I'm a veteran member of this board and have tried a variety of treatments. Recently, I had a treatment that caused some fat/volume loss. 
I asked the doctor a couple of times about my concern this might happen, and he assured me he wouldn't go to a depth where it would be a problem. Anyway, I'm thinking of getting fat transfer/grafting now. I need to lose some weight first though.
In the meantime, I'd like to try laser treatments. I mean, I might as well, especially since I plan to get the fat transfer anyway. I want to improve texture, pore size, rolling scars.
lasers I've tried in the past with mixed results:
Fraxel Restore: minor improvement, not worth the $$ for results imo
Fraxel Repair: this was for a different part of my body and it caused major collagen loss. I would NEVER use this on my face! I guess it's not good for my skin type
Sciton Profractional: I believe this also caused fat loss. People were asking me 2 weeks later if I lost weight.
Halo: minor improvement, again not worth the $$
Microneedling (I know, not a laser): Absolutely no results, might have even made scarring worse
Also, not interested in radiofrequency because that's also been known to cause volume loss.
Thanks for any suggestions you have! <3
55 minutes ago, Starlite said:I'm a veteran member of this board and have tried a variety of treatments. Recently, I had a treatment that caused some fat/volume loss.
In the meantime, I'd like to try laser treatments. I mean, I might as well, especially since I plan to get the fat transfer anyway. I want to improve texture, pore size, rolling scars.
lasers I've tried in the past with mixed results:
Fraxel Restore: minor improvement, not worth the $$ for results imo
Fraxel Repair: this was for a different part of my body and it caused major collagen loss. I would NEVER use this on my face! I guess it's not good for my skin type
Sciton Profractional: I believe this also caused fat loss. People were asking me 2 weeks later if I lost weight.
Halo: minor improvement, again not worth the $$
Microneedling (I know, not a laser): Absolutely no results, might have even made scarring worse
Also, not interested in radiofrequency because that's also been known to cause volume loss.
Thanks for any suggestions you have! <3
Lumenis Total FX for me. Smoothed out some scars. Doctor was aggressive so I got both improvement and some scars. Was worth it because other treatments didn't help. The laser is more than a decade old but I guess it still works. The operator is the most important thing. I had other laser treatments (CO2, Erbium, non-ablative) and those devices and doctors couldn't help.
Had microneedling with the DermaPen at a med spa and that gave me new scars. Either the nurse went too deep or went over the same area too many times. Got Infini several times and didn't see noticeable improvement. My plastic surgeon said my skin looked better but he didn't take photos. I'm pretty sure he was BSing me.
Pico devices are not for scars. Had a treatment done for hyperpigmentation (don't think it worked well - could be due to the wavelength). Doctors who sell Pico treatments for scars are just asses.
Haven't tried Halo but that may be something worth looking into.
Fraxel seems kinda old.
3 minutes ago, Amanda Hall said:Lumenis Total FX for me. Smoothed out some scars. Doctor was aggressive so I got both improvement and some scars. Was worth it because other treatments didn't help. The laser is more than a decade old but I guess it still works. The operator is the most important thing. I had other laser treatments (CO2, Erbium, non-ablative) and those devices and doctors couldn't help.
Had microneedling with the DermaPen at a med spa and that gave me new scars. Either the nurse went too deep or went over the same area too many times. Got Infini several times and didn't see noticeable improvement. My plastic surgeon said my skin looked better but he didn't take photos. I'm pretty sure he was BSing me.
Pico devices are not for scars. Had a treatment done for hyperpigmentation (don't think it worked well - could be due to the wavelength). Doctors who sell Pico treatments for scars are just asses.
Haven't tried Halo but that may be something worth looking into.
Fraxel seems kinda old.
Thank you! I remember people posting mixed results about the procedure here. It was pretty expensive at the time. Do you mind if I ask where your doctor is located? I'll definitely look into it.
Yeah, I think improvement with needling really depends on skintype. It's annoying that spas and doctors tote it as being amazing and charge so much for it.
I tried Halo and it was just okay. Similar results to Fraxel Restore imo.
4 minutes ago, Starlite said:Thank you! I remember people posting mixed results about the procedure here. It was pretty expensive at the time. Do you mind if I ask where your doctor is located? I'll definitely look into it.
Yeah, I think improvement with needling really depends on skintype. It's annoying that spas and doctors tote it as being amazing and charge so much for it.
I tried Halo and it was just okay. Similar results to Fraxel Restore imo.
Yeah, lasers aren't for everybody. Just like every other scar treatment, half of the people will say it worked and half will say it didn't. Everybody has different scars. The stuff that didn't work for me could work for others.
You mentioned rolling scars. You should consider subcision.
I'm in CA. I've seen doctors in Southern and Northern CA for treatments.
17 minutes ago, Amanda Hall said:Yeah, lasers aren't for everybody. Just like every other scar treatment, half of the people will say it worked and half will say it didn't. Everybody has different scars. The stuff that didn't work for me could work for others.
You mentioned rolling scars. You should consider subcision.
I'm in CA. I've seen doctors in Southern and Northern CA for treatments.
Yeah, I agree!
I've had a total of 6 subcision treatments over the years and I agree, it has resulted in the absolute best improvement for my scarring. They're still there, but not nearly as bad. I see that subcision combined with filler is now popular on this board and I kind of wish I had had the $$ to do that years ago. At this point, I would probably just get subcision combined with fat transfer.
