Hello there,
I am 21 of Asian complexity and I have been into consultation for a session of Fraxel Repair at $2500 for my cheeks a month ago.
I would like to ask of the vets in laser resurfacing a few of their opinions, as I plan to eventually get my treatment in August after my classes ended.
I would like to know
1. How did your skin respond to the treatment? I am not expecting a miracle; the derm suggested a modest 25-30% improvement and I'll take it any day. But I am more concerned about
2. What do you think of the horror stories found on sites like RealSelf? This is probably the one thing that is stopping me from taking the treatment. I am weighing the risk on my head now as the face is something we carry for dear life.
Though it seems like most of those reviews are either dated (when Repair barely debuted).
3. If you are post treatment of 6 months or more, what is the texture of your skin now? Have you endured any symptoms like fat loss or accelerated aging? Hyper/hypo pigmentation? Hardened skin?
If you have/know any personal logs detailing the process, I would very much appreciate a link to it. (I have found a few on acne.org but I was wondering if I missed any)
Regards.
Journals:
Active:
Inactive:
http://www.acne.org/messageboard/topic/315693-asian-doing-mixto-for-acne-scars-on-cheeks/
Galleries:
had 4 of them last year, last one was in October of 2012- but I'm not Asian so that may skew things, I'm caucasian with medium color skin - the treatments were roughly one month apart - started out with a lighter touch and the treatments got more aggressive as he saw that my skin could handle it
definitely got 30% improvement maybe a bit more - no fat loss, no issues what so ever - first treatment I was presentable after one day, as he turned up the strength the last treatment had me out of the public for about 3 days
recovery was no big deal, frequent vinegar soaks and I prefer the Avene cream to aquaphor and I never even got a whitehead while recovering..but if they are aggressive (not those lunch time fraxel things) then plan on being home for a couple of days after.
smoother after for sure...but everyone's skin is different so you are wise to read up
I would suggest this, ask for a one treatment price to make sure you are comfortable that your skin can handle it, don't committ to all the treatments up front- this way you can see how your skin reacts and hopefully if it goes well you will be more comfortable committing to the follow on treatments
mrsrobinson are you sure you got a fractional CO2 laser? Based on what you're saying I think you had a fraxel restore/erbium laser.....
Yup - it's a totally different beast. You can't really compare the re:pair (co2) with the re:store type lasers (erbium).
Numan take a look at these threads - all of your questions are covered:
http://www.acne.org/messageboard/topic/315693-asian-doing-mixto-for-acne-scars-on-cheeks/
http://www.acne.org/messageboard/index.php/topic/252527-laser-link-o-rama/
Re:pair 1 = 30%
Re:pair 2 = 50%
Re:pair 3 = 60%
Re:pair 4 = 70%
Re:pair 5 = 80%
World of difference, texture is great, and suffered none of your mentioned complications. I was treated at the highest level 70mj-60%. Many of the people on RealSelf are not even talking about Re:pair. They don't have a clue. I called several of them out on false information. I was in on the earliest discussions as Dazed1. I am much older than most on this forum, so after a facelift I will continue Re:pair if necessary. I am fine with myself now, but I am aging - get ready it will happen to you too. LOL Something must be working because I am dating women much younger than myself and I am not rich by any means. It is seldom talked about here, but attracting the opposite sex is something we all want. Feeling better about yourself is vitally important, but you can't dismiss or downplay the role sexual desire plays. It is a motivation so use it.
Mine were deep enough for a plastic surgeon to say that Re:store would not help me, and that was about 2006 before Re:pair was released. I jumped at Re:pair and have never looked back with my first Re:pair in 2008 when there were only 20 machines in the USA.
Dudley, how deep was your acne scars?
I had boxcar and rolling, but no icepick.
Dudley what type of scars did you have? Did any ice picks respond to repair? Also, why'd you stop in Nov. 2011?
dudley i am not doubting your resultls but i find it extremely hard to belive u havent experience no side effects at all. with all that laser work you have done you must experienced at least one neggative side effect. also from research laser wont work on boxcar scarring. `you must of experienced something negative honestly....
how deep was your boxcars? where they like mine? somethings gotta give....
