Notifications
Clear all

Been Offered Free Scar Treatment (Nhs)

 
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/27/2015 11:28 am

Hello everyone,

Thought i'd join the forum for some advice and to share knowledge I have already :).

So firstly, as you can imagine, I used to have acne in my teens. I have been acne free for around 4 years now and i'm left with some scaring on both cheeks on my face.

My doctor referred me to the hospital laser clinic, and on my first visit he told me that he would be happy to give me laser treatment free on the NHS.

He was actually, VERY nice, explained to me the procedure etc, and told me that I can come in next month, but we then decided it would be best at the end of summer to avoid the sun.

I asked if there was any risk's involved and he said that the only risks involved is infection etc while it's healing, so it's important to stay out of the sun. I also asked if there was any risks in the lazer treatment its self and he replied "Not unless I burn you!" and laughed.. fair enough? Anything else I am not aware of that he has not told me about?

I have attatched a image of my scaring, can anyone please tell me if laser may be effective towards this type of scaring? My scaring is worse on the right of this picture, but I am getting the treatment on both sides as he said it will be beneficial to my skin.

Quote
MemberMember
18
(@420blazeitfgt)

Posted : 03/27/2015 6:55 pm

no one knows what type of laser you're talking about

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/27/2015 9:08 pm

no one knows what type of laser you're talking about

I thought about this today actually, they didn't seem to say what specific laser they was going to use? I just got transferred to a laser clinic.

I presume just that standard sort they would use in hospitals if there is any typically used?

Quote
MemberMember
128
(@melloman)

Posted : 03/27/2015 10:04 pm

That's cool you got your first visit free. I hope he's really being sincere and not trying to pull something.

Quote
MemberMember
92
(@binga)

Posted : 03/27/2015 10:06 pm

Laser doesn't work for scars. Subcision, needling, filler works

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/27/2015 10:08 pm

That's cool you got your first visit free. I hope he's really being sincere and not trying to pull something.

Sorry, what do you mean?

 

Laser doesn't work for scars. Subcision, needling, filler works

I do hear this often, but why if you search (e.g. google), the before and after photos can look really good? Also, youtube videos etc of before and after.

I am not arguing, I am worried to be honest with you about the treatment, and want what is best for me.

Quote
MemberMember
128
(@melloman)

Posted : 03/27/2015 11:39 pm

I mean, is there a reason he is giving you a free treatment? Usually when people say "first visit free", they are expecting to gain something from it. Either you telling your acne-riddled, 'pizza faced' friends how your scars dissappeared, or your scars looking a BIT better, and them expecting you to come back for more treatment.

But, hopefully it's all in good nature. Did you and him hit it off? Or did he just give it to you out of the blue?

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/28/2015 9:00 am

I mean, is there a reason he is giving you a free treatment? Usually when people say "first visit free", they are expecting to gain something from it. Either you telling your acne-riddled, 'pizza faced' friends how your scars dissappeared, or your scars looking a BIT better, and them expecting you to come back for more treatment.

But, hopefully it's all in good nature. Did you and him hit it off? Or did he just give it to you out of the blue?

You sound like your being funny which I don't think is necessary, but I will answer your question.

I don't know why it was offered free, I was referred by my doctor who stated I was "depressed" and the hospital offers free laser treatment.

Is the laser not worth having done? Seems to be some negative comments in here..

Quote
MemberMember
59
(@snowflake01)

Posted : 03/28/2015 1:20 pm

I have gotten mixed reviews on lasers for moderate to severe scarring. And I've consulted with many many facial plastic surgeons. Some swear by it...and I'm talking about CO2 lasers. But one recently told me it really does not do much..that it helps with only very very fine scarring, like even finer than little wrinkles. And he could easily have charged me thousands of dollars and told me it's amazing, etc....i feel like it's almost the go to for doctors these days but I've seen before and after pics in their offices and the only.thing I'm convinced lasers help with is taking away redness...not deep scarring. That is just my opinion. I'm very skeptical and cautious so if someone offered me free laser treatments I personally would consult with many other experts about the specific type of Laser he'd use...just so I can make a decision from a well informed perspective. He's absolutely right, if he burns you or goes too far that is a very real risk which he's even admitting can always happen. I think you're doing the right thing by researching further before you say yes. If you do end up doing it i hope it helps. Don't worry about negative comments here, do whatever your instincts tell you to do.

