New skin!

I take care of my skin and both of my parents blessed me with good skin. But...

on Tuesday, I had microdermabrasion on my face. It's not some hard core treatment or a chemical treatment. It's like a mini sandblaster that the dermatologist used to exfoliate my skin. I went at lunch and there was no residual visual effect.

I do peels at home, masks, use a scrubbie to wash my face, etc. I didn't think I'd see that much difference.

But I did! My skin is soft and glowy. I can really see a difference. I wear very light base makeup but I didn't even want to put it on after Tuesday, and I didn't really need to. This process evened out my skin tone beautifully.

I'm hooked...

Glad to hear it worked so well for you, Science Goddess.

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Completely off topic:

Your picture is great! Makes it clear that you're living exactly where you belong!

Great! I've totally been thinking about doing this. I'm excited to hear such positive results!! I guess my main concern is cost... and how frequently does it need to be done?

Chatter: Thanks for the nice words! Yes, I'm definitely living where I belong! I was out of town over the weekend and - as always - could not WAIT to get home tonight.

Pink Cat: You know, I had something else done at the dermatologist and they actually threw in the microdermabrasion for free! I think, now, that it's to get me hooked! Worked... :) I think, too, that the cost might depend on where you live since everything else is cheaper here than with my dermatologist in the Bay Area. I think that this is a good treatment for someone with generally good skin. If you have surface features (scars, pock marks, etc.) that you want to get rid of, I don't think that this would do it, unless the surface features are minor.

I did ask how often I should have it done, and I was told maybe as often as once a month for a few months - so of course I need to find out the cost and budget for that. They also gave me a couple of free samples of Retin-A to use as my skin is regenerating new cells after the treatment. I'm hesitant to use the Retin-A much until Fall, though, because I think it makes your skin sensitive to the sun and the sun is strong up here.

i have not had this done....yet ;)

i have tried botox and LOVED it, i am due, but holding off cause adam will be home for good in december and i want it to look gooood for a while. its hard to justify the $$$ until i look in the car mirror and see a wrinkle or crinkle that botox zaps.

i love my skin too, i am sure you are not into my drastic measures but you look great, glowy.

i tried another product, obagi, it is severe at first and i did it two years ago, i used to wear foundation, after doing the process for 6 months, my skin tone improved.

have you ever tried the over the counter kits? do you think they would be any good, i am half tempted to give it a try.

anyway, i love posts regarding beauty upkeep, what fun, girl talk!

Oh how I wish I was a "scrubbie"!! :D :p ;)

i have not had this done....yet ;)

i have tried botox and LOVED it, i am due, but holding off cause adam will be home for good in december and i want it to look gooood for a while. its hard to justify the $$$ until i look in the car mirror and see a wrinkle or crinkle that botox zaps.

i love my skin too, i am sure you are not into my drastic measures but you look great, glowy.

i tried another product, obagi, it is severe at first and i did it two years ago, i used to wear foundation, after doing the process for 6 months, my skin tone improved.

have you ever tried the over the counter kits? do you think they would be any good, i am half tempted to give it a try.

anyway, i love posts regarding beauty upkeep, what fun, girl talk!

You're so cute. I love girl talk, too. Sharing our 'secrets' is GOOD girl talk!

The microdermabrasion is very non-invasive, non-intensive, if you will. The name sounds like you're having the heck sanded out of your skin. You're not. I was in and out in less than 45 minutes and went right back to work (sans makeup, except mascara and lip gloss). Your face isn't raw or red or anything. It's a very mild treatment.

Your skin will look better immediately - no waiting for six months. My face very lightly peeled for a few days - not even as much as with a sunburn. I shouldn't even say peeled - it's like the woman at the doctor's office said - it 'shed' old dead cells. I just used a lot of moisturizer. As it 'shed', the skin that came to light is even better.

KL, yes, I tried one of those over-the-counter kits - once. Never bought one again. Save your money, is my opinion. I noticed a little difference but if you already care for you skin then you probably won't see much difference either. I see better results from doing a good 'tough' peel-off mask. I also just started using a prescription-strength hydroquinon (4%) cream again. (Gosh, I hate the fact that my girl pretty stuff gets the ax when money is tight. :( ) It makes my skin soft and fades all of those little brown spots that some of us start getting from the sun as we get older. MUST use on a regular basis for real results but I love this stuff. You can by the same active ingredient over the counter in fade creams but it's only 2% and I never saw any difference with that.

I'm with you on the botox. It is hard to justify the $$$ sometimes but I AM a fan of botox myself. I went for a year without it, and realized that I don't look terrible without it. I think that as it wears off, the 'shock' of seeing those wrinkles where they had been erased is what gets us. It's like, umm, 'aging' over the period of a couple of weeks - you know what I mean? (Look, no wrinkes. Look, oh there they are!) But after going without (heh - I can quit any time I want to!) due to $$ struggles, I contemplated not having it again...but I have a high forehead and strong horizontal lines, and I just don't like 'em.

This one - botox - was hard for me mentally because I think it IS a more intensive 'treatment', and I'm kind of a natural kinda gal. But, once I saw the results, I became a fan. *laugh* It also helps with the eye strain I get from having a vertical disalignment in my vision AND with my migraines, so those things definitely help me justify it! :p

you know you are right, i was down on myself because i saw wrinkles around my eyes again, the botox lasted 6 months, it was worth it, i am not against more aggressive measures for beauty upkeep, i live in south florida, there are so many beautiful women.

i will do it again, just not sure when. when i think i look good, i just feel better.

I am getting microdermabrasion today and I'm sorta nervous! I'm worried that I'm gonna peel or scale or be otherwise irritated... but I'm going to go for it, and see what happens!!!