I have been a poster boy for Re:pair. After my 1st Re:pair I was worried that I had made a huge mistake because I had extreme swelling, but that quickly subsided. After my 3rd Re:pair I was worried about lines of demarcation, but they too soon went away. Each subsequent Re:pair has only been easier although I am treated at the most intense settings 70mj-60%. I am not going to create complications that do not exist Re:pair has been a miracle for me. I really think that CollegeBoy is the only one who has fully grasped the importance of repeated treatments that I have been trying to pound in to everyone else. If you have bad scars like I did only multiple Re:pairs at high mj will help you. Re:pair is a cumulative process. It was Dr. Persky on RealSelf who first made me understand this fact.
My scarring was worse than yours, and more extensive. It seems to me that you are searching out the negative. If you are looking for negatives you can find them in anything you do. On any forum like this negative people will hang around longer and have more to say than positive people who just move on because they have accomplished their goal. There is a whole army of anti-laser people out there most of whom have no idea what they are mad about. I don't deny there can be complications, but that is part of life. People have died going to the dentist, but that doesn't stop you from going to the dentist. Laser is an elective procedure, not something that you must do(or is it?), and as an elective it will draw more criticism. I am older than all of you, so after my success with Re:pair I am considering Plastic Surgery (face, nose, eyes, and neck) so that is where I am concentrating my interest. In 2011 I had hair transplants so I plowed through all the negative stories about that procedure. Other than Re:pair hair transplant was my best decision. I began attacking acne scars at an early age (18), but I just didn't have the options that are available today. I suffered through decades where there were no advancements. I jumped on regular CO2 when it first came out, but it didn't work. Around 2006 Re:store was released but a Plastic Surgeon was honest enough to tell me he didn't think it would help me. 2008 Re:pair was the Next Big Leap, and I jumped on it and have never looked back. I saw immediate results that I did not get from Dermabrasion or regular CO2 resurfacing. I got about 30% on my first Re:pair, not a fantastic improvement, but damn it it was more than I had ever seen. This is when I ran into Dr Persky on RealSelf and he was talking about multiple treatments. I opted for my 2nd Re:pair, and it was after this one I knew I would never turn back. I was up to 50-60% improvement, but the change was so dramatic that I was hooked. After 5 Re:pairs I am at 80-90%, and I no longer have that feeling that everybody is looking at my acne scars. I always loved this quote from Hamlet.
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer
The Slings and Arrows of outrageous Fortune,
Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them:
Who is kidding who, we all want to be attractive to the opposite sex. We can claim this is just for ourselves, but one of the underlying forces is dictated by evolution and that is sexual attraction. I have been married 3 times, twice to the same beautiful girl and once to another very attractive girl. I got by on my upbeat positive personality, but I always felt like scars were holding me back, and may well have effected my success in those marriages. I was not right with myself. On the outside I was this upbeat positive guy, but on the inside I was dying-self conscious-insecure. Re:pair resuscitated me, and people wonder why I am such a big advocate of Re:pair. I am seeing beautiful girls half my age and less, and I am not a player by any stretch of the imagination, and I am not rich. Just a couple nights ago the most beautiful youngest girl popped into my place carrying a Sonic Pretzel Dog (correction: the new Cheezy Bacon Pretzel Dog LOL) because I had mentioned wanting to try one. This would not have happened before Re:pair. I never thought this would ever happen to me, but I have become relaxed and complacent being around beautiful women.
As is pointed out in that Shakespeare quote, attack those damn scars, and don't let them ruin your life. This is the only shot you have at life so get positive and aggressive. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures that show the extent of my scars, but I would say they were worse than most pictures I have seen on here, not all but most. I am also not inclined to post pictures on the internet. Theoretically at a younger age most of you should achieve greater collagen growth than I experienced just because of our age difference. You all have treatments now that didn't exist when I was your age, so get your head out of your butt and use them! I used to be on here a lot more than I am now, because there is little more to be gained. I basically just stop in to see if there is anything new in lasers, laugh at some of the snake oil cures and leave. You have to know that I sailed through Dermabrasion and regular CO2 without complications. Why would I have complications with Re:pair?