Quote
MemberMember
252
(@robertitoo)

Posted : 03/28/2015 4:55 pm

 

:18

You have rolling scars

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/28/2015 7:16 pm

Maybe it's still worth getting as it will reduce some of the redness on my skin, and maybe help some of the smaller scars?

Would I be stupid to turn this down if I did?

Quote
MemberMember
252
(@robertitoo)

Posted : 03/28/2015 7:30 pm

Find out what laser it is first!

As for as improving texture, scars, pih, etc any laser is better then no laser..

Quote
MemberMember
128
(@melloman)

Posted : 03/28/2015 10:41 pm

No, I'm not being funny. This is real. A lot of dermatologists insult their patients in hopes of them losing hope and feeling they need them, thus sending the patients crawling back (probably mostly works on those new to acne). Just like in abusive relationships, which I have a lot of experience with. I know you aren't dealing with a dermatologist, but your specialist does similar work which often involves a person's self esteem.

"Don't worry, I'll make you pretty again."
"Let's get rid of that pizza face!"
"I bet the kids at school call you all kinds of names, huh?"
All real qoutes, believe or not. You can find some of this on acne.org, actually. They have a few topics involving this.

You didn't really go into detail about why you were offered free treatment, which is important if your question is whether you should do it or not. Also, the fact that you didn't state or didn't know the type of laser they would be using had raised even more suspicion.

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/29/2015 6:59 pm

No, I'm not being funny. This is real. A lot of dermatologists insult their patients in hopes of them losing hope and feeling they need them, thus sending the patients crawling back (probably mostly works on those new to acne). Just like in abusive relationships, which I have a lot of experience with. I know you aren't dealing with a dermatologist, but your specialist does similar work which often involves a person's self esteem.

"Don't worry, I'll make you pretty again."

"Let's get rid of that pizza face!"

"I bet the kids at school call you all kinds of names, huh?"

All real qoutes, believe or not. You can find some of this on acne.org, actually. They have a few topics involving this.

You didn't really go into detail about why you were offered free treatment, which is important if your question is whether you should do it or not. Also, the fact that you didn't state or didn't know the type of laser they would be using had raised even more suspicion.

Fair enough. My specialist seemed nice, no harsh comments made so I guess I was lucky. Also, he didn't say he can get rid of them, he explained that it will help to approve the appearance. He drew out on paper the bumps and holes of the scars, and drew a line through where he believed he could surface them out too.

My main aim here was since I don't have to pay anything, is to see if it was worth going in for the treatment, or are the risks going to outweigh the benefits?

 

Why was I offered the treatment? I went to my doctors asking if anything could be done about my scaring as it was causing me depression. He transferred me to a laser clinic at the hospital and my first appointment was a consultation telling me the procedure and advising he will do it free under the NHS.

Quote
MemberMember
270
(@blahblahblahblahz)

Posted : 03/29/2015 7:39 pm

The NHS is the national health service for Great Britain, right? Folks it's offered for free because it's not like our healthcare system where something like this would usually be considered cosmetic. Plus, we don't have universal healthcare in the US, and no Obama Care is not universal health care.

As for lasers, I would only consider co2 laser for acne scars. In your case, I see mostly rolling scars, so I believe a few subcision sessions would be needed first to elevate the scars as close to the normal skin as possible. Lasers should be used last to finesse the results. Lasers will not magically fill in indentations. Subcision and fillers accomplish that much better and more predictably. Lasers and other resurfacing techniques are good for shaving down the sharp edges of scars and MAYBE cause a little collagen production.

snowflake01, missamua, Melloman and 1 people liked
Quote
MemberMember
128
(@melloman)

Posted : 03/29/2015 7:51 pm

@blahblah82

They are SO lucky to get free healthcare! I can't afford it, so if you want it here in the U.S. for free, the only way I found to do it was to give them my insurance so that they will treat me. When my insurance doesn't pay (the cheap bastards actually told me they would, but they didn't), they send me the bill, and I can't pay it so I don't.

That's how you can get it free if you have insurance. Just be careful because you could be jailed if the conditions are right.

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/29/2015 9:08 pm

I will go for the treatment, and I will post back here with results to help others in the same situation.

How long does laser treatment take to recover? I was given the option to have it in a couple of weeks, but we then decided end of summer to avoid the sun.

Will I be ok to have it done summer time, and just avoid the sun as much as possible, or am I best of being safe and waiting till October?

You liked
Quote
MemberMember
252
(@robertitoo)

Posted : 03/29/2015 10:08 pm

I will go for the treatment, and I will post back here with results to help others in the same situation.

