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There are several reasons why one may not achieve reasonably good results with Fraxel:
Low settings
Poor diet
Poor aftercare such as smoking, stress, lack of downtime
Exposure to sunlight
But I am also wondering if cortisone might also impede collagen buildup? Cortisone has been applied to my face after the last two sessions to prevent excess swelling. But I'm beginning to wonder if it's counterproductive. If it's to reduce the swelling, then I'll request cortison NOT be applied after the session.
Thanks to bellydance_me and jjp007 for their posts.
Hey everyone. I just had my 3rd fraxel restore done> my last setting a few days ago was level 7, 8 passes, and 45 mj. my problem is that I ended up having bad results from punch excisions done and not only did it make a few scars deeper and wider looking, it left ice pick scars from the stitches. I had a wonderful dermabrasion done by Dr Y a few yrs ago but he was obviously not familiar with excisions, floats yes but I had excisions done. After this last fraxel, I do see improvement but sometimes I do not think enough improvement and always think I should do another at a higher setting. I get them done by an RN who is great and I beleive really cares and has given me good rates at only$500 a pop. I guess I will do 2 more which i beleive will improve the minimal scars I have but maybe not to the extent where I am completely satisfied. I was thinking about a spot dermabrasion bc I am getting full face fraxels and have about a quarter size of scars on my face. Though a spot derm could be risky. I already made one bad decision.
Hello everyone. I'm here to post a few pictures that show the results from Fraxel Restore.
In observing the pictures, please keep in mind that:
- All pictures are taken under the daylight, with no camera flash, because camera flash tends to erase the appearance of my scars.
-My intention is to help others in making whatever the decision that's best for them, just like caesar2's pictures had helped me. I am in no way trying to make Fraxel look good or bad, by posting these pictures.
-My pictures are taken with and without makeup. Whether or not I have makeup on in each picture is stated with pictures.
- I try to post pictures that make my scars look as bad as possible. I've found that pictures taken under the daylight with a little bit of shadow make the scars look bad, so I've used a lot of those pictures (you'll see what's I am talking about later).
Before Fraxel (FEBRUARY 2008)
1st pictures- Left cheek, no makeup
Both are the exact same pictures, the left one under the natural daylight without editing & the right one under the natural daylight with editing to add more shadow to highlight the scars. In addition to the icepick scars you see in these pictures, I had about 6-7 large box scars on my left side but they were hard to photograph. Also, as you can see, I had A LOT of melasma.
2nd picture - Left cheek, with makeup
Bad picture, I know. Sorry. Since my icepick scars pre-Fraxel were pretty deep, makeup actually made the scars look worse though it did help hiding my melasma and uneven complexion. I wish I had better pictures with makeup, but I don't.
3rd picutres - Right cheek, with makeup
I had a fewer scars on this side of my face, but I had some of the deepest icepick & boxed scars on this side. No pictures without makeup because the scars were actually easier to photograph with makeup.
After 5 treatments of Fraxel & 6 month after the 5th treatment (DECEMBER 2008)
4th picture - Left cheek, with makeup
You can see that most of the icepick scars have disappeared or become shallower. I still have boxed scars but with softer edges. My husband thinks that this side of my face was originally much worse than the other (right) side, but this side has shown more improvements than the right side. I was not expecting icepick scars to show much improvements, so I was surprised.
5th picture - Left cheek, without makeup
This was taken in Dec 08 right after visiting my dermatologist to remove the last few milias that developed during/after Fraxel. You see a few red spots because of that. I had about 20 milias all over my face in June 08, but Retin-A and a few visits to my dermatologist have helped greatly. As of Jan 09, I only have 2~3 small milias.
6th picture- Right cheek, with makeup
This side showed the minimum results. But some of the very deep scars you see in picture #3 have become shallower. That I am happy about.
7th picture - Right cheek, without makeup
Again, this side has shown the minimum results.
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I just had my 6th Fraxel Restore treatment at 70MJ, and I'm SO very swollen like Mike Tyson after the match. Wow! I will keep you guys updated and post more pictures soon. Good luck to everyone!!!
yeah, i was curious about this too....anyone?? i've done smoothbeam, but now wanted to try fraxel. i'm just fed up with my skin. i mean, honestly. :wall: :wall:
so, i found out about this one doctor in LA (Encino actually) and he's really great. he was on extra because Marta Waller, a local news woman, did this whole series where she did fraxel on camera and you can see what it did to her skin and follow the recovery process. Anyway, being able to see all that made me feel more comfortable going to him, so i went in and met with them and it's really not bad! it does hurt a little, it feels like a sunburn, but the results are amazing. it really makes a big difference!
the doctor's name is Dr. Persky. He's really good but pretty fast so you don't feel like you're there forever, which i thought was really important with a laser. i didn't want to be sitting there for ages.
here's a link to that video on youtube. it's pretty crazy!
