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hey guys,my 7% iodine (unfortunately i didn't get the 5%) and my betadine arrived today in the post. just when i woke up. I will be sparing with it. I've applied the iodine to 11 indented scars (some are still healing post cross/subcision) which i did at home. I guess you can all them boxcars. They are stinging a bit at the moment, kind of like when you put salt in a wound - not painful, just noticeable.
I also feel a tad unwell in the gut, I'm not too sure if its the iodine or since i haven't had breakfast yet. Ive drunken a litre of water (just in case its the iodine) to try and stop it. It seems to be helping. Is this normal?
i havent experienced any illness or pain in my stomach, but we dont really have much to base anything on do we lol. so ive absolutely no idea. i can only speak from personal experience and i havent had any stomach problems.
i decided not to use lugols last night as the area was extremely sore. i think i will put it on tonight though.
hows everyone else doing? any updates?
Iodine actually was used as an antibacterial agent and skin disinfectant through much of the 19 and 20th centuries, problem is like H202 it impairs cells involved in wound healing which is why specialized formulations were created which are used for things like staph infections (although bacteriophages will replace that soon). If Lugol's could regenerate scar tissue into normal skin then if it were applied to a wound it should prevent scar tissue formation altogether. That would be a simple clinical trial that should be done. Lugol's also contains potassium iodide which is used on its own to flatten (not regenerate) keloids and hypertrophic scars, suggesting it works from the top down. I doubt Lugol's can regenerate scars into skin but I hope it will. Best of luch to those giving it a go.
BTW: Denatured alcohol will remove iodine stains.
Hi All,
I am continuing with the Lugol's treatment. It has been about 4 weeks since I started. I have been applying it nightly before bed although I have not been really diligent about it (I miss a night here and there).
I have noticed that my skin texture looks a lot better. I have large areas of hypopigmented (uneven) scarring on both cheeks. My left cheek definitely seems to be responding. The white area looks smaller and smoother. I probably should have taken before pics so I could have some reference to document any changes but I did not. I do not see much change in the white area on my right cheek but, as I mentioned, the skin texture is a lot better and looks semi-decent when covered with makeup.
The only problem I have encountered so far as a result of the Lugol's is the drying of my skin. After reading in an earlier post that this is a sign of regeneration, I am more than happy to make this sacrifice. 
Anyway, it has only been 4 weeks since I began this journey and I do see something/changes happening so I am definitely going forward with it.
Please keep the updates coming. We are all in this together.
C.
Hello everyone (again).
I have been getting lazy about keeping my test areas iodined. I intend to get back at it consistently.
I do think there is some effect from this stuff but it seems VERY slow. I think I could do this for many months before my scar looked really visibly improved.
I have also been trying the stuff on an area of thinning scalp hair from male pattern baldness. I think it seems to be sprouting some very tiny hairs but I could be wrong about that. (For those of you with baldness problems reading this, please DO NOT read much into what I'm saying here. There are numerous things that cause a slight bit of hair regeneration, for example a good hard dermabrasion. But these cases generally don't work to continually improve the area again on the 2nd & 3rd and further attempts after the initial slight gain is made.) I will continue to apply it to the scalp area but I am dubious about whether it's a real gain here.
Needling sounds like a good idea to try on iodine test areas. Even dermabrasion or chemical peeling might be stronger although I think I would start with needling before moving up to something that powerful.
The fact that iodine might interefere with some aspect of skin healing does not concern me; it's an aspect of skin healing that gave us the scarring in the first place.
I will not worry about any real damage from wound healing unless someone produces any stories about iodine actually doing that. So far all the stories I have come across are either indifferent or positive about the effects of iodine on wounds.
cartwheeling_monkey,
I was getting a bit excited, till I saw dermarolling. Are you sure it's not microswelling, I have seen it first hand how unbelieavable results can be, but it goes down aferwards. Specially since you say in only five days, lugol's is suppose to take a long time. So I hope you can elaborate on that, really hope you are right though.
cartwheeling_monkey,I was getting a bit excited, till I saw dermarolling. Are you sure it's not microswelling, I have seen it first hand how unbelieavable results can be, but it goes down aferwards. Specially since you say in only five days, lugol's is suppose to take a long time. So I hope you can elaborate on that, really hope you are right though.
heya,
I thought exactly the same thing - especially since ive been needling for a while now and have begun to recognise how swelling looks. im getting a few indications though that this is a little different.
i've needled in the past and to be honest my results have been pretty minimal. excessively red skin, followed by at least a week or two of larger scars than before. i never seem to scab and to be honest was pretty upset id made it worse. seeing the positive results of others made me keep doing it - you know a delayed improvement. i dont think i saw much improvement at all.
On Monday, i applied the iodine on the older needled areas and the area formed some sort of scab. Since there was no doubt in my mind the iodine had induced a scab, i figured id pull it off, see what was going on and just apply the iodine again. I noticed when I did, the redness was significantly reduced and it appeared to be softer in tone and yeah - filling in.
Knowing my own limitations, I needled the greatly improved scars a bit more and reapplied the iodine. they again formed the strange scab and yeah appeared to be healing.
the scabs came off this morning and yeah they are now even more reduced. im open to the suggestion that it might be swelling, however i've never had anything to this degree before. this is not just a few scars mind you - but 12 of my largest scars.
Anyhoo im more than happy to keep an open mind and give it a few weeks. im off overseas in about a week so wont get a chance to do anymore iodine. it will be a good chance to let my skin settle down and all. if its still looking good when i get back, i might do a few more rounds.
Your week away will give you more insight into seeing wether it is working or not, over studying your stained or bloodshot skin IMO.
I had the same feelings as you after a week, everything seemed to be flatter and in context with the surrounding skin
but when I stopped applying iodine for a few days I couldn't tell if it worked. I reckon it will be months before I can realistically say I'm winning.
Still I'm open minded about this and I'm willing to give this a crack if I can sense I'm winning. Something that causes natural tissue apoptosis and apparently inhibits fibrosis can only be good.
As Neca said, also, I would like to see somone also try this after a revision. I reckon the controlled apoptosis here will be beneficial to your normal tissues over scar tissue.
im on my 5th day of applying the 7% iodine to my scars and all i can say is - IT WORKS ! Not only works, but works incredibly...I well and truly hope this continues, if so - its the cure.
Hi CM,
Wow...thanks for the encouraging news! Please do keep us updated. Hopefully your results will be maintained during your time away from needling/applying iodine.
I just wanted to ask you...are you sure that these early improvements are not the result of the drying effect that iodine can have? I say this because I have applied some drying topicals to my skin before and the dehydrating action caused the skin to pull tight, seemingly making the depression appear smaller. This happened back when I was applying magnesium oil to my scars. Magnesium oil, for those who don't know, can be VERY drying. I had dried out a section of my skin where a scar was to such a degree that I thought that the scar had completely vanished. I stopped applying the oil and the scars re-emerged. Not to say that this is what has happened in your case. I just wanted to make sure and double check.
Even if this is due to drying...please continue on. Remember that this can be a good sign of regeneration.
I am planning to begin with iodine application at the beginning of next week and will be posting my progress weekly.
some really encouragin posts im glad some of you are getting results.
an update from me, i missed about 3-4 days. decided to give my skin a rest, also i got lazy. then when i went to apply it again i ended up pouring it all over the floor instead of the cotton wool ball lol. that is something you do not want to do. the floor is stained and the rug is stained. the floor is a really strange material and the lugols has almost blended in so that isnt too bad but the rug is a mess lol.
not to worry. to cartwheeling_monkey, im thrilled to hear your getting results. the whole area i am applying lugols to hasnt changed at all other than that one small area. i thought the scars had completely vanished to start off with aswell, but after giving the area some time to rest, i see that the scars are still there pretty much the same as before. so that was a bit depressing. ill carry on for now but i havent seen much in the way of results yet. im going to take it up a notch and apply a few more layers. at the moment im applying 2.
keep the updates coming...
if i have any results when i do my needling with the iodine again, ill definitely post my results and hope it helps you all out. other than that all the best with your individual treatment journeys 🙂
I hope you keep us posted about the results from this initial needling/iodine session that you have said made some of your scars to appear completely gone. Please tell us if these results are maintained several weeks/months from now.
