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How was Your IPL Recovery?

Posted 12 Apr 2010

What did you experience post-IPL skin treatment?  Was it a long recovery, short, painful, quick?  Please share!

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Comments (83)

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drhumes 23 Oct 2007
Following IPL treatment, clients generally see 7-14 days of darkened sun spots, which can easily be covered with makeup.
Nissa (unregistered guest) 3 Sep 2009
I like the results of the IPL, but I could not cover the dark spots with make-up for 5 days I could not go anywhere b/c it was located on my upper lip. I look like I had a mustache.
Christian Chloe 1 Nov 2010
IMPOSSIBLE to cover with makeup! The spots are crusty and so makeup looks absolutely horrible on the spots.
Christian Chloe 26 Apr 2011
not true! the dark spots cannot be easily covered up with makeup and you shouldn't tell people that. I have had the procedure twice and my face was extremely red and then had raised brown spots, like choc chips, that eventually fell off.
scorchedchipmunk 22 Dec 2011
cannot be covered up with make-up in many many cases.... people need to be told they need to hide out for a week at least!
My face looks horrendous.....like a 90 year old woman who has been left out in the sun for a month.
Joel Caschette 1 Jan 2008
Intense Pulsed Light, also called IPL, BBL and Photo Facial, mainly helps to get rid of brown spots (age spots, liver spots) and red spots (small red spots, small veins). The “browns” get browner temporarily, then rise to the surface and fall off within about 10 days time. The reds may look a darker red or grey color after treatment. Often they are deeper down and are made of blood vessels, which are more complex structures than brown spots. They do not rise to the surface. Instead, they get reabsorbed by our bodies after IPL treatment over several weeks. I recommend applying sunblock (SPF 30 or higher) and moisturizer twice a day for the first week after treatment, and at least once a day the second week after treatment. This is even if you’re not out in the sun! Minimizing sun exposure after treatment is best- red and brown spots usually are caused by sun damage in the first place. If you have to be in the sun, use SPF 30+ sunblock, and reapply every 2 hours.
Christian Chloe 1 Nov 2010
I had a 2nd IPL treatment today and the results are different than the first time: instead of having brown raised crusty spots or coffee grains, I have about 6 very deep blood vessel spots that are swollen. My face feels much more burnt this time than last time 1 month ago. Is this normal? Also, she said the settings were different this time. Is THAT normal?
dave henderon III 6 Oct 2011

I had one large pink spot (about the size of a 50 cent piece) It has darkeded to red. I was IPL'd the last session 6 times. How long should it take to dissappear? In your opinion?

