Hey guys, I have been such a lurker here for years. Obviously first it was to kill the acne and in the last year it has been to kill the pits left behind. This has been the worst year of my life as far as self esteem goes. The scars have effected my mental health more than any pimple ever did. We've all been there, it's the worst feeling and so hard for others to understand. This last year was the year after I took my first round of accutane and truth be told it did clear my acne amazingly but only for 10 months then I started getting cysts again (lovely). I have been so hesitant to take a second round of accutane because of the thinning it did to my skin leaving very subtle but bothersome lines on my face.
Anyway, flash forward to me trying to pull through life with these scars, I tried dermastamping, rolling, diets and pills to treat my scarring (cysts are taken care of now for the most part) and nothing has improved my skin the way getting laser has in the last month. I've been putting off laser or any dramatic treatments for the sake of saving money and downtime. I always thought if I ever have any improvement in my skin the first thing I will do is post it on here. It sucks feeling so low because of something so shallow like SKIN. It's crazy to think how much it can ruin your life. This is the treatment I did:
Traditional co2 laser--2 passes on left side and 3 passed on right.
Dermasanding right after laser.
I am a month out of my treatment. Downtime was awful, so red and skin was extremely dry for days. Apparently this treatment takes weeks to heal but I completely healed in two weeks time. I've always been a fast healer so its different for everyone I guess. I had strange lines, and moderate boxcar and rolling scars along with a couple icepicks. Now, some scars are gone 100 % and a few others are still there, but so much better. I would say overall, my skin is improved 60-70%. I wanted to post before and after pics to prove it but I just recently got a new phone and dont have any befores. My doctor was truly amazing and specialized in scar treatments and if anyone would like his name message me. Overall I haven't had that depressing feeling about my skin in two weeks, and am so extremely happy. The treatment I did takes 6-18 months to see full results as well. I hope I continue to see improvement. Just thought I'd share my story if anyone needs another option for their scar journey.
I had no idea what laser to use, I always got really frustrated trying to research lasers for acne scars because there didn't seem to be enough information. The doctor said the old school traditional co2 laser is the most effective for acne scars. My scars were moderate, none were extremely deep but there were so many of them it made my skin look terrible. The procedure I had was intense I cannot deny that, my face was RAW and red for days until it healed. I put a lot of trust in my doctor because he seemed very confident in what he was doing and scar treatment is what he specialized in (plastic surgeon). Honestly I was at the point where I would take a big risk if that meant getting the scars fixed.
Dermasanding is dermabrasion. Once he did the laser passes he used this wire device that takes off layers of the skin making the surface level more even.
I did about 3 sessions of dermastamping. I saw improvement in maybe 2 scars but again I had so many I wasn't satisfied!
The pills I took and am still taking are vitamin C, glutamine/msm and drinking tons of green tea and water. I also eat a pretty high fat diet (butter, cheese, eggs) nothing too extreme but I think it helps plump up my skin even before I did the laser. All of these supplements are supposed to increase collagen production, so if you are doing something that promotes collagen like dermastamping I would advice doing that even if you don't do the laser. Although I'm not a doctor but I'm just sharing what has helped me!
I took the plunge, paid a crazy amount of money for a college student and had to have a ton of downtime but I can say now that it was worth every penny!
I did it 3 times and realized I was kind of wasting my time for the improvement I wanted. Maybe I wasn't as patient as I should've been but then again it's different for everyone. Here's an after pic. I had so many before pics on my old phone and am pissed I don't have them still! I had a mild breakout during this pic and I am wearing make up. I feel really strange posting a picture of something I used to be so self conscious of.
I also want to add that some days my skin looks really great and some days not as great but always better than before. I think it depends on how hydrated I am and if I've been drinking the night before etc. but I'm sure we all get that! So obviously some scars are still there but so much more manageable in my opinion.
Also check out co2 resurfacing laser on realself. There are a few acne scar patients that have taken some really amazing before and afters! It's what pushed me to do the treatment.
The laser treatment also gradually imroves within a 6 to 18 month period so I've been told, don't know if I said that already but it's something nice to know at least!
Also guys, I totally get why people who have gotten their skin fixed don't come back here. They are out enjoying their new skin! I just wanted to bring that up, since I know there is a lot of disappointing threads on here for scars. It's just a thought that maybe there is more success and hope in the world for scars but we just aren't reading about it on these threads, making us think it's completely hopeless.
I wish you all the best of luck finding peace with your skin! I'll continue to answer any questions if there's any left!