I'm not sure what happened. You seemed so excited about this...even calling it the "cure" and now you seem kind of ho-hum about it and seem to be bidding us all farewell on the forum.
Is anyone continuing steadily with this or have people lost hope?
Yes, I have been applying iodine to a moderate boxcar scar on my right cheek just below my cheek bone. I have been applying lugol's iodine every night to this spot since sunday.
Right now the skin where I have been apllying the iodine is absolutely like LEATHER. It's beginning to worry me a little. It is like there is a thick hard shell of leather like skin now on the surface. It is almost hard to the touch. I guess this is part of the regeneration process. I'm just not sure where the regeneration process becomes damaged skin.
Dr. D: Does this leather like skin continue to progress or will it stabilize at some point? Is there any chance for some type of skin damage through the topical use of iodine, as in, the potential for more scarring?
At this point, I am close to wounding my face where I have been applying the iodine. I am unsure whether to continue right now without feedback from Dr. D regarding the condition of this iodined spot.
Is anyone continuing steadily with this or have people lost hope?
This is a long one IMO. I'm willing to go at this for months.
Yes, I have been applying iodine to a moderate boxcar scar on my right cheek just below my cheek bone. I have been applying lugol's iodine every night to this spot since sunday.Right now the skin where I have been apllying the iodine is absolutely like LEATHER. It's beginning to worry me a little. It is like there is a thick hard shell of leather like skin now on the surface. It is almost hard to the touch. I guess this is part of the regeneration process. I'm just not sure where the regeneration process becomes damaged skin.
Dr. D: Does this leather like skin continue to progress or will it stabilize at some point? Is there any chance for some type of skin damage through the topical use of iodine, as in, the potential for more scarring?
At this point, I am close to wounding my face where I have been applying the iodine. I am unsure whether to continue right now without feedback from Dr. D regarding the condition of this iodined spot.
A few weeks ago, I stopped for a week to check if it done some damage. It didn't the skin went back to normal texture and color.
I am going to start saline injections soon I think I have slightly more then moderate scarring but unlike most of you I simply have two scars that bother me but they are in the worst place possible, in my cheek area under my eyes an inch from my nose. The worst possible place to have a scar.
If saline injections fail then I think I'm going to try this or the LED lights but I don't have the money for the LED lights so hopefully iodine or saline injections will help... been suffering too long. I pray for a cure everyday hopefully my endless nights of crying will pay off one day.
My skin is also leathery in the areas that I apply iodine. I have been using Lugol's for over a month now. I don't think you have to worry about skin damage. I think the dryness is part of the regeneration process.
Ok, so the drying/leathery stage plateaued at some point and did not progress any further? I know that dryness is a sign of regeneration according to Dr. D, but this seems beyond dryness a little bit. This part of my face has almost like a shell forming over the surface of the skin. It seems to be getting a little harder and a little thicker with each application.
Thanks for your response and encouragement. I appreciate it.
I have a pretty deep scar on my chin. I used the skin needling method on the scar and then applied iodine from a local pharmacy. I think it cost me $1.79. Anyway I did the skin needling on the scar. Applied iodine right away. Next morning applied more iodine. Kept up with the iodine when I was at home and didn't have to go out and at bedtime. Scar produced a scab. Kept the scab on as long as possible and always applied the iodine even on the scab. Scab peeled. indention still there but better. Skin in the indention very pink and new looking. Applied the iodine again to the indented scar, did not do the needling again. Scar produced another scab that was there for about 4 days. Kept putting on the iodine when I could. Scab finally peeled and the scar is 90% gone. My husband says you can't see it anymore, but I can tell in my in my magnified mirror that an indention still exists. Proceeded to put more iodine to the small indention. I will wait and see what happens if it gets better or not. I will wait about 6 weeks and if it isn't better I will do a very small needling again and start with the iodine. I will let you know how it goes. If this works will try a box scar I have on my forehead.
@lac:What is the concentration of your lugol's dilution ?
Why do you use ? This will not do anything. You don't have to use it
more than one time a day. Do it before you go to bed. That's all.
After 4 days you will see the scar become hyperemic, bloodflow.