Good Luck!
For those that are considering to get Fraxel, I am going to post a few pictures that show the condition right after Fraxel.
I just had my 6th treatment at 70MJ and Treatment level 11.
The day before my 6th treatment:
The day after my 6th treatment:
As you can see, the swelling is remarkable, and my husband and I both agree that I look like Mike Tyson after the boxing match. I don't recognize myself since my face line has changed completely and my eyes hardly open. No pain at all though.
This picture was taken the day after my 3rd Fraxel Treatment at 45MJ and Treatment level 6. I was red, but the swelling was minimum.
4/14/08, 4 days after my 3rd Fraxel. I was able to put on makeup and go out without getting "the look". Notice there is no visible acne scars due to micro-swelling effects. The micro-swelling lasts about 3 weeks on my skin.
Here are some of the breakouts that I experienced during and after Fraxel.
1. One time, I broke out a lot under my mouth. This was right after my 4th treatment.
2. Another breakout around the mouth. These didn't go away for a while, and I used Clindagel, a topical antibiotic, to treat them. It worked.
3. I had developed cystic acne, whiteheads, large blackheads and milias during and after the treatments. My dermatologist put me on Retin-A, which worked beautifully...after a few weeks of hell.
I must add that before starting my 6th treatment with a new doctor, he advised me to take Doxycycline to prevent the post Fraxel breakout. It's the 2nd day after the treatment and I am still not seeing any whiteheads, milias or inflammation that I normally observe starting the day after each treatment. I am pleased so far (though I still don't recognize myself!).
I had fraxel done a week ago by a very trustworthy dermatologist, she was very professional and it's highly rated. I will post some pictures up later. I am getting 4 total treatments. I forgot to ask her which fraxel method she used, if anyone went through what I did, it be helpful if you could name it. I will ask her next time I come in, but it be cool to know before hand.
Was it Repair, Co2, resurfacing or just normal fraxel? I was put on clear numbing cream for about an hour. The level she used was at 40% and did it all over my face. She did each area 4 times, felt like bunch of tiny needles poking at you, kinda painful. After couple of days, my skin turn brown and crusted, which is expected and peel off. I really hope it wasn't just the normal fraxel, cause from what I read, it's the most "useless" one.
I must add that before starting my 6th treatment with a new doctor, he advised me to take Doxycycline to prevent the post Fraxel breakout. It's the 2nd day after the treatment and I am still not seeing any whiteheads, milias or inflammation that I normally observe starting the day after each treatment. I am pleased so far (though I still don't recognize myself!).
Update:
Approximately 10 days after my 6th Fraxel, I've only had one tiny zit so far. Wow, what a difference with antibiotics. My face has healed very nicely. Will have my 7th next month.
I highly recommend these two products during post Fraxel healing period. They are extremely good at moisturizing and healing your red, swollen, dry skin.
-ATOPALM MLE Intensive Moisturizing Cream (originally developed for people with Rosacea. This cream is extremely moisturizing but not greasy at all. Google the reviews online..it's awesome.)
-Mario Badescu Healing Cream (I've used this cream for 7 years and this has gotten rid of my atopic eczema completely. This truly heals your skin. )
Sorry hadn't visited the board for a while. I got my Terproline from http://www.skinmed.co.uk/scarring/index.html
They had a buy two get one free promotion that I took advantage of. Cost me like US dollar equivalent of 50 British pounds shipping included. It was the 50ml face cream.
May I know where you get the Terproline ointment? Is it OTC medicine or you need the doctor's prescription for it?
bellydance_me - Thanks for posting the pics and being clear about your results. I'm glad that you got visible improvements. If money allows, I think you should go for a set of six more Fraxels and you should be good to go. If I had results as yours, I really wouldn't mind the cost.
To others, I think the varying results show that Fraxel may or may not work for you in getting rid of your scars. My scars are definitely more intense than BellyDance_Me's scars, and I only went for 4 treatments after which I gave up since I was not sure it was working. Its been almost six months now and the results I got from it has left me very unimpressed. Anyways, for those seeking advice - I'd like to advise that make an informed decision with realistic expectation. Or I guess the best is expect the worse so that when there is some improvement, you'll be happy. Also, one has to realize that white people are able to go for much higher settings which should be helpful in getting better improvements from it.
