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Skin update; Photos taken April 27th in overhead lighting and the last one taken May 2nd in overhead elevator lighting.
Using the siligen scar gel frequently. Doc says to use the entire bottle. I have excel laser scheduled this month by same doctor who made the linear scar excision.
I spoke to a doctors office about dermabrasion. It™s only the cheeks, local anesthesia (lidocaine injections) and he is charging $3,400 to be scheduled sometime around June 1st. That™s kind of on the extremely high side so I™m going to try to bring it down. I™m also going to call another doctor who performs dermabrasion soon. My main issues with dermabrasion is the potential pigmentation issues, the price so far, and the timing because I™m in graduate school and can™t get the time off to recover. I could do it late July as I™m off around then.
To be frank, I™m regretting getting my scar re-excised but i think it™s just my doubt creeping in. I know that you really have to wait a full year to see it fully healed. But still a lot of doubt creeps in. I hope laser and some good silicone application makes the linear excision invisible a year from now. Ugh.
The line will fade, ever seen ufc fighter get cut. Its the same thing give it time but my opinions was not to re get excision. Remember always weigh how much you are gaining vs potential risk. Dermabrasion should be able to take care of that excision line. But why is the line so long. Did he take a large area out?
8 hours ago, Dontgiveupitsonlyscars said:Skin update; Photos taken April 27th in overhead lighting and the last one taken May 2nd in overhead elevator lighting.
Using the siligen scar gel frequently. Doc says to use the entire bottle. I have excel laser scheduled this month by same doctor who made the linear scar excision.
I spoke to a doctors office about dermabrasion. It™s only the cheeks, local anesthesia (lidocaine injections) and he is charging $3,400 to be scheduled sometime around June 1st. That™s kind of on the extremely high side so I™m going to try to bring it down. I™m also going to call another doctor who performs dermabrasion soon. My main issues with dermabrasion is the potential pigmentation issues, the price so far, and the timing because I™m in graduate school and can™t get the time off to recover. I could do it late July as I™m off around then.
To be frank, I™m regretting getting my scar re-excised but i think it™s just my doubt creeping in. I know that you really have to wait a full year to see it fully healed. But still a lot of doubt creeps in. I hope laser and some good silicone application makes the linear excision invisible a year from now. Ugh.
Could always be the angle or light but to me it looks like it's been improved like depth or roughness or something, am I wrong? Did you get any benefit from subcision or filler or something else since? I see so many pictures and different lighting or with numbing cream that smoothes it out I can't tell lol.
Also I hope you get a good Dermabrasion outcome like I got in my youth. an aggressive dermabrasion will or should blend all of that, BUT keep in mind that I've learned outside stuff can dilate it, like water, light, environmental so I always tell people it's not perfect, just a lot better if you get a good outcome. Like if you get my outcome you might see 75-85% depth and texture improvement. My doctor was super aggressive though. Red for 1-2 months, pink for another 8 months. Most doctors say dermabrasion is like fully healed in 2 months I'm like no I had way way longer lol. Super aggressive on the cheeks was very beneficial, temple area is very delicate though.
15 hours ago, getsmart121 said:Another very good example of dermabrasion wherein the scar edges are eliminated. I don™t thing even deep phenol peel and do this. As phenol is more regenerative is damaging it hoping it would heal in a certain way as time progresses. Again dermabrasion cannot solve atrophy, it can only solve hard scar edge work. Here is a prime example¦.if the dermabrasion is done correctly you can how the scar edges are elimated but atrophy remains . After this fat filler,ha can come in.
Yep if you get a good outcome you get this for sure. I saw it with my own eyes. For the record if the guy on the right side pushes his skin around I would bet he gets the same thing I do, creases, and scars that become visible because I don't think dermabrasion solves the "underneath" so spreading around the layers exposes it at all if that makes sense. In fact the environment and/or water and other things can make it visible or if you go really close. I always felt it was really weird how that happens but now it makes sense after experience.
But so long as my skin stays totally level it looks pretty good out of bad lighting.
As for dermabrasion it's a master at shaving and blending if you get a good outcome, but my success might be the significantly aggressive way my doctor did it. Because the healing was long. So if she gets it, I'd suggest just telling the doctor to go aggressive if you are feeling like you want to take a shot at it.
Update: I got my excision March 28th of 2022, which is exactly one month and 21 days. I've seen slight changes in the excision here and there but still a long way to go. I have noticed the silicone sheets work far better than the silicon gel, even though the gel is much more expensive and higher quality than the sheets. Siligen says to use the gel during the day and silicone sheets at night, which is what I do. Sometimes I apply a thin layer of the silicone gel and then place a sheet on top.
