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So I finally had a subcision yesterday, and plan to do the suction method starting two days from now. It's hard to believe that it finally happened...I've been waiting for the spare time and money for years now. I wonder to myself why I didn't try this sooner.
Dr. Spencer did the procedure at Piedmont Cosmetic Surgery & Dermatology Center, and there were several assistants in the room to help. First, he circled the scars that he saw, then gave me a mirror and asked to point out any ones that he missed. They numbed my face with both a needle and numbing cream. The subcision caused some bleeding, then he used a combination of TCA for the scars, and glycolic and Jessner's peel for the rest of my face, including some acne breakouts around my chin.
I was surprised by how many scars there were around my chin that he ended up subcising. I was always so focused on my cheeks, where there is plenty of rolling scars from a really bad breakout of cystic acne I had in my late teens. Over the last few years, my breakouts have mostly been around my chin, although not as bad. I heard most of the crackling noise of scars getting untethered around my chin. I think this could be because over the years, I've done treatments at home for the older scars, and have seen 40-50% improvement in some of them.
My face was swollen and inflamed yesterday, so I iced my face. The areas of my face that I didn't ice were the most red and swollen this morning. I've been applying aquaphor to prevent scarring. They told me that I should apply this to avoid getting scabs, which I guess can cause scarring.
I was under the impression after speaking to one of his assistants that it would only take about three or four days before I could go back to work, but looking at my face, I don't know how that's going to happen. I wish I had taken more days off from work. A week would probably been best, but five or six might have been enough.
I'll keep everyone updated. This board helped me so much in finding treatments that actually work. I feel very grateful.
Thank you for sharing! What kind of scars do you have around your chin? Did he do the TCA over the same area that he subsized?
I have almost all rolling scars. The scars around my chin were small rolling scars. Yes, he applied TCA over the same areas that were subscized.
Congratulations on taking the leap......
Wow...you had a lot done at one time.
Hope you have some before and after photos that you can share with us later.
Best wishes for a great recovery and Merry Christmas!
Thank you very much! Your threat has been inspirational, and I was very happy that you shared with us the positive results of subcision-suction.
It was a lot...maybe too much. My face is still quite red. Maybe I will get better results, although I am a little concerned about doing the suction if my skin is too raw.
I did not take pictures, but will continue to update and share my progress.
So this is the second day following my subcision, and my face is still pretty red and swollen. I'm not sure if I should attribute it to the subcision or the peels he gave me. I'm still icing my face, and applying ointments. Does anyone know how long it takes for the subcised areas to look better?
So this is the second day following my subcision, and my face is still pretty red and swollen. I'm not sure if I should attribute it to the subcision or the peels he gave me. I'm still icing my face, and applying ointments. Does anyone know how long it takes for the subcised areas to look better?
I started looking better after after about 4 days. Stay out of the sun and be very gentle with skin, I would only use wash it with water.
So this is the second day following my subcision, and my face is still pretty red and swollen. I'm not sure if I should attribute it to the subcision or the peels he gave me. I'm still icing my face, and applying ointments. Does anyone know how long it takes for the subcised areas to look better?
I started looking better after after about 4 days. Stay out of the sun and be very gentle with skin, I would only use wash it with water.
Thanks for the advice. I would have tried to get more time off from work if I had known. I think the things I've been putting on my face to help with inflammation and swelling might be aggravating it, so I might try to just continue icing it and not put anything on my face.
Also, did you suction as well? I wonder how my face will look in a week if I use this method.
So this is the second day following my subcision, and my face is still pretty red and swollen. I'm not sure if I should attribute it to the subcision or the peels he gave me. I'm still icing my face, and applying ointments. Does anyone know how long it takes for the subcised areas to look better?
It took my face about seven to nine days with the first three subcision treatments to look fully 'normal'. My skin took on an orange 'hue' from the subdermal bruising that lasted from about day five until day nine or so.
I had extended bruising and swelling with the suction method that lasted for several weeks but yielded the best results.
If you had TCA done, too, I wouldn't recommend trying to suction your face. I would let things calm down on their own and consider the suction method if you elect to undergo another round of subcision sometime in the future.
So this is the second day following my subcision, and my face is still pretty red and swollen. I'm not sure if I should attribute it to the subcision or the peels he gave me. I'm still icing my face, and applying ointments. Does anyone know how long it takes for the subcised areas to look better?