How long does laser treatment take to recover? I was given the option to have it in a couple of weeks, but we then decided end of summer to avoid the sun.

Will I be ok to have it done summer time, and just avoid the sun as much as possible, or am I best of being safe and waiting till October?

What's the damn laser called dude. We can't answer or help you without knowing what laser you're dealing with.

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 03/30/2015 9:34 pm

 

I will go for the treatment, and I will post back here with results to help others in the same situation.

How long does laser treatment take to recover? I was given the option to have it in a couple of weeks, but we then decided end of summer to avoid the sun.

Will I be ok to have it done summer time, and just avoid the sun as much as possible, or am I best of being safe and waiting till October?

What's the damn laser called dude. We can't answer or help you without knowing what laser you're dealing with.

Finding out over the next few days, I will update soon.

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 04/02/2015 8:58 am

I can confirm it is CO2 laser resurfacing that will be using for the scaring? Will this be worth having?

Quote
MemberMember
32
(@missamua)

Posted : 04/02/2015 1:06 pm

Your scarring is perfect for subcision. Co2 laser will help more with overall texture and tightening your skin, but I can't see it doing too much for your scars other than softening them a little. If it were me, I would have one or two round of subcision + suction to actually level the scars, and then maybe resurface over the skin with co2 to tighten/smooth them. Keep in mind that despite it being free, it still carries risks. I'm not trying to scare you away from getting it done, lasers are fantastic for anti-aging purposes, but for scarring the reality is they are very overrated and doctors tend to exaggerate the results. If you're okay with the downtime and possible risks then absolutely get it done.

Melloman liked
Quote
MemberMember
11
(@determinedtowin)

Posted : 04/07/2015 4:21 am

I can confirm it is CO2 laser resurfacing that will be using for the scaring? Will this be worth having?

Which hospital offered you this?

I got offered it from Salford Royal for free

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 04/07/2015 8:02 am

 

I can confirm it is CO2 laser resurfacing that will be using for the scaring? Will this be worth having?

Which hospital offered you this?

I got offered it from Salford Royal for free

St Helens (Merseyside). Did you go through with it?

Quote
MemberMember
11
(@determinedtowin)

Posted : 04/09/2015 12:42 pm

 

 

 

 

 

I can confirm it is CO2 laser resurfacing that will be using for the scaring? Will this be worth having?

 

Which hospital offered you this?

I got offered it from Salford Royal for free

St Helens (Merseyside). Did you go through with it?

No I didnt. I considered it thoroughly and I wasn't sure if it was worth the risks as I've been on roaccutane before.

 

I sort of regret not doing it but it's never going to make my scars perfect so again, not sure if it was worth it.

 

I go away a lot too and tan easily which is a problem

 

Your skin is similar to mine although I'd say mine is a bit worse so I'd be very interested to see how you get on mate

 

Did your consultant tell you that CO2 was better for deeper or milder scars? He said because mine were mild that laser wouldn't help that much? Not sure how right that is :/

Quote
MemberMember
20
(@fortuneshill)

Posted : 04/09/2015 11:08 pm

 

 

 

 

I can confirm it is CO2 laser resurfacing that will be using for the scaring? Will this be worth having?

Which hospital offered you this?

I got offered it from Salford Royal for free

St Helens (Merseyside). Did you go through with it?

No I didnt. I considered it thoroughly and I wasn't sure if it was worth the risks as I've been on roaccutane before.

 

I sort of regret not doing it but it's never going to make my scars perfect so again, not sure if it was worth it.

 

I go away a lot too and tan easily which is a problem

 

Your skin is similar to mine although I'd say mine is a bit worse so I'd be very interested to see how you get on mate

 

Did your consultant tell you that CO2 was better for deeper or milder scars? He said because mine were mild that laser wouldn't help that much? Not sure how right that is :/

You got me thinking I am missing something here, but how long does recovery take before you can go away? I imagined you would only have to stay out of the sun until healed? So maybe a couple of months? Obviously, no holidays, but in the UK the sun can just be avoided, and when it can't you can just apply sun block.

Hi didn't tell me anything about deeper or milder scars, he just said that the laser won't remove the scars fully, but it will reduce them a little, with the diagram he drawn to show how much scars would level out, it looked around 50%.

I am happy with any improvement to be honest. Don't be worried about the risks, it is a very common procedure. I'm trying not to read too many reviews as you get horror stories for anything.

I'll defenitly keep you up to date, and you never know, you may decide to go through with it later on in life, you have had the offer once, so there is nothing stopping you from getting the offer again :).

Quote