Great that it's working for you! Myself, I don't dare to do any harsh lasers like co2, so I'm gonna get Fraxel restore, which is not ablative. Probably gonna need at least 4 procedures, since my scarring is quite bad.
Would be really nice if you could put some before and after pictures!
Also, I agree with Meagan that people with negative results or no results at all are more likely to come back here and complain while the ones who had success just moves on real quick.
Great that it's working for you! Myself, I don't dare to do any harsh lasers like co2, so I'm gonna get Fraxel restore, which is not ablative. Probably gonna need at least 4 procedures, since my scarring is quite bad.
Would be really nice if you could put some before and after pictures!
Also, I agree with Meagan that people with negative results or no results at all are more likely to come back here and complain while the ones who had success just moves on real quick.
i dont think u gonna get results if you do fraxel restore just waste of money , need to take a agressive approach from what i hear
I did it 3 times and realized I was kind of wasting my time for the improvement I wanted. Maybe I wasn't as patient as I should've been but then again it's different for everyone. Here's an after pic. I had so many before pics on my old phone and am pissed I don't have them still! I had a mild breakout during this pic and I am wearing make up. I feel really strange posting a picture of something I used to be so self conscious of.
I also want to add that some days my skin looks really great and some days not as great but always better than before. I think it depends on how hydrated I am and if I've been drinking the night before etc. but I'm sure we all get that! So obviously some scars are still there but so much more manageable in my opinion.
Also check out co2 resurfacing laser on realself. There are a few acne scar patients that have taken some really amazing before and afters! It's what pushed me to do the treatment.
The laser treatment also gradually imroves within a 6 to 18 month period so I've been told, don't know if I said that already but it's something nice to know at least!
Also guys, I totally get why people who have gotten their skin fixed don't come back here. They are out enjoying their new skin! I just wanted to bring that up, since I know there is a lot of disappointing threads on here for scars. It's just a thought that maybe there is more success and hope in the world for scars but we just aren't reading about it on these threads, making us think it's completely hopeless.
I wish you all the best of luck finding peace with your skin! I'll continue to answer any questions if there's any left!
Are you going to post pics??? It is extremely helpful.
Hey guys sorry! This is the after. This side looked so much worse than before. Like I said I don't have any before because of my phone. I'm wearing make up in this just FYI. I have a follow up appt this week and he took some befores so I'll see if I can get them. 
The picture looks really blurry when I posted it in my phone so I'm sure it you can see it better on the computer or not.
Great that it's working for you! Myself, I don't dare to do any harsh lasers like co2, so I'm gonna get Fraxel restore, which is not ablative. Probably gonna need at least 4 procedures, since my scarring is quite bad.
Would be really nice if you could put some before and after pictures!
Also, I agree with Meagan that people with negative results or no results at all are more likely to come back here and complain while the ones who had success just moves on real quick.
Wow, wish you had 'before' pics. Your skin looks great. I also took Accutane - I stayed relatively clear for about 1.5 years post. I was just about ready to begin scar treatments, but now the acne has started to come back. Very frustrating. How did you get the acne to calm back down? Congrats on your results.
I wish I had them too. My skin before was about 20 moderately shallow scars especially in that area of my picture. Some scars were just lines, not wrinkles it was really bizarre! I know how you feel, it's so hard to try and control TWO troubling skin problems at the same time! So depressing...but what has really helped my acne is that I have lost about 20 pounds in the last 4 months and that has been more amazing for my skin than any other birth control pill or antibiotic I've been on. I wasn't very overweight but I had a few extra pounds to get rid of. Obviously accutane is better cause it's so intense at clearing up skin but I refused to take another course meaning my scar problem would be prolonged at least another year and a half! My acne is definitely hormonal, no doubt about it. I also don't eat ANY sugar except the sugar in fruit, plus any carbs I eat have to be whole wheat and not refined. I think the no sugar has helped the most though. I feel much better too besides the acne clearing up. I also take a woman's probiotic supplement and drink a couple cups of green tea a day. Honestly I think a lot of the vitamins that we take in supplement form can be taken care of through eating more fruits and veggies. Of course the way I took care of my acne doesn't work for everyone but it's been the simplest and most effective way to keep the acne under control bareminerals also came out with an acne prone powder foundation and I love it. Thanks so much for the compliments guys!.
Wow, wish you had 'before' pics. Your skin looks great. I also took Accutane - I stayed relatively clear for about 1.5 years post. I was just about ready to begin scar treatments, but now the acne has started to come back. Very frustrating. How did you get the acne to calm back down? Congrats on your results.