You will notice I never say anything about the effectiveness of Re:pair on icepick scars because I have no knowledge on them. I stick to my personal experience. It would seem that Re:pair at its highest settings would be effective for icepick, but that is pure speculation on my part. After my plastic surgery, if needed, I will continue getting Re:pairs on an as needed basis as a tune up. Re:pair has done its job, and performed way above my expectations.
Just rereading my post for errors, and it struck me that your handle is so negative. If you really believe you have no hope you will have a self fulfilling prophecy. Understand the power of your brain. Get away from anybody or anything negative, it just saps you.
I had boxcar and rolling, but no icepick.
Dudley what type of scars did you have? Did any ice picks respond to repair? Also, why'd you stop in Nov. 2011?
I have been a poster boy for Re:pair. After my 1st Re:pair I was worried that I had made a huge mistake because I had extreme swelling, but that quickly subsided. After my 3rd Re:pair I was worried about lines of demarcation, but they too soon went away. Each subsequent Re:pair has only been easier although I am treated at the most intense settings 70mj-60%. I am not going to create complications that do not exist Re:pair has been a miracle for me. I really think that CollegeBoy is the only one who has fully grasped the importance of repeated treatments that I have been trying to pound in to everyone else. If you have bad scars like I did only multiple Re:pairs at high mj will help you. Re:pair is a cumulative process. It was Dr. Persky on RealSelf who first made me understand this fact.
My scarring was worse than yours, and more extensive. It seems to me that you are searching out the negative. If you are looking for negatives you can find them in anything you do. On any forum like this negative people will hang around longer and have more to say than positive people who just move on because they have accomplished their goal. There is a whole army of anti-laser people out there most of whom have no idea what they are mad about. I don't deny there can be complications, but that is part of life. People have died going to the dentist, but that doesn't stop you from going to the dentist. Laser is an elective procedure, not something that you must do(or is it?), and as an elective it will draw more criticism. I am older than all of you, so after my success with Re:pair I am considering Plastic Surgery (face, nose, eyes, and neck) so that is where I am concentrating my interest. In 2011 I had hair transplants so I plowed through all the negative stories about that procedure. Other than Re:pair hair transplant was my best decision. I began attacking acne scars at an early age (18), but I just didn't have the options that are available today. I suffered through decades where there were no advancements. I jumped on regular CO2 when it first came out, but it didn't work. Around 2006 Re:store was released but a Plastic Surgeon was honest enough to tell me he didn't think it would help me. 2008 Re:pair was the Next Big Leap, and I jumped on it and have never looked back. I saw immediate results that I did not get from Dermabrasion or regular CO2 resurfacing. I got about 30% on my first Re:pair, not a fantastic improvement, but damn it it was more than I had ever seen. This is when I ran into Dr Persky on RealSelf and he was talking about multiple treatments. I opted for my 2nd Re:pair, and it was after this one I knew I would never turn back. I was up to 50-60% improvement, but the change was so dramatic that I was hooked. After 5 Re:pairs I am at 80-90%, and I no longer have that feeling that everybody is looking at my acne scars. I always loved this quote from Hamlet.
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer
The Slings and Arrows of outrageous Fortune,
Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them:
Who is kidding who, we all want to be attractive to the opposite sex. We can claim this is just for ourselves, but one of the underlying forces is dictated by evolution and that is sexual attraction. I have been married 3 times, twice to the same beautiful girl and once to another very attractive girl. I got by on my upbeat positive personality, but I always felt like scars were holding me back, and may well have effected my success in those marriages. I was not right with myself. On the outside I was this upbeat positive guy, but on the inside I was dying-self conscious-insecure. Re:pair resuscitated me, and people wonder why I am such a big advocate of Re:pair. I am seeing beautiful girls half my age and less, and I am not a player by any stretch of the imagination, and I am not rich. Just a couple nights ago the most beautiful youngest girl popped into my place carrying a Sonic Pretzel Dog (correction: the new Cheezy Bacon Pretzel Dog LOL) because I had mentioned wanting to try one. This would not have happened before Re:pair. I never thought this would ever happen to me, but I have become relaxed and complacent being around beautiful women.
As is pointed out in that Shakespeare quote, attack those damn scars, and don't let them ruin your life. This is the only shot you have at life so get positive and aggressive. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures that show the extent of my scars, but I would say they were worse than most pictures I have seen on here, not all but most. I am also not inclined to post pictures on the internet. Theoretically at a younger age most of you should achieve greater collagen growth than I experienced just because of our age difference. You all have treatments now that didn't exist when I was your age, so get your head out of your butt and use them! I used to be on here a lot more than I am now, because there is little more to be gained. I basically just stop in to see if there is anything new in lasers, laugh at some of the snake oil cures and leave. You have to know that I sailed through Dermabrasion and regular CO2 without complications. Why would I have complications with Re:pair?
You will notice I never say anything about the effectiveness of Re:pair on icepick scars because I have no knowledge on them. I stick to my personal experience. It would seem that Re:pair at its highest settings would be effective for icepick, but that is pure speculation on my part. After my plastic surgery, if needed, I will continue getting Re:pairs on an as needed basis as a tune up. Re:pair has done its job, and performed way above my expectations.
Just rereading my post for errors, and it struck me that your handle is so negative. If you really believe you have no hope you will have a self fulfilling prophecy. Understand the power of your brain. Get away from anybody or anything negative, it just saps you.
I had boxcar and rolling, but no icepick.
Dudley what type of scars did you have? Did any ice picks respond to repair? Also, why'd you stop in Nov. 2011?
dudley i am not doubting your resultls but i find it extremely hard to belive u havent experience no side effects at all. with all that laser work you have done you must experienced at least one neggative side effect. also from research laser wont work on boxcar scarring. `you must of experienced something negative honestly....
how deep was your boxcars? where they like mine? somethings gotta give....
wow that was deep. to be honest its not that i have no hope, i actually do. its just the fact that ive been told by plastic surgeons, estacisions , derms, that there is nothing that i can do for my type of scarring. basically telling me i have no hope hence my name. i refuse to belive that and deep down inside i know if i try hard enough i can find something out there that willl get rid of my scars almost completley.
i admire your journey you had through treatments for acne scarring its actually inspiring. so in you opinion repair can work for boxcars like the ones i have?
its so true what you have said about being positive on the oputside but so insecure in the inside i can totally relate to that. i feel that we cant live our life to the fullest with all the insecurity we live with. i honestly just want to live a normal life with out worrying so much and without being so dam insecure.
No_hope I was very depressed when that Plastic Surgeon told me Re:store would not help me, so I know where you are coming from. It had been about 12 years in between my CO2 resurfacing, and the release of the first fractional technology. You can imagine my disappointment when he told me it wouldn't work for me. I had also waited decades between Dermabrasion and CO2, and both were a flop. I later deduced that either of those treatments would have been better for shallower scarring. That is not exactly a hope builder, but I kept researching, and then, Thank God, Ablative Fractionalized CO2 was introduced. I can't explain the mechanics of why Re:pair works on deeper scars, but work it did.
I spent a lifetime out there trying to appear confident while feeling inferior on the inside. It is damn hard to put your best face forward when you don't like your face. I never felt comfortable except when I was alone, and even with that I am an extrovert - go figure. LOL Re:pair totally changed my life, and this may sound crazy, but 2 years after my 5th Re:pair my skin still seems to be improving. If there is continued collagen growth I don't understand that at all. About the same time as my last laser I had 2000 hair transplants, and once those took root my social life took off. I readily acknowledge that I am probably over compensating for lost years with the girls I see, but it has been one hell of a ride. I am constantly seeking to improve myself through diet, exercise, meditation, and yoga. I may be older, but I am not old. Hence my commitment to plastic surgery in the near future. If I can put up with the decades of frustration that I put up with, where there were no treatments on the horizon, surely you younger people can embrace the opportunities that are available to you today. Don't even think about giving up, and don't absorb all the negativity from the forums. What I have found from all forums I have been on except Dr Dean Ornish's is that negative people far outnumber positive people. Whatever the reason, these people seek to drag others into the hole they are in. Misery Loves Company is a very true statement. There are many good people on our forums just recognize those that aren't out for your best interest. I was born a skeptic so don't think I go into anything with blinders on. I was front and center in the famous Christine thread on RealSelf, and I still believe her doctor was incompetent. I bounced between DeepFX and Re:pair for some time before opting for Re:pair. The other fractional lasers were not even a consideration.