Having botox tomorrow!!

Both times that I had the microdermabrasion, my face 'peeled'...like after a sunburn or something. No biggie.

Let me know how it goes!

Both times that I had the microdermabrasion, my face 'peeled'...like after a sunburn or something. No biggie.

Let me know how it goes!

Oh, okay... that kind of peeling is okay. I guess the scaliness is what I'm most afraid of (I got this gross scaly skin after using dermatologist-prescriped retinol cream to deal with acne about 5 years ago).

I will definitely report back! Thanks for the info, Science Goddess!

DB I thought you wanted to have dermabrassion yourself... Botox too. ;) What are you doing here in this cosmetic thread?

Ooh, I'm off to get it done now, eek! :D

They also gave me a couple of free samples of Retin-A to use as my skin is regenerating new cells after the treatment. I'm hesitant to use the Retin-A much until Fall, though, because I think it makes your skin sensitive to the sun and the sun is strong up here.
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SG....my dermotologist said that Retin-A permanently reverses the sun's damage that causes skin cancer (ask your dermo), and is a very good product for your skin's health as well as apprearance. The down side is that it causes a lot of peeling until you get used to the treatment, and redness. Plus, you absolutely MUST wear 45 sunscreen on your face every day (I made it part of my cleanse-mousturize regimen in the morning) for the rest of your life BECAUSE retin-A basically takes your skin down to new/baby/vulnerable (beautiful) skin that must be babied or age spots/burns/damage/hyper pigmentation/cancer occurs.

I would think the same would be true for microdermo (didn't your dermo strongly urge you to use 45 sunscreen forever now??)

I had laser, which basically has the effect of Retin-A combined with microdermabrasion...ON CRACK:D Gets the job done all at once, minimal peeling, lots of redness for ~14 days (and then fine with makeup for a couple more months). Great on skin with real issues (older skin/lots of sundamage/cancerous spots/wrinkles/saggy lids/discoloration/or scarring, etc.). Cost about $4,000 total, no followups for up keep after that....curious to know the cost of micro in the end with all the followups, etc.

Loved my laser...a permanent fix (got rid of precancer spots I'd had burned off in the past....wrinkles gone....everything tightened), not too much down time for the results you get (which were dramatic).

I'd used retin-A about 5-6 years ago...but it was spendy ($85/TUBE), and took too long with too much peeling/burning for me. But, the stuff DOES work if you can tolerate it.

Note to everyone: If you don't already....add 30-45 facial sunscreen (Nutragena is good) to your daily facial regimen and save yourself a ton of wrinkles/sun damage/ age spots and cancer down the road. Rain or shine, get it on that beautiful face!!! Wish someone had given me that advice 25 years ago:(

Karen:

Micro-dermabrasion is a very mild treatment, barely beyond surficial. The effects are not permanent and not even what I would consider to be long-term. (Consider, my doctor's office gives a free MD every time a client has botox, which is about every 4-5 months.)

Certainly they recommend a good sunscreen (45-ish) afterward but then again, they want us to wear it all the time anyway.

There are other types of dermabrasion, and I don't know much about them, but maybe that's what you're thinking of..?

As for Retin-A, I gave it a shot. I have sensitive skin on both sides of my mouth, below my mouth and above. Just as I was seeing a difference in my skin, the areas on each side of my mouth, between my mouth and my nose, became extremely red and bumpy. I couldn't take it anymore - it looked awful. I realized, though, that I had started using a new face make-up and a new moisturizer while I was using the Retin-A. So once I get stabilized without it, I'm going to give the Retin-A another shot.

I remember reading about your laser treatment earlier. It sounds like the best thing ever! I'm lucky, both of my parents have good skin and I do, as well. So, while I'm not ready for it YET, 10 years from now, I'll likely be looking for something like that instead of a face lift.

And you're right on about the sunscreen. I'm faithful in the summer and when I'm playing outdoors. I admit, I'm terrible about just wearing it day to day. Here I am getting poked with Botox but I worry about the chemicals in sunscreen! :rolleyes:

My face makeup has sunscreen but it's only a 15 and they say that one should NOT depend on the sunscreen in your makeup anyway.

I'm going to try and get better at the day to day use, K. It's especially important now that I live at a high altitude.

A friend of mine just had an IPL treatment(Intense Pulse Light) done and loved it. Gets rid of lines, saggy skin, sun spots, plus tightens the skin etc....very non invasive. Maybe a little redness and peeling for a couple of days. I think they say to try three treatments within a year. It runs about the same price as a botox treatment. They do chest/ back too! I am going to wait until the STUPID boxtox wears off next year and then try it sometime before summer.

I am currently using the RE-9 kit from Arbonne. It is a 6 system skin care kit. LOVE IT. I have very sensitive skin so I am amazed it is working for me. My skin feels so light and wonderful.

-nibbles

A friend of mine just had an IPL treatment(Intense Pulse Light) done and loved it. Gets rid of lines, saggy skin, sun spots, plus tightens the skin etc....very non invasive. Maybe a little redness and peeling for a couple of days. I think they say to try three treatments within a year. It runs about the same price as a botox treatment. They do chest/ back too! I am going to wait until the STUPID boxtox wears off next year and then try it sometime before summer.

I am currently using the RE-9 kit from Arbonne. It is a 6 system skin care kit. LOVE IT. I have very sensitive skin so I am amazed it is working for me. My skin feels so light and wonderful.

-nibbles


*laugh* I swear, I can hardly wait for a little more sagging and stuff so I can go try laser or IPL or something!

Oh, and, uh, I guess I have to wait for my piggy bank to fill up a little more, too..:rolleyes: