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appreciate the updates and keep em coming! you know, it's so easy to just neglect coming back sometimes...
On 1/28/2013 at 12:42 PM, collegeboy84 said:On 1/21/2013 at 9:31 PM, FruitBiscuits said:Thank you for the update and good luck on the next repair! Hope your HYPER-pigmentation will be gone by then [Edited image out]
Hey Fruits, long time no see!
I sure hope my hyperpigmentation is gone by then too or I'll be in deep water. [Edited image out]
Hey first time on here but just wanted to know if you have tried obagi nu derm. I use the blender and the clear and then Retin A .1%. works pretty awesome. Would probably help alot with your hyper pigmentation but if you use it every night will def give you some peeling but its worth it. 
CollegBoy, I had forgot about this thread. I totally agree that people should go agressive with Re:pair and DeepFX. Mine were all done at max setting. After my first Re:pair I was so swollen I was unregognizable and I achieved about a 30% improvement. After the second one that figure was up to about 50-60% which provided the most dramatic change, and convinced me to continue treatments.
Collegeboy thank you so much for coming back and keeping us updated. So far this has been the most helpful review that I've found. I am scheduled for my first fraxel repair treatment in June. So excited yet nervous!! You mentioned that you found hydroquinone 4% from a reputable Indian online company? can you please tell us the name? that would be very helpful. One tube cost me so much from CVS 
On 5/10/2013 at 3:20 PM, sweetpea1988 said:Collegeboy thank you so much for coming back and keeping us updated. So far this has been the most helpful review that I've found. I am scheduled for my first fraxel repair treatment in June. So excited yet nervous!! You mentioned that you found hydroquinone 4% from a reputable Indian online company? can you please tell us the name? that would be very helpful. One tube cost me so much from CVS [Edited image out]
I have been pretty busy as of late so I apologize for the late response. I don't often check the forums so send me a PM or quote me so the forums sends me an email.
[Edited link out]
is the site that I have purchased retinA and hydroquinone in the past. The medications are definitely legit. Most insurance companies don't cover bleaching agents but CVS and Costco charged about 25 dollars a bottle.
I am having another fraxel laser treatment in 6 days myself. The doctor is going with a depth of 1000 @ 50% coverage (5 passes). This is a bit more aggressive than my first fraxel repair. After surviving 2 old school CO2 laser treatments I feel comfortable with an aggressive repair. I feel aggressive repairs yield the greatest results as Dudley has pointed out.
Good luck to you.
I'll post photos of my swollen bloody face Friday!
Woooooohooooooooooooooooo vacation.
AllDayChemist is the real thing. I have ordered generic Viagra from them 4 times for one twentieth the price of American Viagra. My younger friends have also tried it and they can't get enough of it. I am happy to see that you are realizing the benefits of aggressive Fraxel Re:pair. You should experience less swelling with each subsequent Re:pair treatment. I assume when you mention depth of 1000 you are talking about 1 mm, and I also assume that would equate to a setting of 50-60mj. My next step will be a facelift (I am older than others on here), which I may follow with my 6th Re:pair as needed.
Though I will say, Suzanne Kilmer is no slouch of a doctor. She is rated by News Week and Self Magazine as one of Americans top 10 laser surgeons. She has also made appearances on the Oprah show and the View, so I would hope she is not ripping me for my money. But the jury is still out as I hope to see better results before the 6 month mark.
If I ask for her to do my treatment, will she? I'm planning on traveling there to have a consultation as no one in my city offers ablative lasers. I read a review on realself that said a nurse does treatment but I think the person did restore and posted it in the wrong section, but I'm just making sure.
Hey Kinimi, only the doctors perform the ablative laser treatments at the Skin and Laser Center here. There is 4 to 5 to choose from but Kilmer has the most experience. I never had a non-ablative laser treatment (such as restore) done at that facility. However, I have had a few done from a different doctor's office in Sacramento which did have a nurse perform the treatment. You can request and have a consultation with whichever doctor you prefer from this clinic. They are pretty good at putting any of your questions to rest. Anyways, I go in tomorrow for my next repair. Keep you posted.