Right now, I have been investigating Sciton Profractional. It looks very promising especially combined with the Sciton Laser Peel. It appeals to me because even if it doesn't improve on your scars, its going to get rid of any wrinkles you may have and dramatically improve your skin tone. I looked at 100s of before/after pics at this Aesthetic place and I was impressed. The only thing was there were only couple of pics of scar treatment. Another thing is they have this cool machine that takes picture of your face and does some kind of analysis that is able to detect all your scars/wrinkles/any other deformities. This is the machine they say they can use to measure the improvement 
Any way the way this laser works I'm told is the same way as fraxel but while Fraxel punches holes with the laser, the Profractional drills cylindrical holes with the laser. Also I'm told that unlike Fraxel, it doesn't have a replaceable tip so it is a little cheaper than Fraxel. The only thing that concerns me is the risk of hyper-pigmentation and down-time. The after-procedure pics are horribly dangerous looking and downtime is sure long. Its a much intense procedure than Fraxel. I went through two test spots on my temples and the next day that spot looked literally red/swollen. After 3-4 days, it was still red and the swelling had subsided. Now the funny thing is after 10 days or so, the test spots became really read and swollen again although when I felt it, it didn't hurt at all. That lasted for about 2-3 days and now its back to normal. I still think it is still reddish and you can easily differentiate from the rest of my face. So I'm in a great dilemma because I'm scared as shit to do the whole face. As for improvement in my scars, I can't really tell. Anyways, I will be researching it more before taking the plunge.
bellydance_me - Thanks for posting the pics and being clear about your results. I'm glad that you got visible improvements. If money allows, I think you should go for a set of six more Fraxels and you should be good to go. If I had results as yours, I really wouldn't mind the cost.
Thanks for the encouragement, imjayhawk. I'm actually thinking about getting two more Fraxels (total of 8) and be done with it. It's 3 weeks post my 6th Fraxel now, and I am thinking that with two more Fraxels, I'll probably be happy enough about my skin.
I will have my 7th on 3/7/09. I will post more of my progress pictures soon.
Good luck everyone! 🙂
Hi Bellydance_Me,
Your 6th treatment was very high. How on earth did you handle the pain? I've done 60mj at level 6 with 8 passes and I almost shouted Uncle.
I'm glad you're happy with the results and seem comfortable in your skin.
bellydance_me - Thanks for posting the pics and being clear about your results. I'm glad that you got visible improvements. If money allows, I think you should go for a set of six more Fraxels and you should be good to go. If I had results as yours, I really wouldn't mind the cost.
Thanks for the encouragement, imjayhawk. I'm actually thinking about getting two more Fraxels (total of 8) and be done with it. It's 3 weeks post my 6th Fraxel now, and I am thinking that with two more Fraxels, I'll probably be happy enough about my skin.
I will have my 7th on 3/7/09. I will post more of my progress pictures soon.
Good luck everyone!
bellydance_me - Thanks for posting the pics and being clear about your results. I'm glad that you got visible improvements. If money allows, I think you should go for a set of six more Fraxels and you should be good to go. If I had results as yours, I really wouldn't mind the cost.Thanks for the encouragement, imjayhawk. I'm actually thinking about getting two more Fraxels (total of 8) and be done with it. It's 3 weeks post my 6th Fraxel now, and I am thinking that with two more Fraxels, I'll probably be happy enough about my skin.
I will have my 7th on 3/7/09. I will post more of my progress pictures soon.
Good luck everyone! 🙂
Hi Bellydance_Me,
Your 6th treatment was very high. How on earth did you handle the pain? I've done 60mj at level 6 with 8 passes and I almost shouted Uncle.
I'm glad you're happy with the results and seem comfortable in your skin.
Hi Unbroken. I saw your other post & congrats on having improvements!
Amazingly, I felt almost no pain at all during my 6th treatment. I couldn't believe it and kept telling my doctor how little to no pain that I was feeling. My doctor said it's because of the very good numbing cream that he used.
The pain that I felt during each of my first 5 Fraxels was so bad that even I, someone who is extremely tolerant of pain with tattoos on most painful part of my body, hesitated to go back for my 6th, only to end up feeling almost nothing. It was amazing. He did use the the air cooling device, but I bet I could have handled it without.
FYI, the numbing cream that was used for my 6th Fraxel was the type that the nurse could wipe out easily and left no residues. And the one that was used by my previous doctor for my first 5 was the type that the nurse took quite some time wiping out with force. It left some white residues on the corners of my face and on my hair.
I wish that all other laser doctors can start using the top of line numbing cream that there is. It made the world of difference, and I no longer associate the word "pain" with Fraxel.
To anyone that is considering the Fraxel and currently looking for a doctor-
I paid $800 for my previous doctor who was a good doctor but was not known for Fraxel and $1200 for my current doctor who is one of the most experienced Fraxel doctors in the world. The $400 price difference, to me, was completely worth it. The new doctor prescribed me Doxycycline to prevent the breakouts (the results: I only had one zit after my 6th, which was unbelievable considering how bad I used to break out after each Fraxel), and his numbing cream was out of the world. He was so smooth and experienced in everything that he was doing that he only took half of the time my previous doctor took to perform the procedure, with the same # of passes. So I encourage you to choose the experienced doctors who may be more pricey over not so experienced doctors who may be more affordable. In my case, I feel I really got what I paid for.
Hello,
I've read almost every post on this thread and just thought I'd share my experience here. I've been on this website several times, but I just registered today. I'm 29 years old and have suffered from acne scarring since I was about 17 years old. I like most of you have suffered a lot because of my scarring. I dropped out of highschool because of it and suffer in life because of it. Still today, I suffer from it. I am very social and am for the most part, confident. I am as confident as anyone can expect me to be. I used to wear my hair on my face to cover my acne scars when I was between 17-21 years old. I got a lot of stares but I think that most of it was because of the way I wore my hair... I was basically attracting attention. ANyways, back to now... WHen I was 24 years old I went to see a plastic-surgeon (not an RN or a spa)... They did NOT recomment laser surgery or dermabrasion for me because of my dark complexion. (I am latina). I was very dissapointed. I almost every scar you can think of. Icepick scarring, box, deep running scars. They recommended I try microdermabrasion. They explained that I would see some results but that I couldn't expect more than maybe 30% improvement. I purchased an 18-session package that cost me about 1,600. I was actually very happy with the results. My scarring improved about 20-35% but it improved the texture and smoothness of my face about 65%. I can not say I regret doing it. Two months ago, I decided to go back in to meet with the doctor and inquired about any new procedures. They told me about Fraxel. Even though I'm dark-skineed, they were able to recommend it to me. I did my second session yesterday. I am at the deepest level... I believe it is 8. And they covered 27% of my face. All my acne scarring is on my cheeks, no where else. I noticed improvement after my 1st session. Mostly on the apperance of my face... again, my face was smoother. Here is my experience:
Fraxel procedure: Painful but tolerable. Hard to explain, it kind of feels like little bittie HOT HOT needles poking your face...
after the procedure- I was very swollen, I looked like a chimpunk for three days. After the swelling, I was bronzed in the effected area for about 2wks and the effected area was very dry and peeling on the 3rd day for about 3 days.
I just had my 2nd session yesterday. They went the deepest they could go this time. They told me that next time I come in, they will cover more area which will be more uncomfortable. This time it hurt more. I guess because they went in deeper into the skin. I am very excited. So far I have nothing negative to say. I just think people should be realistic about what the results will be. I'm expecintg about 50% improvement after my recommended 6 sessions. The impromements for Fraxel is not immidietly after the session. IT is 2-3 months later. The point of fraxel is for your collagen to build up again. The true results will be 2-3 months afer your last session. Most people that post negative things about fraxel are only on there 1st or 2nd treatment and haven't waited long enough to truly judge it. I will not say that this has worked because I am only on my second session. I promise to keep you updated. I am very hopeful that this will work. I go to an actual doctor. They charge me $600 per session. They only treat the effected area (both cheeks). This way I don't have to pay for the whole face. Let me know if you have any questions.
I've got a dark complexion and HAD moderate active acne with moderate scarring.
After my third treatment most of the active acne has gone, and my skin has cleared tremendously. What remains are the cystic acne, but I am currently taking Doxycycline prescribed by my dermatologist.
I've seen significant improvement from Fraxels (Palomar 1540 Handpiece) with 2 passes and 50MJ.
If you can afford it, and can maintain your skin postop, I highly recommend it.
I have pics if anyone is interested.
Also, If you live in the Beverly Hills, LA Area, we need people to do data entry in trade for free fraxels! (27/hr in laser services)
Send me a message if you're interested! Thanks
Hello,
I hate to disappoint you all, but I've had Fraxel done and it did not improve any of my scarring. The pictures that you see of "before & afters" are taken just days after the laser treatment is done and there is only improvement due to swelling. It's really disappointing.
I have spent so much money on acne scar treatment and have received very little improvement. On top of that, I had the Erbium Yag laser done and everyone who has any interest in this should find a different method of treatment because it's a huge SCAM! They make it out to be not painful. It's very painful. Then you leave with your face looking plum red and you have to deal with horrific scabbing for days. Once the scabbing in gone you are left with beautiful baby skin, then you begin to think that MAYBE it worked....but then after a couple days..again the swelling goes down and you are left with the same scarring. I had the Erbium Yag done LAST YEAR! Still no improvement. Lasers are a scam. If you are looking for genuine (realistic) improvement, I would recommend punch & graft, excision and fillers. I've had artefill done for the first time in October of last year and I see improvement but it's a process and you have to learn to accept that you won't find perfection.
Thank-you for your time,
Flawedtoperfection