Hello there Dudley, acnescar123 and mrsrobinson,
Apologies for the tardiness, as I was content with seeing the thread progressing as is; secondary reason why I started it is to have a centralized discussion about laser resurfacing rather than separate posts.
I was considering Fraxel Re:store at first because my scarring is actually moderate to mild (rather mild, as I only have a few boxcars, pickaxe and rolling scars and I could look into the mirror without frowning).
Thank you very much, those are exactly the kind of journals I've been looking all over for; too bad the scarcity of them makes it hard for people to follow. I've been following your personal thread so far as well, do keep it up and hope for speedy recovery.
@Dudley
Thank you for responding, I've been lurking around the forums for quite a while and seeing that perhaps you are one of the more active re:pair advocates, it is indeed nice to have you.
I was wondering though, who was your derm/surgeon that provided the treatment? Thanks.
Edited first post to include journals. Credits to acnescar123 for finding them.
I'm just going to make this post a central database for laser resurfacing threads since it is so hard to find them as threads get lost.
Please post any other journals you can find or a link to your journal here. Thank you.
Thread is open for questions too.
How much does all this cost? $2500 for a session or the whole treatment regimen?
If one treatment is $2500, and at least 4 are required. That's like $10,000.
1st = $5000
2nd = $3000
3rd = $1000
4th = $800
5th = $800
Total = $10,600
There were only 20 machines in the country when I had my 1st. This is your life, and that is the price of a used car.
Thought I would put in my two cents. I have sensitive skin and tend to scar easily. Skin needling actually made some of my scarring worse. I received Fraxel repair on stretch marks on a more sensitive area of my body and noticed a difference in skin texture. I've heard that some lasers can cause loss of skin elasticity and accelerated aging, and suspect this may be the case for me. I know the skin in that area is more delicate than the face, but I still would never get Fraxel repair for my face.
I think that's true, Starlite. I have also had several doctors tell me that the skin on women is thinner and more sensitive/harder to heal than the skin on men. My doc almost never recommends the Repair for his women patients. I think it's something to take note of when men vs. women discuss their results with laser.
I had boxcar and rolling, but no icepick.
Dudley what type of scars did you have? Did any ice picks respond to repair? Also, why'd you stop in Nov. 2011?
Hi Dudley, what responded better to the laser? Was it the boxcars or the rolling? Also we're there areas of the face that responded better or worse such as the cheeks or the temples?
Hi Dudley, what responded better to the laser? Was it the boxcars or the rolling? Also were there areas of the face that responded better or worse such as the cheeks or the temples?
I had boxcar and rolling, but no icepick.
Dudley what type of scars did you have? Did any ice picks respond to repair? Also, why'd you stop in Nov. 2011?
Hi Dudley, what responded better to the laser? Was it the boxcars or the rolling? Also we're there areas of the face that responded better or worse such as the cheeks or the temples?
Hi Dudley, what responded better to the laser? Was it the boxcars or the rolling? Also were there areas of the face that responded better or worse such as the cheeks or the temples?
Rolling and boxcar responded about equal. The areas supported by bone respond the best.
Hmm, out of curiosity. Does demarcation lines emerge often after fraxel re:pair? The scars on my cheek are actually very focused in a tight area and feathers off outwards; the skin along my jawline is actually perfectly fine and I do not want to risk toppling the equilibrium there.
My skin has rebounded from many harsh treatments, but I'd rather not abuse perfectly fine skin at this point. Opinions, experiences?