Though I will say, Suzanne Kilmer is no slouch of a doctor. She is rated by News Week and Self Magazine as one of Americans top 10 laser surgeons. She has also made appearances on the Oprah show and the View, so I would hope she is not ripping me for my money. But the jury is still out as I hope to see better results before the 6 month mark.
If I ask for her to do my treatment, will she? I'm planning on traveling there to have a consultation as no one in my city offers ablative lasers. I read a review on realself that said a nurse does treatment but I think the person did restore and posted it in the wrong section, but I'm just making sure.
24 hours later:
Swelling increased quite a bit
Bleeding stopped
Skin peeling
Oh, and the setting used was for the repair was 60 mJ @ 50% (5 passes @ 10%) on the bad areas. She feathered out towards the lower jaw and temple where I have little to no scars.
My skin is peeling a whole lot more than my first Fraxel : repair but less than the 100% ablative CO2 Ultrapulse laser.
Houuu dude you must be the next "Die hard" pretender:)
I hope you are healing fine. I'm planning to get fractional laser done in the winter(such procedures are taboo during the summer in my country), so it`s really helpful to examine the experiance of other people! Thank you for posting that log, I really like your attitude.
Did they give you anything for the pain? My doc said multiple times that the procedure I quite painful and that he wouldn`t give me any painkillers(even numbing cream, because it reduces the benefits). So I'm wondering how other people tolerate the procedure. Do you think if it would be bearable if you are not high?
Be careful what fractional laser the doctor is talking about. I find it hard to believe that a doctor would do a fractional CO2 laser treatment without ANY medication , cream or nerve blocks. It is extremely painful depending on the setting WITH meds.
Good luck!
Houuu dude you must be the next "Die hard" pretender:)
I hope you are healing fine. I'm planning to get fractional laser done in the winter(such procedures are taboo during the summer in my country), so it`s really helpful to examine the experiance of other people! Thank you for posting that log, I really like your attitude.
Did they give you anything for the pain? My doc said multiple times that the procedure I quite painful and that he wouldn`t give me any painkillers(even numbing cream, because it reduces the benefits). So I'm wondering how other people tolerate the procedure. Do you think if it would be bearable if you are not high?
I agree CollegeBoy! I am not about to try Fraxel Re:pair without meds. Re:pair is not child's play. You have become the poster boy for Re:pair, and for those who have not experienced this your pictures will alarm them, but we both know it is not as bad as it looks at first. You are certainly an asset to this forum.
Thanks for keeping us updated and good luck with the recovery! Those pictures right after the treatment do look frightening, but I'm sure it's all worth it.
And it's awesome you're willing to share the nasty phase during the first days, so it doesn't come as a surprise for people considering Repair.
I am glad you are enjoying my pain! LOL. Just kidding. I honestly think the frightening painful stage of the process is what I enjoy the most. The only way to remove traumatic scars is by having traumatic treatments done in return. Anybody who has had the "non-ablative" laser treatments such as myself (as I had 6 of them done) can attest to that.
As I lay there trembling and teary-eyed on the operating table after the procedure was complete I uttered, " I actually enjoyed that " to the Doctor. The swollen, bloody, face tells me that the laser is actually working.
And really, its not THAT bad as Dudley has pointed out. Sure, its painful for a few minutes but still tolerable. You probably wouldn't feel a thing on the cheeks if I opted for nerve blocks.
Anyways, today marks 72 hours since the treatment. My skin is peeling a LOT. My skin barely even peeled on the first Fraxel: repair I did which tells me they really turned up the juice like I requested.
I've also came up with this odd technique for vinegar soaks. Fill your sink full of warm water. Pour at least a cup of vinegar in the water. Submerge your head in the warm water and begin to blow. The bubbles delicately massages your skin removing any dead layers, aquaphor, etc. without actually rubbing your skin in any harmful way. I then fill a spray bottle with about 70% vinegar and 30% water. I spray this high solution of vinegar on my face as it works as an exfoliate of dead skill cells and as a cleaning detergent for bacteria. As you spray this % of vinegar on your skin you can actually see the dead skin cells turn white for a few minutes. Then pat try your skin to apply the aquaphor. Aquaphor or PJ applied to wet skin doesn't adhere well and likes to slide around instead of protecting the skin with a wet moisture barrier.