The whole process of regeneration is a long one. You will need several months to see some
visible effect. We are talking about years for the complete regeneration of a severe scar.
I know that most people don't have the time, but yeah it works very slowly. I will see for
my self in the next weeks.
The first thing everyone has to do is, stick to the method in the paper, use lugol's dilution (5%) and then make the scar hyperemic after 4 days. If you are seeing nothing after 4 days, then there was something wrong.
Best wishes
NEO
Interesting point Neo. I think most people here are using the 5% solution yeah? As thats what the paper says. I definitely agree with you that the method may take months to take shape. I suppose the question then is what is the difference between the natural healing of scars over time and one that comes from the actual solution - since scars change so much over time. I think thats why it is so important that people see some results early on, just so they know that something is happening.
The Dr that came up with with the method implies it is still in the research stage. He seems to be still perfecting the method and is curious as to what we come up with. Sure his research was using lugol's solution, but there is no reason why other formulas cannot be used, especially if they have similar ingredients. He said so himself that the results seem to come from the stain. The more stain, the greater the results. In this case, if someone can find a solution "e.g. povidione iodine" which produces a greater stain, the results may be a lot greater.
Its interesting to see whilst people on this board using lugols are having slow if any results, the guy using the povidione iodine is having some results. Is he seeing more results? I have ordered both and will use them.
Best of luck everyone !
I think its important that when one starts a therapy they stick to it. Lugols works but like all things it takes 6 months to a year in most cases. Some people here are expecting results in a month or two. The body doesn't work that way. All of us have to exercise patience. Doctor Derry makes it clear that his experiments were conducted specifically using 5% Lugols iodine. The stain from this solution is important. This is to be applied once a day for regeneration to continue. Regeneration is not always obvious to the naked eye but it is taking place all the time. Dr Derry used a special Nikon camera to capture the different stages during the study. He stated that the scars never looked the same, indicating that change was in fact taking place. Please exercise caution but realize that this can work. be patient. allow it to work and listen to your body. if you feel you need a break from it take a day off. everyone is different. each scar is different and due to the complexity of some scars, it will take time but chances are regeneration will occur if one is patient , persistent as well as cautious :dance: . Good Luck everbody *
@lac:What is the concentration of your lugol's dilution ?
Why do you use ? This will not do anything. You don't have to use it
more than one time a day. Do it before you go to bed. That's all.
After 4 days you will see the scar become hyperemic, bloodflow.
The whole process of regeneration is a long one. You will need several months to see some
visible effect. We are talking about years for the complete regeneration of a severe scar.
I know that most people don't have the time, but yeah it works very slowly. I will see for
my self in the next weeks.
The first thing everyone has to do is, stick to the method in the paper, use lugol's dilution (5%) and then make the scar hyperemic after 4 days. If you are seeing nothing after 4 days, then there was something wrong.
Best wishes
NEO
Interesting point Neo. I think most people here are using the 5% solution yeah? As thats what the paper says. I definitely agree with you that the method may take months to take shape. I suppose the question then is what is the difference between the natural healing of scars over time and one that comes from the actual solution - since scars change so much over time. I think thats why it is so important that people see some results early on, just so they know that something is happening.
The Dr that came up with with the method implies it is still in the research stage. He seems to be still perfecting the method and is curious as to what we come up with. Sure his research was using lugol's solution, but there is no reason why other formulas cannot be used, especially if they have similar ingredients. He said so himself that the results seem to come from the stain. The more stain, the greater the results. In this case, if someone can find a solution "e.g. povidione iodine" which produces a greater stain, the results may be a lot greater.
Its interesting to see whilst people on this board using lugols are having slow if any results, the guy using the povidione iodine is having some results. Is he seeing more results? I have ordered both and will use them.
Best of luck everyone !
The difference between natural healing and using Lugols is this : The body needs o be stimulated to heal. Lugols will do that but most people expect to see results after a couple months or so and give up trying. Most likely, you will not see desired results in 2 months. Some may it depends on the complexity of the scarring. it is slow. it takes time but regeneration occurs with caution, patience and persistence.
Good Luck everyone :dance: :dance: :dance: