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After reading each and every post on this thread I have not heard of anyone having a redder face after fraxel, other than the initial week or so. I also haven't heard of many/any long term bad results.
Both billy boy and myself have had good improvement in removing our overall redness.
You will be fine. Good Luck to you.
I found that drinking gallons of water & pineapple juice, the first few days after really helped with swelling.
Peach Pie
hrms, hey all!
i'm doing a lot of session of vbeam right now, but they say its going to help with redness and red scars overall and hyperpigmentation and spots thats not even with tone and also wrinkles and so forth....though vbeam is not expensive, about 2 bills a session, reasonable since i have a job. my question is would fraxel yield all of this also plus more in scars revision???? also what is the basic estimate for like a session or a package deal for fraxel? thanks
also how does fraxel compare to erbium yag laser?
hrms, hey all!
i'm doing a lot of session of vbeam right now, but they say its going to help with redness and red scars overall and hyperpigmentation and spots thats not even with tone and also wrinkles and so forth....though vbeam is not expensive, about 2 bills a session, reasonable since i have a job. my question is would fraxel yield all of this also plus more in scars revision???? also what is the basic estimate for like a session or a package deal for fraxel? thanks
also how does fraxel compare to erbium yag laser?
Depending on the types of scarring, and degree I could not give any input.
I have ha several Erbiums, deep ones, and allmost all my scarring is gone.
But 3 shallow ones still bug me. And some uneveness that noone notices but me.
Is that sickening. Like your acne is not bad, and so on, your scars are not bad, but it is you that have to live with it and thus said usually comes from someone who is worse. So we try to help them.
But don't say that! It bugs us no matter what degree. Like we don't start up a poll "whos acne or scarring is worse", and fight and take votes. That is sick."
We all have are own sometimes different problems, and so on.
Anyway Dr. said enough laser, although it has been 5 years and Is have good skin thickness, he wished me to get the Fraxel. So I saw a Dr. Who said I don't know if you would get results from this. I'll keep looking at your pics, and call back. Then I saw another Dr. who said in 2 months there is a new Fraxel which he has ordered, but won't arrive for about 2 months, and asked me to wait, cause the older Fraxels can'tchange "heads" like some Thermage machines. You need a totally new one for this. So in the meantime cause my scars are shallow, I have decided to do Erbium, but the sciton one which is not very deep, he passes over the scars a bit then evens it out with a real shallow "lasering" to even the redness out.
Several treatments are required, and as I would prefer one deeper one, but he is right do the shallow. After what I had done I have no more deep stuff as I may depigment in a deep tx.. I don't think so as I am quite fair, but they can see some there that I can't.
Several said so, but I guess I don't notice the whiteness, as I am so fair. Better than permanent red.
So I will try this other microlaser peel, 35microns, 1 - 2 times more, the finish up with fraxel to even all out, when this dr. gets the "new Fraxel one". The newest one yet I will try a few to even out my skin layers and tone.
I'll update when I get each procedure done, if you like.
Everone it seems is getting out of deep treatments, and because someday there will be a miracle laser, they are stepping down from such invasive procedures, as so many have had problems.
The big boom will come in the next 5 years I hear, where the Plastics guys will not need their scalpels so much any more. It seems a new laser is being built every day, and sooner or later in the near future they will figure it out.
So I say do what you need to do as non invasively as possible, but enough to keep you happy. Cause after hearing what I heard today, there will be like way better stuff to come.
The lasers are booming, (non invasive like Fraxel) and people aren't willing to do deep stuff anymore cause they know what is coming.
Any input people?? that's what I learned today speaking to like 15 guys today on the phone or their nurses....???
Jodie I would look into light makeup options if these are just a few tiny spots.
Yea, kinda like yours, maybe but they bothered you like they do me!
I really want to get away from the concealer thing and just use a light dusting with mineral powder.
I am trying to use the scar eraser more, just have to stop and BP these tiny bumps around the scar when I use it. The like make it 5x worse than it is. (the tiny bumps). Someone here said they got tiny and I mean tiny bumps after using it and they went away in a week??????
Use Neutrogena Clean tint concealer. Oil free and totally undetectable that u are wearing it. Can be put over the scar eraser as well which is what I do every day. Its liquid and goes into the skin to give a totally natural look to the skin, does not give that powdery look. Its great.
I have not had any acne at all with the scar eraser stuff or anything else I have used in about a year. Well three real zits since gong on accutane this time last year and that was it.
And yeah what I look like now is not what I looked like a year ago lol. I was honestly feeling like a disgustign monster for awhile and just totally depressed about my skin going to shit. At this point those minor imperfections I am left with are not a big deal to me. I am hopeing the Fraxels will take out those marks so i no longer have to use anything on my skin to conceal them.
Use Neutrogena Clean tint concealer. Oil free and totally undetectable that u are wearing it. Can be put over the scar eraser as well which is what I do every day. Its liquid and goes into the skin to give a totally natural look to the skin, does not give that powdery look. Its great.
I have not had any acne at all with the scar eraser stuff or anything else I have used in about a year. Well three real zits since gong on accutane this time last year and that was it.
And yeah what I look like now is not what I looked like a year ago lol. I was honestly feeling like a disgustign monster for awhile and just totally depressed about my skin going to shit. At this point those minor imperfections I am left with are not a big deal to me. I am hopeing the Fraxels will take out those marks so i no longer have to use anything on my skin to conceal them.
Thanks Keith 🙂
Thats exactly how I feel!!
Guys, just to update post 2nd Fraxel, (new machine, 9/19/06): swelling continues to go down, redness is almost gone. Still flaking. :dance:
My husband had the doc do an extra pass on my crows feet :rolleyes: , and tonight he commented that he thinks that area is looking amazing. :clap: At the moment, so do I - but I figure there's still residual swelling so I'm not getting my hopes up.
I've used almost no "stuff" on my face this time, and my skin seems to be healing much faster. Seeing how much better I've healed without keeping my face slathered down with stuff, I doubt I'll be using any "stuff" after the next three, either.
I'm trying to eat fruits and veggies more often, and I've been consistent with the supplements that I'm taking (a women's multivitamin, a glucosamine/MSM/chondroitin joint health product, alpha lipoic acid, and extra vitamin c.)
Everyone always leans on the fruits and veggies. I honestly think increased protein is much more important since you are trying to build new skin (that's what they increase the intake of for burn victims). Vitamin C is very important too since it is a vital catalyst in the collagen generation process. I wonder if increased sleep makes a difference too since this is when the body goes into repair mode.
I remember one of the questions on my nursing exam was about the diet for a burn victim. Increased vegetables was the wrong answer. the right one was increased protein and vitamin c.
For those newbies interested in acne scars, wrinkles and pores:
hey guys, i'm seriously considering fraxel right now due to the fact that IT IS FDA APPROVED FOR ACNE SCARRING and it also take care of hyperpigmentation, redness, rosacea, wrinkles, and other imperfection... but i have to decide whether or not i want to spend more money on my current treatment of vbeam ($210 a session) and about ($188) for each saline injection session...
now add that together its about give or take 400 bucks, now with that 400 bucks i can just add to my fraxel session and attack all my imperfections which is redness, hyperpigmentation, rosacea, wrinkles, and shallow acne scars... now i know fraxel requires at least 6 session or more to achieve the ultimate results but what is the average cost in southern california for a package like this, i mean i dont have money to waste on treatments that won't help, sorry for venting, i just want some advices.. thanks...
"Nothing in life changes except technology"
hey guys, i'm seriously considering fraxel right now due to the fact that IT IS FDA APPROVED FOR ACNE SCARRING and it also take care of hyperpigmentation, redness, rosacea, wrinkles, and other imperfection...
Really? I was told that Fraxel wouldn't treat rosacea, and the treatments for rosacea, VBeam, IPL, whatever, would have to be after all the Fraxels were done. But maybe they were just trying to sell me more stuff?
Here is response from my Dr as to options for my scarring:
Retin A won't help. Tazorac is more effective, but still very unlikely to be helpful. It's fine to give Fraxel more time. It may be useful.
Dr. B.
I am going to wait a while longer then go see him to decide on trying subcision and/or more fraxels. Hopefully, I will see the delayed collagen boost that some people have experienced.
hrms, well i'm not 100 percent sure as of fraxel treating rosacea or not, but im doing some more research on what rosacea is really and its just your face getting red and flushness, also possible broken capilaries. i'm trying to decide if i have rosacea or not, but i highly doubt it. also can anybody clear up on what fraxel treat and is it like safe over all as in no additional scarring? i am here to help also, i'm seriously considering doing one more saline injection then wait about 2 weeks then go for the fraxel package.
Here is response from my Dr as to options for my scarring:
Retin A won't help. Tazorac is more effective, but still very unlikely to be helpful. It's fine to give Fraxel more time. It may be useful.
Dr. B.
I am going to wait a while longer then go see him to decide on trying subcision and/or more fraxels. Hopefully, I will see the delayed collagen boost that some people have experienced.
Simply
Pre fraxel, I had ruddy complexion, even though the rest of my skin is tan. I am not 100% certain I had rosacea, but I do know that I would get peridic flares of seb derm, which is often associated with rosacea. This would add some redness to central face. I would also turn very red sometimes after working out, steam bath, exposure to cold, laughing ,etc. The skin just under my eyes was not red, so it created a slight racoon effect.