On 5/28/2013 at 6:02 AM, austra said:Thanks for keeping us updated and good luck with the recovery! [Edited image out] Those pictures right after the treatment do look frightening, but I'm sure it's all worth it.
And it's awesome you're willing to share the nasty phase during the first days, so it doesn't come as a surprise for people considering Repair.
Day 4. I feel like Santa Clause. I haven't shaven since the laser treatment. I started to get white heads from all the aquaphor on my face. This increase in whiteheads always occurs for me on this day. After having a post-op check up with my doc, she recommends that I go off the aquaphor. YAY!
Swelling has gone done considerably over night. This is normally the disappointing day for newbies as they are a bit shocked by the scars returning. For me, I expected it. Actually I expected my skin to look much worse then it does currently. I can see the bigger scars that remain although they do look much smaller. This could be from microswelling. I learned not to judge your skin til about 20-30 days out. The smaller "scarred pores" I can not see at this point. This also could be from microswelling. I hold my judgement for a later date.
From my experience...
day 1-3 Skin looks perfect, scar free and swollen
day 4-5 dissapointed as scars return, swelling nearly gone.
day 15-30 can see scars really fill in and often change shape
Will post photo later.
You have learned the secret that multiple treatments of Re:pair is what works. Also most people are treated at too low MJ setting to see good enough results. My doctor went at 70MJ/60% on each of my 5 Re:pairs, and I became so tolerant that by the 5th one I was out in public on the 3rd or 4th day.
I don't understand, why laser healthy skin as well as scarred skin, it seems pointless? Surely a better approach would be to spot treat each scar and leave the healthy skin alone (and undamaged). Or do doctors avoid that because if they did they'd have to charge a lower fee?
If you have a few individual scars that you can pinpoint then it would be senseless. Many people have much more extensive scarring that has a total effect on their appearance.
I don't understand, why laser healthy skin as well as scarred skin, it seems pointless? Surely a better approach would be to spot treat each scar and leave the healthy skin alone (and undamaged). Or do doctors avoid that because if they did they'd have to charge a lower fee?
If you have a few individual scars that you can pinpoint then it would be senseless. Many people have much more extensive scarring that has a total effect on their appearance.
I don't understand, why laser healthy skin as well as scarred skin, it seems pointless? Surely a better approach would be to spot treat each scar and leave the healthy skin alone (and undamaged). Or do doctors avoid that because if they did they'd have to charge a lower fee?
If someone only has a few box scars can they opt for spot treatment? I wonder if anyone has done that. I would prefer someone do that than say TCA.
My big question about spot laser treatments would be pigmentation issues. I also had my neck done to avoid any demarcation lines.
If you have a few individual scars that you can pinpoint then it would be senseless. Many people have much more extensive scarring that has a total effect on their appearance.
I don't understand, why laser healthy skin as well as scarred skin, it seems pointless? Surely a better approach would be to spot treat each scar and leave the healthy skin alone (and undamaged). Or do doctors avoid that because if they did they'd have to charge a lower fee?
If someone only has a few box scars can they opt for spot treatment? I wonder if anyone has done that. I would prefer someone do that than say TCA.
I posted about it before :
From what I read, it's doable - but you may have to do a full face erbium/light co2 afterwards to join in the colours.
This Dr does it a ton as well - http://www.nyccosmeticdermatology.com/focal-acne-scar-treatment-f-a-s-t-a-new-approach-to-atrophic-acne-scars.htm#!wp-prettyPhoto [g6797]/2/
Wait, I'm a bit confused. The color differences with spot treatment wouldn't be permanent though, right?
I know people get hyperpigmentation but if it eventually fades, then I see no reason why blending is necessary if one doesn't mind a few months of mismatched colors.
Or are we saying that the skin color will forever be different and so it best that it all matches?