surgeon from California posting on RealSelf.

" Fraxel re:pair works, and it works better than any other technology that I have been exposed to during my 25 years of facial cosmetic surgery experience."

[CherrySoda08]

DudleyDoRight ; Oh, wow! I'm so happy for you that you have had such success. And you'e right, comments like that really do help one's ego.

I really think it is about time for me to speak to a dermatologist about the Re:pair lasers. Gosh. I wish I had known about this stuff earlier. I have my Obagi peel scheduled on the 10th of next month, so I don't know what I should do now. Trust what my cosmetic derm says, and go in for the peel, or cancel the peel and look for a doc who performs Re:pair. Very confusing.

I submitted a few of my pics on Realself.com, asking for an opinion on what course of action I should take after having my punch floats and grafts done and hopefully I'll get a response from some of the doctors who contribute to the site.

That quote was very uplifting to read, as well. And if you have anymore contributing thoughts, I'd really appreciate it.

Cherry

[tonyocr]

Cherry, Re:pair is the only thing that has worked. Dermabrasion, Regular CO2 resurfacing can only go so deep, and cannot reach the bottom of the scar, and they are much more intense than any peel. I will probably go for a facelift later this year. RealSelf and MakeMeHeal have good forums. TheEssentialDaySpa, which is female oriented also has some good discussions on their forums. My greatest improvement with Re:pair was after my 2nd Re:pair.

Ok dudley I find this quite depressing. You have done 5 Fraxels REPAIR on your skin and your are STILL not satisfied???? I mean I can't even pay for 1 single repair they are so unbelievably expensive and you say you need MULTIPLE repairs?? And even if I could hope to pay for one, which I can't, I'd only get 30% improvement? 30% improvement on a hole is still a hole.O my god I think I'm gnna have to cry. I had no idea scars where this fucked up to treat..

What kind of scars did you have?
I also have a lot of scarred pores, did you have any improvement on those?

Edited by tonyocr, 24 June 2012 - 12:35 PM.

[*Inspired*]

Hey TokyoGirl,

Thanks for your input! I have to say that I am certainly appreciative of the respectful, informed responses of those who replied to my original post here on acne.org.

To answer your question; my cosmetic derm seems to think that only one Obagi mid-level Blue peel will do it for me.

Please keep in mind that I have already had about 4 sessions of punch excisions, and one session of punch grafts. Those sessions of punch exisions involved me getting, goodness, literally dozens of those little excisions. I probably have had, gosh, 40 on each cheek total. And my derm really did do a marvelous job on some of them. On some places on my face, you would not be able to tell that there was ever a scar.

When my cosmetic derm smooths back the skin on my cheeks, the scars get noticeably smoother, and from what she tells me, that is how my face will look after having this one peel done. To begin with, my right cheek was the one with the least amount of scarring. It definitely was scarred, of course, but the boxcars on it and ice picks were much more shallow. So, now when she smooths it out in the office, or when I do at home in front of the mirror, you can hardly see any scarring. It just looks like I have large pores now. Which is fine. I was never going to have small pores, anyway. I'm an oily-skinned girl, and I can deal with the big pores that go along with that.

Oh, and about the silicone injections, I just learned about them for the first time the other day. I didn't know if they were suitable for my type of scarring or not. To be honest, I just saw those pictures, and was extremely, extremely impressed.

If you have any contributing thoughts, I would certainly appreciate it.

Cherry,

I don't believe in peels for acne scarring. However, I understand why you might want to try it because your derm has given you such great results already.

Since just July 2011, I have done the following to treat my acne scars:
1. 3 TCA Peels 15% 20% 25% July 2011-August 2011
2. 5 microdermabrasion sessions Sept 2011-Oct 2011
3. 1 TCA Cross session - early Nov 2011
4. 1 Deep FX session - mid Feb 2012

I have only seen improvement to my scars from Deep FX. The improvement is noticeable, and continues to improve by the day. Oddly, I have noticed the most improvement to ice pick scars. With the exception of 2-3 scars, my ice pick scars on my right cheek are currently so shallow that I can't pick up most of them with a camera, even in bad lighting. I can see them in the mirror when I look closely. It looks like I have lots of small indents and enlarged pores. It's similar to your skin. I can almost accept the current state of my skin, except my left cheek has wider, deeper scars. Unfortunately, most of those were smaller pre-TCA Cross. They've shown the least improvement to Deep FX but they are also still improving.

Personally, I had to experience treatment in the above listed order to take the final step towards laser. I would be skeptical of any derm who claims your skin will be "perfect" because your skin is forever damaged. I'm not sure why your derm used that word, but perhaps, she was referring to your expectations for improvement and with your expectations in mind, she felt an obagi peel would be perfect. I don't personally feel you'll see much improvement, or at least, any improvement that will be permanent like fractional Co2 laser.