I feel that my face color is way less red now, and my flares of seb derm have not returned to central face. This has been the best Fraxel result for me.
I don't notice any new scars from Fraxel. I feel it is pretty safe, but it was not that effective for me as to scar treatment. Does your Doc say it is ok to have Fraxel after saline injections?
I take MSM (but I will stop when this Costco bottle runs out, as I am not sure it really promotes collagen and joint health as much as it claims) and get lots of Vitamin C from fruit. If I am light on anything it might be protein, but I generally eat healthy. But thanks for input. I suspect that my sun exposure does not help.
from my experience intense pulsed light (whether you want to call it vbeam, n-light, aurora, etc.) is only a temporary solution and only for redness. as for scarring it did not thing for me, in fact it actually gave me a few new ones.
if you are in a position to get fraxel i would discontinue all other treatments and go for it. look in the link i posted on the last page the third womans picture shows improvement in dilated capillaries.
billyboy,
scar tissue undergoes "contraction" over a period of several years and becomes very dense. I've had professors say it is stronger than steel at the molecular level (not sure if that's true). I think even old people have only had their wrinkles for 10-20 years or so (and its more skin creasing than scar tissue). Treating 40 year old scar tissue has got to be the toughest test for fraxel. I do see small improvements and would encourage you to do a round every six months, since the effects are going to be cumulative, maybe even exponential. You did say you picked at the peeling skin too which may have interefered. also the new fraxel will probably give much better results since it goes deeper and uses much higher levels. I'd find a doc who has it.
Went to the salon today, the ladies there swear they can see improvement.
Before I went, I was examining my skin in the magnifying mirror and decided I see no change.
I'm probably being overly critical. 
Or, there really IS no change and the ladies were going for 
This is making me 
Went to the salon today, the ladies there swear they can see improvement.
Before I went, I was examining my skin in the magnifying mirror and decided I see no change.
:wall:
I'm probably being overly critical. :unsure:
Or, there really IS no change and the ladies were going for :comfort:
This is making me :crazy2:
shyone what type of scarring do you have? Any ice picks too?. If so what is the improvement on those so far?
People have reported not seeing improvement until after the 5th fraxel??
shyone what type of scarring do you have? Any ice picks too?. If so what is the improvement on those so far?
People have reported not seeing improvement until after the 5th fraxel??
It's rolling scars, I guess. The skin on my left cheek has that wavy appearance. I have been asked "did you get burned as a child" often because of the way it is. Add to that lots of shallow scars on top of the wavy texture, I think those are box ? They look kinda like chicken pox marks. Shallow indents, more wide than deep. I'm very fair skinned, and some of the chicken pox marks looking ones are totally devoid of pigment - completely white nside the scar itself.
I have lines (marionette or something, can't remember) from the edges of my mouth down on either side of my chin, and a couple of those are going konkways because the lines "ate" scars as they formed, if that makes sense? I don't think fraxel is going to get rid of those, and I would like to try a filler, but my husband is totally against it. :snooty:
I'm 45, so I've also got crows feet and a few deep lines on my forehead already, too. Those actually do look some better. :dance:
The overal texture of my skin is better since I started the treatments.
I've got to practice patience, it's not a quality I'm known for... :redface:
Two down, three to go, better skin by March. That would be my slogan. If I had a slogan.
texture improved but not scars? I dont get it, everyone reports this phenomenon . . . what exactly is texture? pores? like does it make your non scarred skin seem like a baby's smooth skin?
Yes, it's changed my nonscarred skin. It's not like a baby's but definitely smoother than it was.
shyone:
From what you described re your scarring, I have done lot's of research on Fraxel, and some need up to 8 treatments for the deeper scarring to improve.
Why is your husband against fillers? Worried re allergic reaction? Well I am the most allergic person I know,
but have used Restylin with great success! (Not for aging, I am not quite there yet, but always hated my "laugh lines". It lasts longer and longer with each treatment!! Do whatever you feel makes YOU feel better. I am glad he is supportive of the Fraxel, at the same time, he should be more open to the fillers.
You need to feel good! And some fillers may work well in some lingering rolling scars after Fraxel.
Seriously though from what you described I think you (I am no Doc!) 8 Fraxels. 5 is more for moderate more shallow stuff.
Some people on here have had good success with silicone (permanent) fillers. But I am not into that as I would be the allergic one, or the lumpy one. Restylin is like safe though!!
Keep us posted on your success.
Oh question - good your lines are looking better! But have you noticed a more firm skin?. Like tighter like a lift or somewhat????????
Thanks! 
Ienvy you guys because you have gotta fraxel laser .My dermatologist in Kuwait told me about it and iam very excited about this laser . Tthis procedure is not available in my country but my doctor will wait for more results on medium to dark skin (iam medium not very dark).any body with ethnic or olive skin hadve been tried this.