I saw this video about scar evolution and learned these key things: massage, pressure, and silicone use is essential for an optimal scar. I also learned that around 3 weeks, the scar looks it's worst. Which is no wonder before I was seriously beginning to doubt myself around this period because the scar looked extremely noticeable.
For my previous excision scars, I massaged mostly the box scar i had excised on my right cheek more than there others and massaged the dimple one second, while neglecting to massage the smaller excision on my left cheek. And let me tell you, the scar I massaged the most has become the scar I barely see now. According to this plastic surgeon in this video above who has said to have read almost all the scar studies available, a scar continues to mature between 12-24 months which means it is still improving itself. Recall that I got these excisons only in October 28th of 2021, which is exactly 6 months and 19 days. I have yet to fully see the potential scar improvement from those excisions, which is good news.
One thing I would like to add that I have noticed helps the initial excision phase and after is:
1. face/scar staying out of the sun
2. eating vitamin c
3. applying vitamin c
4. using hydro-sheet masks by Mediheal (leave on until the entire mask goes dry which is about an hour and a half)
5. ice massages with an ice cube; (going to do aloe vera cube massages as an upgrade because I saw a derm mention aloe vera is the most hydrating plant available)
6. EXERCISE (weight lifting) because it brings blood to the face and sweat
7. also excessive hydration to the scar, in my opinion, helps it heal better. So I hydrate the sh*t out of it and slap a silicone gel or sheet on top to finish it off.
8. using topical vitamin-a derivative such as tarozarotene or tretinton (retin-a)
9. Also, I massage my excision scars more than the recommended 2 minutes a day, I will do ten minutes during the day and ten minutes at night. I also STILL massage my old scars, and pretty much my entire cheeks because why not? More blood flow is great
10. high protein, low/no sugar and minimal alcohol consumption helps also (there are studies that show sugar and alcohol inhitbit healing and destroy collagen, which is bad for scar healing because you need as much collagan as possible to build the scar to it's most optimal appearance)
11. experimental and haven't tried it but growth factors may help? someone should try this and report to see. I may try it at some point but not anytime soon.
12. AHA/BHA masks occasionally (once or twice a month)
I'm going to start microneedling beginning in June and using hydrogel sheets and aloe vera gel to further increase hydration in the skin. Also, another honorable mention is that I accidentally popped a large pimple on my chin area removing a pimple patch and immediately put silicone gel on it and used hydrogel mask. I noticed it healed much after that! hopefully it doesnt scar, maybe this is a way to prevent scarring after accidentally popping a pimple? I truly believe hydration to a wound on the face is key (BUT DON'T USE OILS IF YOU ARE ACNE PRONE!! Just gels). I've been using this oat and hemp oil by first aid beauty and noticed it started breaking me out badly, so for me, oils are off the table unless it's an an area that I tend to not get pimples such as my neck.
Leaving another video here about treating scars on the body but I think some of the info here may help in the overall knowledge of scarring. But note that this is mostly about deep scarring incisions such as tummy tuck surgery or breast surgery that is much more severe scarring.
I will apologize in advance if any of this information is irrelevant to you, but I'm just sharing my experience, knowledge and speculation on scar healing as I am going through the journey of excision my scars on my face. I hope this helps someone understand the entire process and be more well informed so that a punch or scapel excision can look much more pleasing than if you did nothing at all during its healing phase. This sort of knowledge can also apply to traumatic injury scars or any other scarring one may experience. I'll mention I got a cyst removed in my abdomen area that left four tiny scars back in January of 2022 and I've used my scar knowledge to help improve it's healing. It's stubborn as the stitches were dissolvable ones (note I mentioned dissolvable stitches cause an inflammation in the body that is not optimal for scarless healing). These types of scars take a year to heal, versus 3 months. Massage, no sun exposure and a lightening agent or a pigment laser are essential to it's optimal healing. Anyways, I talk too much. I'm always eager to share my knowledge or experiences so bear with my messy communication style.
Forgot to mention, I have surgical dermabrasion scheduled for August 3rd 2022 in the afternoon by a plastic surgeon.
Doctor's office manager originally quoted me $3,400 but I got it down to $2,700. $2,000 is the fair market price so for it to be a little above that is fine because of surgeon's skill. I haven't paid the 25% deposit yet to hold the appointment because I want to make sure I am fully committing to any risks that may occur. I haven't fully accepted the potential risks yet. I think it's important to take a few days to think about it.
Why such a late appointment? I could have had it literally done on may 26th of 2022 but I am getting excel laser for my excision this week and wouldn't be the right timing for surgical dermabrasion. Also, I have a demanding schedule in the summer and can't take off a week and a half to recover for my cheeks. The only time I have off is July 20 - August 23. So August 3 fits right in.