Christian Chloe 10 Oct 2011
Mine took 2 weeks to completely go away (broken blood vessels).
claudia Laframboise 1 Feb 2009
having my veins on my legs and was wondering will there be any scaring? Can you excerise with weights after treatment? Can you go in a hot tub after?
blumenauer 29 Mar 2009
I was DOWN for three days. The first two consisted of treating the zebra like welts made by the handtool and perhaps a higher intensity on the first side of my face. Seriously, this should not be thought of as a "no down time" procedure. In some cases, the swelling did not go away!
balieyinfl 15 Jun 2009
I am right there with you! The literature that I read sounded like it was the easiest, harmless, and most wonderful proceedure anyone could have done to remove unwanted facial blemishes, brown spots, etc. I had mine done four days ago and swelled up like a blow fish for three days and have wide scrape looking marks on my cheeks and chin areas. I currently look like a freak of nature and was actually mostly pretty before this! I am hoping that no scars will be left behind and that I can scratch this expierience up to one of the worst decisions that I have ever made. I would not reccommend IPL to my worst enemy! I wish that I NEVER did it.
Jimmy 10 Apr 2009
I had IPL done yesterday to remove my freckles. The next day my freckles are really dark and seems to cover my whole face. The freckles appear to have risen to the surface. How long will this last?
pisha 14 Jul 2009
I wonder if you had improvement in your freckling. I am now on my 4th treatment (have paid for 6) and my freckles are now darker than when I started. The dermatologist treating me agreed after looking at the before photos but is encouraging me to have the last two treatments. I am very reluctant and think I'd rather just wave the money goodbye than spoil my skin any further.I am worried that I am also losing facial fat but have been told that it is supposed to promote collagen!
Jimmy 15 Jul 2009
big improvment freckles are now gone. they just missed some spots around my eyes where the goggles were but prolly go back for second treatment.
blumenauer 11 Apr 2009
you are lucky that this is all you have. it sounds quite normal. i was swollen for three days and am losing that fat in my face. two weeks post treatment. wondering how long this will go on for? i already look like a skeleton!?
TheCloudPainter 16 Apr 2009
I had IPL done 2 days ago... my sun-damage spots are dark, bright, and coffee-ground like. My face is a little swollen, but not bad... The treatment discomfort was minimal and very tolerable. Yesterday, I had to stand in the sun for a couple of hours while I had my horses' feet trimmed. I slathered on the SPF 40 sunscreen, and wore my ball cap. Hopefully, that protected my face enough. The bridge of my nose is a little swollen and pink... I'm curious about how those coffee-grounds come off... Do they peel or sluff off? How long does it take for them to come off?
Jimmy 17 Apr 2009
mine started comming off about 4 days later. i kinda rubbed and picked them off which you aren't supposed to do but i wanted them off asap. i used a lot of moisturizer on my face which i think helped speed up the process. its been a week now since my IPL and now my freckles are completly gone.
KindaFreakedOut 20 May 2009
Hi - I'm wondering if my experience is typical or if I should be worried! I got a second, more aggressive & localized IPL treatment 10 days ago on some broken capillaries on my nose. Rather than turning dark brown and "coffee ground-like" as people have mentioned here and as I'd experienced when having a couple of angiomas zapped off before, the areas that were zapped are still very dark red. It looks pretty bad! I didn't blister, which I assume is a good thing. Is my experience within the range of normalcy, and does it sound likely to heal up well? I really hope these dark red marks aren't here to stay - I used to be able to not wear any cover-up or foundation at all! Thanks for sharing your knowlege & expereince everyone!!!
BethAlter (unregistered guest) 13 Jun 2009
I had this procedure 3 days ago and was warned that I would get eggplant colored spots in the treated area.My DR. zapped me cover 50 times on the cheeks and nose area. I have huge purple spots and look disfigured. I am so scared this will be permanant. the Dr said 7-10 days and it can be covered with makeup. There is no makeup in my bag of tricks that will work. I am so sorry I did this. If this does not get better soon I am contacting an attorney. anyone else have this happen? Please tell me it cleared up..
LesAnn 22 Jun 2009
Three years ago, I had IPL done on my face and hands. I have significant freckling so I had two sessions done two weeks apart, before my step-daughter's wedding. Given my pigmentation, it was more painful than I thought it would be. I was afraid that my skin was burning so I asked the nurse to stop so I could see what was happening. I kind of freaked out. Everything looked OK, so we continued. Afterward, I felt like I had a severe sunburn! But by the following morning, the pain was gone. I had hyperpigmentation for about a week following the procedure. My freckles looked like coffee grounds; just as my nurse said they would. Then they fell off! I loved the result and will likely have it done again following the summer season. Hopefully everything worked out well for you, too.
Christian Chloe 1 Nov 2010
Did the purple spots go away?
Christian Chloe 1 Nov 2010
I have the purple spots this time too! Did they go away!?!?
KindaFreakedOut 22 Dec 2011
Hey Christian - yeah, they eventually did go away. Had to be at work looking like I got punched hard in the face though - super embarrassing. It was over a month before the swelling and marks went away completely, though. Mac Studio Finish - the super opaque stuff - helped, but yeah... it was BAD.

To be honest, in hindsight, I would have been much better off just doing a series of MUAC TCA peels – TCA doesn’t address capillaries, but for sun damage my results were significantly better, it’s a LOT cheaper and less painful, and the post-peeling is NOTHING compared to what the aggressive IPL treatment did to my poor face. Infuriatingly, I still have a pit in my nose from the IPL – I think it must have been a clogged pore or something, and now, it’s a divot from having being lasered. Not a huge deal, but overall, a waste of money and any improvement must have been very subtle indeed – subtle enough as to be imperceptible :/

I later went to a very well-reviewed dermo and just had him do some spot treatments to zap off the capillaries – went off without a hitch, and not even close to the pain and post-treatment ugliness I dealt with from IPL. UHG!
anto 17 Sep 2009
Jimmy. You had to do many treatments? I had IPL and the Pearl Treatment yesterday. I am mostly freaking out about all the freckles that have come out. I have been out of the sun for many years and this process just brought out more than I ever imagined. I am so concerned that I have really brought many to the surface that were buried in my face. Am I really going to have to do this multiple times?

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