I live in CA, too! Who is the doctor? I don't mind sending you a pm if you'd rather keep it private. How much was it, and did he/she do a full face or spot treat?
I had two sessions of Erbium YAG laser in December and January and am not confident I saw results in my rolling/boxcar scarring. It hasn't been so long since I had these treatments, and I know collagen production takes time, but I still expected to see a bit more visible results sooner. Icansay that I did see a visible improvement in the tone of my skin (a lot less red), just not sure about texture.
Instead of trying a third laser session, I found a doctor who performed Subcision and TCA cross (had this done about a month ago). I think I see a bit of improvement, but I am also concerned that some of my scars might be a bit bigger (wider)? Not sure. But I do see an improvement *overall* in my skin. I plan to have one or two more sessions of subcision. I think I am done with lasers - I'm very active so the down time was just too limiting.
On 4/7/2021 at 1:14 AM, sh2os said:I had two sessions of Erbium YAG laser in December and January and am not confident I saw results in my rolling/boxcar scarring. It hasn't been so long since I had these treatments, and I know collagen production takes time, but I still expected to see a bit more visible results sooner. Icansay that I did see a visible improvement in the tone of my skin (a lot less red), just not sure about texture.
Instead of trying a third laser session, I found a doctor who performed Subcision and TCA cross (had this done about a month ago). I think I see a bit of improvement, but I am also concerned that some of my scars might be a bit bigger (wider)? Not sure. But I do see an improvement *overall* in my skin. I plan to have one or two more sessions of subcision. I think I am done with lasers - I'm very active so the down time was just too limiting.
Yes, the recovery of laser treatment is something not to be taken lightly. You don't just go back to work in a week or two. There could be PIH or PIE which affects everyone different. I was so self-conscious and didn't want to go out as much when parts of my face were still red or brown. Makeup couldn't cover up everything.
Not all lasers are created equally. The doctor plays an extremely important role as well. I wouldn't get Erbium anymore for my scars. It's fractional CO2 or go home for me. If you get improvement from other methods, that's good! But you can't lump all lasers into one bucket.
bump
20 hours ago, Amanda Hall said:Yes, the recovery of laser treatment is something not to be taken lightly. You don't just go back to work in a week or two. There could be PIH or PIE which affects everyone different. I was so self-conscious and didn't want to go out as much when parts of my face were still red or brown. Makeup couldn't cover up everything.
Not all lasers are created equally. The doctor plays an extremely important role as well. I wouldn't get Erbium anymore for my scars. It's fractional CO2 or go home for me. If you get improvement from other methods, that's good! But you can't lump all lasers into one bucket.
I'm honestly scared to get fractional CO2 done. I received that on a different part of my body and noticed loss of skin elasticity. I'm not sure if it's because of the location I received the laser, or if it's just not good for my skin type, but that convinced me not to try it again.
On 4/7/2021 at 1:14 AM, sh2os said:I think I see a bit of improvement, but I am also concerned that some of my scars might be a bit bigger (wider)?
That's a fairly common healing response. As scars get more superficial, they'll get wider. Did you notice this with TCA cross, or subcision? I was under the impression that more aggressive treatments like TCA cross, skin/dermal grafting, and punch elevation/float, would less likely result in that issue.
9 hours ago, Starlite said:bump
I'm honestly scared to get fractional CO2 done. I received that on a different part of my body and noticed loss of skin elasticity. I'm not sure if it's because of the location I received the laser, or if it's just not good for my skin type, but that convinced me not to try it again.
That's a fairly common healing response. As scars get more superficial, they'll get wider. Did you notice this with TCA cross, or subcision? I was under the impression that more aggressive treatments like TCA cross, skin/dermal grafting, and punch elevation/float, would less likely result in that issue.
It's normal to be fearful - I don't blame you. If you can't see yourself going through it, then don't. Try other less invasive procedures that will give you peace of mind. Scars don't define you as a person. If you are ok with lighter procedures that take more time, that's probably the best path.
Hi Starlite,
My response may not matter to you since I don't have actual experience with lasers, but I would encourage you to try a natural, much more economic product before you spend the big bucks on laser. Two months ago, I was just about to start saving for laser, when I figured I would do one last search online for any other methods for my acne scarring. There was a little blue bottle that kept popping up in my search, and finally, I decided to just look at the reviews for it. After seeing the before and after pictures, I figured I only had a hundred bucks to lose, and ordered it right away. It's been 2 months and my skin has greatly improved --I won't be needing laser after all. Try it for yourself and let me know what you think. It's on [Edited link out] and it's the Scar Removal peel. The seller also sells her product on ebay and she had nothing but 5-star reviews.
Hopeful for your journey!
Stephanie
On 4/9/2021 at 11:26 PM, Starlite said:bump
I'm honestly scared to get fractional CO2 done. I received that on a different part of my body and noticed loss of skin elasticity. I'm not sure if it's because of the location I received the laser, or if it's just not good for my skin type, but that convinced me not to try it again.
That's a fairly common healing response. As scars get more superficial, they'll get wider. Did you notice this with TCA cross, or subcision? I was under the impression that more aggressive treatments like TCA cross, skin/dermal grafting, and punch elevation/float, would less likely result in that issue.
I think the wider-appearing scars are from the TCA cross. But now (4 weeks post op) I also have some lumps under my skin where the subcision was done. Hematomas perhaps? But I am worried that they won't go away