It took my face about seven to nine days with the first three subcision treatments to look fully 'normal'. My skin took on an orange 'hue' from the subdermal bruising that lasted from about day five until day nine or so.
I had extended bruising and swelling with the suction method that lasted for several weeks but yielded the best results.
If you had TCA done, too, I wouldn't recommend trying to suction your face. I would let things calm down on their own and consider the suction method if you elect to undergo another round of subcision sometime in the future.
Thanks for the advice! You're probably right, I just think I could get so much more benefit if I try the suction. I think I will wait and see how my face looks tomorrow. It doesn't help that I had to cancel a date because I look so scary right now lol.
It's been five days since my subcision combined with peels. My skin has mostly returned to normal. There's still some minor bruising around the subcised areas, but my skin is no longer red and swollen. I think I might have had an allergic reaction to one of the peels, probably the Jessner's peel. On the upside, my pores are visibly smaller. They were pretty visible before, I'm assuming because I had oily skin for years, but at least for the moment they are practically invisible.
I can see a couple of what look like ice pick scars that have popped up. At first I thought it might be caused by spontaneous scarring from the acids the dermatologist administered, now I think it could be where the needles entered when they did the subcision. I'm going to wait a few more days and see if this improves.
I've decided to do suction on my deepest scars. My skin is still sensitive because of the peels, but my skin looks so smooth it's difficult to resist. I'm not doing it to my whole face, just a deep boxcar scar on my left cheek and a couple of rolling scars on my left that have bothered me for years. I will also wait and see if my skin seems less sensitive over the next week or so.
I keep looking in the mirror and thinking, is that really my skin? It looks so much smoother. I know it's micro swelling, but I dream of the day my scars are mostly reduced, or have been completely resolved.
It's been about a week and a half since my subcision combined with peels. Here is the good news and bad news.
Good: I believe the microswelling has mostly gone down. Many of my acne scars are much, much better. The two that I suctions for only three or four days are practically invisible. This may be due to microswelling, so I will make another update in a couple of weeks, but I really like my results.
Bad: When the swelling finally went down, I noticed that my face looked thinner. It looks like I lost volume in my face. A coworker asked me, have you lost weight? and people have definitely noticed a difference, even though it's subtle. While I probably had more than enough chub to spare (j/k) I do believe that facial fat gives a more youthful appearance, does it not? I always assumed that lasers are what cause fat loss in the face. This is interesting, because it seems like the only thing that caused this was heat/swelling and minor trauma caused by subcision.
So there you have it. I have a lot more confidence because my scarring is visibly better, but my face looks thinner and I don't know if it looks more or less attractive. I do look slightly different, and I hesitate to try laser now. The dermatologist had recommended Sciton profractional, a laser that I have heard many positive things about.
Also interesting to note: one of the boxcar scars that I suctioned that looks almost completely level with my skin still looks kind of shiny in certain lighting/angles, which tells me that acne scarring can improved, but the skin doesn't completely go back to the way it was before. At one time, however, it was visible from a couple of feet away and it showed up in pictures people would take of me, now it's not visible.
I also tried using copper peptides after about five or six days and regretted it. I used super cop x2 and it was way too strong, and I stopped suctioning completely and decided to get let my skin heal. I've been using a very gentle cleanser and moisturizer for my skin, as well as sunblock.
Thanks for the update. I have not heard that before about facial fat loss. Do you think it's from the subcision or from the peels? I re-read your original post and you said the Jessner peel was the only thing done to your whole face? Is the fat loss in the whole face or certain areas?
Thanks for the update. I have not heard that before about facial fat loss. Do you think it's from the subcision or from the peels? I re-read your original post and you said the Jessner peel was the only thing done to your whole face? Is the fat loss in the whole face or certain areas?
Hi there, he applied Jessner and glycolic to most of my face, and TCA to the scarred areas. My skin actually looks beautiful right now, really clear complexion, I've been getting a lot of compliments. I've also been told I look like I lost weight, which I haven't. It doesn't look bad, but I definitely noticed a difference.
I have never heard of fat loss either from peels, and it makes me wonder if fat loss due to lasers has more to do with the body's inflammatory response than anything else. My face was swollen and red for days.
Really happy for you Starlite. Please keep us updated, posted pictures if possible. You have given me hope and new optimism for the new year ahead. Merry Christmas, all the best.