I'm scared of permanent hypopigmentation or more scarring from the wiring brush but the plastic surgeon said since I responded well to CO2 previously, I shouldn't have a major problem. I guess we will see.
So yes!! Dermabrasion may be in my future. I will update you
On 5/18/2022 at 4:07 PM, Dontgiveupitsonlyscars said:Forgot to mention, I have surgical dermabrasion scheduled for August 3rd 2022 in the afternoon by a plastic surgeon.
Doctor's office manager originally quoted me $3,400 but I got it down to $2,700. $2,000 is the fair market price so for it to be a little above that is fine because of surgeon's skill. I haven't paid the 25% deposit yet to hold the appointment because I want to make sure I am fully committing to any risks that may occur. I haven't fully accepted the potential risks yet. I think it's important to take a few days to think about it.
Why such a late appointment? I could have had it literally done on may 26th of 2022 but I am getting excel laser for my excision this week and wouldn't be the right timing for surgical dermabrasion. Also, I have a demanding schedule in the summer and can't take off a week and a half to recover for my cheeks. The only time I have off is July 20 - August 23. So August 3 fits right in.
I'm scared of permanent hypopigmentation or more scarring from the wiring brush but the plastic surgeon said since I responded well to CO2 previously, I shouldn't have a major problem. I guess we will see.
So yes!! Dermabrasion may be in my future. I will update you
I am a little confused are you doing dermabrasion on the whole cheek or the excision line only. From the cheek perspective this is not going to fix the depresssion. This will fix the hard edge.
On 5/22/2022 at 1:32 AM, getsmart121 said:I am a little confused are you doing dermabrasion on the whole cheek or the excision line only. From the cheek perspective this is not going to fix the depresssion. This will fix the hard edge.
For both cheeks, not just excision line. If you're right, I'll see how the procedure goes and if to get filler to fill in the depression after the dermabrasion.
Also, I just saw this now. I don't get notifications sometimes when there is a comment/post on my thread.
1 hour ago, Dontgiveupitsonlyscars said:For both cheeks, not just excision line. If you're right, I'll see how the procedure goes and if to get filler to fill in the depression after the dermabrasion.
Also, I just saw this now. I don't get notifications sometimes when there is a comment/post on my thread.
But you dont have hard edges in normal right correct. Not sure how would dermabrasion help you.
28 minutes ago, getsmart121 said:But you dont have hard edges in normal right correct. Not sure how would dermabrasion help you.
I guess we will find out! Not sure if I mentioned this here or elsewhere, but I have dermabrasion set for early August. Already paid 25% of the procedure. Going to see the doctor around mid July as a pre-op. Crossing fingers.
Update on the re-excision scar. Here about a week a part between photos. I wanted to see if scar healing could change within a week through photos. I think I failed this though because I was swollen in one set of pics and not the others and slightly different overhead lighting. I™ll do better the next two weeks.
First two photos are June 7th 2022
the next six are taken June 13th, 2022 in the morning, slightly different lighting
Another thing to know, I have my last spot excel laser for redness on the re-excision scar tomorrow. On the last visit, he had informed me he put dissolvable sutures at the fat layer to secure that it would not move. That™s why I see a fold when I smile, he says. Dissolving sutures can take 4-6 months to dissolve. I constantly massage and bring blood flow to it. I have also been using aloe vera frozen on my face a couple times a week. Sleep with silicone sheets and wear silicone gel during the day. Going to do BHA/AHA mask today for personal care.
A œdear diary entry:
This morning I was at a group meeting and one of the members mentioned to another member that her skin was amazing. I scrunched in my seat listening and noted that she did not compliment mine. They kept talking about proper skin care and what she uses and I sat silent. Although I have heavy interest in skincare, I was reluctant to join the conversation for fear that they would mention my scarring. I sat there, waiting for the moment to pass. And it did pass. After a few hours of reflection, I think it was all in my head. Perhaps that woman was complimenting her to show her appreciation for her quality of skin and it had nothing to do with me. I still feel somewhat low though. I have very good quality skin and invest in a lot of skincare but people will probably look at me and see my scarring and I think I neglect my skin. That misconception troubles me. But ahh, I can™t let the fear of an assumption ruin my day. I™m learning the process of brushing off things that bother me. I may have scarring but I gotta live, I have to let myself live. These uncomfortable moments happen. I just have to swallow deep inside and nodd, accept the reality.
On 6/6/2022 at 11:58 PM, TanjiroKamado said:I have been following a few threads from past couple of months.I really admire your encouraging words on other threads and It has always given me so much hope going forward .I am wishing you nothing but the best for your treatment
Thank you, I really appreciate comments like these. It keeps me going
Its still red. It hasnt blended yet. It will take time. If you dont smile its almost impossible to see
Thank you for updating! I also had failed excisions that I'm trying to fix. It's good to see that I'm not alone.
I took this today at Mascaro™s office while waiting (front camera). He didn™t do excel laser on my excision, just followed up and talked about using a resurfacing procedure 4-6 weeks from now.
Dr. Mascaro dermabrasion:
I mentioned dermabrasion. He nodded and said he had done that 3 months ago on another patient. I asked what was the down time, he said ten days. I said if I would be sedated, he said no it would be a 30 minute procedure and just lidocaine injections. He said he would smooth and blend the scars. I asked which wand, he said he would be using two different wand attachments, diamond and something else. Then i asked is it the orange wand attachment, and he said no, he will use a more precise wand. He walked away fast before I could ask the price. I went to front desk and she said the staff will email with a quote or I pay at the appointment visit.
Schedule issue
So far, they only have two weeks into August available which just isn™t on my time frame since I start my next semester at grad school on the 15th of August. The staff said they can notify me of a cancel, I said yes, with a quote.
Conflicted
Shall I proceed with Mascaro for Dermabrasion? Or proceed with another plastic surgeon I already left a deposit with? I™m conflicted. So far the schedule is off with Mascaro and I also don™t know the price.
Something tells me Mascaro may not resurface the area as deep because he mentioned earlier my skin is sensitive to redness. Idk. I want a the most possible resurfacing dermabrasion I can safely get.
Advice
What would you do?
From that description, Mascaro sounds uneasy with dermabrasion. Also, the timing sounds rough if you'll be on campus. I know I need at least 10 days after any procedure to feel comfortable again.
Is there a reason why you're second guessing the other doctor where you have the deposit down?
Update:
I emailed Dr. mascaros office for a quote and he said it was no charge. Im not sure why. I must be a charity case, haha. With this in mind, I cancelled and requested my deposit back from Dr. rubinstein and am now proceeding with Mascaro. Chances are, he will do light dermabrasion or not the equal to what harmlessboy got but it is what it is. Ill document the whole thing come August.
I think it looks worse than the failed excision I had. Hopefully dermabrasion improves it and a year from now it looks better... who knows. Procedure started at 5:45pm, lidocaine injections were placed ten minutes prior. Once numb, he sawed off portion of my cheek. My skin flaked everywhere like confetti. I felt some stinging pain but nothing like laser. The thought of a metal rotating instrument like the ones they use to file down acrylic nails kept me on edge the whole time.
It was probably 8 mins or so and it was done. I expected lots of blood but when I looked I saw slight redness. At first I sighed, one of disappointment. But then I shrugged and said œwell¦. whatever. It was free of charge, what was I to complain about?
The first three photos are immediately after procedure. The next two and the next other two are perhaps an hour or so apart from each other. The more time went on, the more ozze and blood appeared. I also got more red. Instructions and product used are posted at the end.
I am to see him two weeks from now for a quick check up. I wonder if I can just send pictures over to his instagram instead of driving all the way over there since its a hike. I highly doubt a dermabrasion like this will be anything significant in terms of scar revision. Maybe Im cynical. The most I ask is that its not worse, Id be happy with that. Next step is probably fillers. I say this with scorn as I hate the idea of fillers but man, I also gotta live in some semblance of peace.
My thoughts about my skin seem far worse than when I started, kind of ironic considering how much I have invested in this journey and also the improvement I think Ive gained since the very beginning. Sometimes I sip a cold drink and ask myself why me? but then I realize thats irrelevant. Its a waste of mental energy to think about the past fondly and think of the future as dreadful. I sure have my days though. Days where I feel awful about myself and other days where I feel things are looking up. Im like an unstable summer day where it looks like its sunny skies and then seconds later the rain clouds with the heavy dark thunder are approaching you at rapid speed waiting to take you in its storm and consume you. Boy do I wish for rainbows and riches but Im no leprechaun and this is the real world we must accept the things we cannot change. Denial is the theft of happiness.
But you already know this. Im only writing to you so that you know whats cooking in these thoughts of mine. Oh well. I got 60 years at best to live I tell myself. Am I to spend most of it in dread and agony over my cheeks? Or am I going to rise up and dust myself off and proceed with what I got left? Believe it or not, the answer may seem easy but believe me.. you only realize its been a while that youre sad after all the time has passed. Its hard to be self-aware, wise and young all at the same time.
Anyway, Ill leave you be with this and set you free. I Hope all is well with you, reader. I really do.