For me, I chose Deep FX because I trusted my derm's opinion. The laser is also a bit different from Fraxel. I only had my scars treated with the laser, so my healthy skin wasn't touched, at all. I liked the fact that the laser allows a physician to focus on each individual scar and treat each one with different parameters. I feel this was the right approach to my kind of scarring. Next, I am looking to take the same approach with laser again, but in addition to scar treatment, I am planning to add fractional non-ablative resurfacing to smooth the top layer of my skin. I believe Fraxel Re:pair (Dudley - correct me if I'm wrong) treats both layers at once with less individual focus on each scar's damaged tissue.

If you're seriously going to pursue laser, I wouldn't bother with a peel. It's a waste of time and money. However, if you want to give it a shot and believe your derm, then I can understand your reasoning. When it comes to resurfacing the skin, peels can't be controlled like a laser. An obagi peel is considered a deeper peel but it will not cause remodeling of scar tissue. It may make your skin look a little smoother for a period of time.

[DudleyDoRight]

Cherry, Re:pair is the only thing that has worked. Dermabrasion, Regular CO2 resurfacing can only go so deep, and cannot reach the bottom of the scar, and they are much more intense than any peel. I will probably go for a facelift later this year. RealSelf and MakeMeHeal have good forums. TheEssentialDaySpa, which is female oriented also has some good discussions on their forums. My greatest improvement with Re:pair was after my 2nd Re:pair.

Ok dudley I find this quite depressing. You have done 5 Fraxels REPAIR on your skin and your are STILL not satisfied???? I mean I can't even pay for 1 single repair they are so unbelievably expensive and you say you need MULTIPLE repairs?? And even if I could hope to pay for one, which I can't, I'd only get 30% improvement? 30% improvement on a hole is still a hole.O my god I think I'm gnna have to cry. I had no idea scars where this fucked up to treat..

What kind of scars did you have?
I also have a lot of scarred pores, did you have any improvement on those?

Tony, you really need to talk to a professional. You are so filled with doubt that you are just making it worse for yourself. It cost me $11,600 for all 5 of my Re:pairs, which is a lot less than you will pay for a car. What is more important to you? You are looking for that "One & Done Miracle Cure" that just does not exist. People are trying to help you, but you keep returning to the Pity Pot. If you can't afford it work a 2nd job, drive a clunker, get on a budget, you are wasting more money than you realize, get a roommate, just take action, and you will be suprised at what you can accomplish. The time for tears is long past. You are in a war, and acne scars are the enemy. I didn't have the weapons you have available when I was your age, but I never gave up. I am a warrior, and you need to become one also.

I never had to deal with scarred pores, I had rolling and boxcar scars, and I was a lot worse off than you. Re:pair drastically changed my life because I did not give up!

[*Inspired*]

Tony,

It's extremely rude to hijack someone else's thread like this.

[tonyocr]

Cherry, Re:pair is the only thing that has worked. Dermabrasion, Regular CO2 resurfacing can only go so deep, and cannot reach the bottom of the scar, and they are much more intense than any peel. I will probably go for a facelift later this year. RealSelf and MakeMeHeal have good forums. TheEssentialDaySpa, which is female oriented also has some good discussions on their forums. My greatest improvement with Re:pair was after my 2nd Re:pair.

Ok dudley I find this quite depressing. You have done 5 Fraxels REPAIR on your skin and your are STILL not satisfied???? I mean I can't even pay for 1 single repair they are so unbelievably expensive and you say you need MULTIPLE repairs?? And even if I could hope to pay for one, which I can't, I'd only get 30% improvement? 30% improvement on a hole is still a hole.O my god I think I'm gnna have to cry. I had no idea scars where this fucked up to treat..

What kind of scars did you have?
I also have a lot of scarred pores, did you have any improvement on those?

Tony, you really need to talk to a professional. You are so filled with doubt that you are just making it worse for yourself. It cost me $11,600 for all 5 of my Re:pairs, which is a lot less than you will pay for a car. What is more important to you? You are looking for that "One & Done Miracle Cure" that just does not exist. People are trying to help you, but you keep returning to the Pity Pot. If you can't afford it work a 2nd job, drive a clunker, get on a budget, you are wasting more money than you realize, get a roommate, just take action, and you will be suprised at what you can accomplish. The time for tears is long past. You are in a war, and acne scars are the enemy. I didn't have the weapons you have available when I was your age, but I never gave up. I am a warrior, and you need to become one also.

I never had to deal with scarred pores, I had rolling and boxcar scars, and I was a lot worse off than you. Re:pair drastically changed my life because I did not give up!

Edited by tonyocr, 24 June 2012 - 02:11 PM.

[DudleyDoRight]

Tony,

It's extremely rude to hijack someone else's thread like this.

Good point, I even forgot whose thread this was.

[tonyocr]

Tony,

It's extremely rude to hijack someone else's thread like this.

Good point, I even forgot whose thread this was.

Dear god you are right.That's the last thing I wanted. I'l just shut up now.Sorry.

[CherrySoda08]

Hey TokyoGirl,

Thanks for your input! I have to say that I am certainly appreciative of the respectful, informed responses of those who replied to my original post here on acne.org.

To answer your question; my cosmetic derm seems to think that only one Obagi mid-level Blue peel will do it for me.

Please keep in mind that I have already had about 4 sessions of punch excisions, and one session of punch grafts. Those sessions of punch exisions involved me getting, goodness, literally dozens of those little excisions. I probably have had, gosh, 40 on each cheek total. And my derm really did do a marvelous job on some of them. On some places on my face, you would not be able to tell that there was ever a scar.

When my cosmetic derm smooths back the skin on my cheeks, the scars get noticeably smoother, and from what she tells me, that is how my face will look after having this one peel done. To begin with, my right cheek was the one with the least amount of scarring. It definitely was scarred, of course, but the boxcars on it and ice picks were much more shallow. So, now when she smooths it out in the office, or when I do at home in front of the mirror, you can hardly see any scarring. It just looks like I have large pores now. Which is fine. I was never going to have small pores, anyway. I'm an oily-skinned girl, and I can deal with the big pores that go along with that.

Oh, and about the silicone injections, I just learned about them for the first time the other day. I didn't know if they were suitable for my type of scarring or not. To be honest, I just saw those pictures, and was extremely, extremely impressed.

If you have any contributing thoughts, I would certainly appreciate it.

Cherry,

I don't believe in peels for acne scarring. However, I understand why you might want to try it because your derm has given you such great results already.

Since just July 2011, I have done the following to treat my acne scars:
1. 3 TCA Peels 15% 20% 25% July 2011-August 2011
2. 5 microdermabrasion sessions Sept 2011-Oct 2011
3. 1 TCA Cross session - early Nov 2011
4. 1 Deep FX session - mid Feb 2012

I have only seen improvement to my scars from Deep FX. The improvement is noticeable, and continues to improve by the day. Oddly, I have noticed the most improvement to ice pick scars. With the exception of 2-3 scars, my ice pick scars on my right cheek are currently so shallow that I can't pick up most of them with a camera, even in bad lighting. I can see them in the mirror when I look closely. It looks like I have lots of small indents and enlarged pores. It's similar to your skin. I can almost accept the current state of my skin, except my left cheek has wider, deeper scars. Unfortunately, most of those were smaller pre-TCA Cross. They've shown the least improvement to Deep FX but they are also still improving.

Personally, I had to experience treatment in the above listed order to take the final step towards laser. I would be skeptical of any derm who claims your skin will be "perfect" because your skin is forever damaged. I'm not sure why your derm used that word, but perhaps, she was referring to your expectations for improvement and with your expectations in mind, she felt an obagi peel would be perfect. I don't personally feel you'll see much improvement, or at least, any improvement that will be permanent like fractional Co2 laser.

For me, I chose Deep FX because I trusted my derm's opinion. The laser is also a bit different from Fraxel. I only had my scars treated with the laser, so my healthy skin wasn't touched, at all. I liked the fact that the laser allows a physician to focus on each individual scar and treat each one with different parameters. I feel this was the right approach to my kind of scarring. Next, I am looking to take the same approach with laser again, but in addition to scar treatment, I am planning to add fractional non-ablative resurfacing to smooth the top layer of my skin. I believe Fraxel Re:pair (Dudley - correct me if I'm wrong) treats both layers at once with less individual focus on each scar's damaged tissue.

If you're seriously going to pursue laser, I wouldn't bother with a peel. It's a waste of time and money. However, if you want to give it a shot and believe your derm, then I can understand your reasoning. When it comes to resurfacing the skin, peels can't be controlled like a laser. An obagi peel is considered a deeper peel but it will not cause remodeling of scar tissue. It may make your skin look a little smoother for a period of time.

I'm really glad you were able to clear that issue up for me, TokyoGirl. I had actually wondered how long the results of a mid-level Obagi Blue peel would last, because I know they can't last forever. Isn't that why middle-aged ladies keep going back to get them every 4 to 5 years?

Well, that's rather frustrating, to say the least.

I did, in fact, ask my cosmetic derm how long the effects of the peel would last. Her reply to me was that as far as the aging aspect goes, about three years. And as far as smoothing back my scarring goes, the effects should last until I'm well into my 60's. Not to sound ignorant, or anything, but how is that possible?

Also, can I ask why you never decided to have any subscision, or punch floats, or grafts for your scarring? Did your derm not recommend that for you?

As always, I really appreciate your help, and any information you decide to pass along. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.

Cherry

[LZOMG]

From a scale from 1-10 how severe would you consider your acne scarring from the very beginning?
a 10 would be like Ernestio from a while back who got Re-cell done.

[CherrySoda08]

From a scale from 1-10 how severe would you consider your acne scarring from the very beginning?
a 10 would be like Ernestio from a while back who got Re-cell done.

If you're asking me, I would say from the very beginning I considered my scarring to be maybe a 5, or 5.5, if I can use .5's in my rating. I'm trying to keep it in perspective, because I know that compared to what others have had to endure on these forums, my scarring pales in comparison.

Why do you ask?

[DudleyDoRight]

TokyoGirl, your comment on icepick scars is encouraging because I wondered how laser effected them.

Cherry, the lesser your scars the shorter the treatment that is needed, but you still must treat at a high intensity or you prolong the treatment. I have no good before pictures so I use this YouTube video as an example of the depth of my scars in the beginning. Watch all of her videos, she is so upbeat that it is a joy to listen to her. Acne scars do not dappen her personality. She will probably need at least 4 Deep FX because she has youth on her side. From the link in Laser-Link-O-Rama you can see all of her videos plus the one on the Bern Triplets. http://www.acne.org/...er-link-o-rama/

Edited by DudleyDoRight, 24 June 2012 - 06:09 PM.

[LZOMG]

From a scale from 1-10 how severe would you consider your acne scarring from the very beginning?
a 10 would be like Ernestio from a while back who got Re-cell done.

If you're asking me, I would say from the very beginning I considered my scarring to be maybe a 5, or 5.5, if I can use .5's in my rating. I'm trying to keep it in perspective, because I know that compared to what others have had to endure on these forums, my scarring pales in comparison.

Why do you ask?

Lol i was asking Dudly
I give your scarring a 2/10

I managed to find this, she said she was getting a 2nd laser treatment and this is how her scars look today, I cant even see them.

[CherrySoda08]

From a scale from 1-10 how severe would you consider your acne scarring from the very beginning?
a 10 would be like Ernestio from a while back who got Re-cell done.

If you're asking me, I would say from the very beginning I considered my scarring to be maybe a 5, or 5.5, if I can use .5's in my rating. I'm trying to keep it in perspective, because I know that compared to what others have had to endure on these forums, my scarring pales in comparison.

Why do you ask?

Lol i was asking Dudly
I give your scarring a 2/10

I managed to find this, she said she was getting a 2nd laser treatment and this is how her scars look today, I cant even see them.

LZOMG- Oh, haha. Hey, 2/10 ain't bad! To be honest, my scars have come a long way from the way they used to look. I sort of wish I had a pic from before, but at the same time, I'm glad I don't have a close up pic from before. They were never like the young lady's from these videos, though. And she looks fantastic.

DudleyDoRight- She does have an amazing personality. Kind of makes me a little embarrassed of myself for getting as blue as I do sometimes about the scarring I have now. I'm really glad that you posted these videos of Dani, and I can't begin to thank you enough for taking the time you have to educate me on your experiences.

[DudleyDoRight]

LZOMG, I would put myself at a 7 in the beginning. I knew she had a website. I just never made it over there. She does look amazing, I will have to email her again and see if she remembers me. I got her to post here a long time ago.

Cherry, thank you, I try to be helpful. Did you watch the Bern Triplets yet? They have an amazing story.

Tony, I sure hope you watch all of her videos. Be positive man!!

Edited by DudleyDoRight, 24 June 2012 - 08:27 PM.

[LZOMG]

not a prob, the issue most teens like me have is how are you going to get about 2,000$ to pay for laser?
luckily for me thats how much i get from left over college scholarships every 6 months, just intime to get another teatment lol.
Im going to get 2-4 Deep FX's (over the course of 12 to 24 months) depending on how good the results are, with my first one this December. Ill keep you guys updated.

[CherrySoda08]

not a prob, the issue most teens like me have is how are you going to get about 2,000$ to pay for laser?
luckily for me thats how much i get from left over college scholarships every 6 months, just intime to get another teatment lol.
Im going to get 2-4 Deep FX's (over the course of 12 to 24 months) depending on how good the results are, with my first one this December. Ill keep you guys updated.

Please do keep us updated. I love hearing success stories. You sound like you've definitely done your research. Best of luck!