Thank you! I might post pictures next time. I did notice a lot of changes and wish I had taken pics. Happy Holidays to you, too! 
So it has been three weeks since my subcision. I have some good and bad news again.
After the swelling went down, I noticed that my face seemed thinner. It looks like my face went from being heart shaped to more oval. It's a subtle difference, but it does bother me. I also noticed lines under my eyes, dark circles that weren't there before. And my rosacea went from being mild to very irritated, my face constantly looks pink. I can't believe peels would cause all these problems?! I think the fat loss problem bothers me the most, my face looked cute before this happened, albeit the scarring. I hope it will heal or look better eventually.
My skin still looks amazing. The boxcar scar came back, but it looks waaay better, much less noticeable. The worst scar is now one that I think the dermatologist missed. I remember he told me that I may only need one subcision, and I thought that was crazy talk. Now I wonder if I would be satisfied with only two.
My friend took a picture of us up close with her iPhone and it was so wonderful to see pictures where my skin looked smooth and healthy. My confidence is already improving. I went on a date and I wasn't so worried about what he thought of my skin. I could focus on him and the conversation and feel more self-assured.
So it has been three weeks since my subcision. I have some good and bad news again.
After the swelling went down, I noticed that my face seemed thinner. It looks like my face went from being heart shaped to more oval. It's a subtle difference, but it does bother me. I also noticed lines under my eyes, dark circles that weren't there before. And my rosacea went from being mild to very irritated, my face constantly looks pink. I can't believe peels would cause all these problems?! I think the fat loss problem bothers me the most, my face looked cute before this happened, albeit the scarring. I hope it will heal or look better eventually.
My skin still looks amazing. The boxcar scar came back, but it looks waaay better, much less noticeable. The worst scar is now one that I think the dermatologist missed. I remember he told me that I may only need one subcision, and I thought that was crazy talk. Now I wonder if I would be satisfied with only two.
My friend took a picture of us up close with her iPhone and it was so wonderful to see pictures where my skin looked smooth and healthy. My confidence is already improving. I went on a date and I wasn't so worried about what he thought of my skin. I could focus on him and the conversation and feel more self-assured.
What I dont understand is that if you scarring is much better since your subcision. How does your face look thinner? If you had depressed scarring and it was corrected wouldnt it if anything look more full? Is the shapre of face different now because the subcision made it look more how it was before the scarring? Im confused.
There is less fat around my upper cheeks. This means that you can see my cheekbones more clearly, but the fullness of my cheeks has been reduced. My scars are small compared to my whole cheek. So when I turn to the side, I can't see the shadow effect of my scarring, and my whole cheek looks flatter.
So I think what you're saying is that the fat loss was caused by the peels, not the subcision?
Yes, I'm pretty sure it was caused by the peels, or a combination of the two. My face got very red and swollen and inflamed for days. I don't understand what happened and hope it heals.
Quick update: My skin looks amazing! My scars look sooo much better. I could always see my deepest rolling scars in the mirror from three or four feet away, especially in certain lighting, and that doesn't happen anymore! The scars are still there, but they are less noticeable. Subcision is the best thing I've ever done to treat my scars.
Ironically, the boxcar scar that seemed to respond the most has actually mostly returned to the way it was before, making it the most visible. My rolling scars have gradually improved and now look much better.
My cheeks still look thinner...I'm not happy about that, but it was worth the trade-off.
I scheduled my next subcision for the beginning of March.
Quick update: My skin looks amazing! My scars look sooo much better. I could always see my deepest rolling scars in the mirror from three or four feet away, especially in certain lighting, and that doesn't happen anymore! The scars are still there, but they are less noticeable. Subcision is the best thing I've ever done to treat my scars. Ironically, the boxcar scar that seemed to respond the most has actually mostly returned to the way it was before, making it the most visible. My rolling scars have gradually improved and now look much better. My cheeks still look thinner...I'm not happy about that, but it was worth the trade-off. I scheduled my next subcision for the beginning of March.
Starlite, congrats on your improvement! You must be ecstatic. What you said about your boxcar scar has gotten me discouraged. Maybe subcision really is just for rolling scars.It hasn't improved at all? Was it very deep at first?
Starlite, congrats on your improvement! You must be ecstatic. What you said about your boxcar scar has gotten me discouraged. Maybe subcision really is just for rolling scars.It hasn't improved at all? Was it very deep at first?
Congratulations, Starlite!