Your recovery from Fraxel laser treatment?

Hi D & C, I am glad to hear about your experience with the Fraxel repair. Your experience is what I am seeing in the majority of my patients, as well as what I hear from my fellow physicians. Realself.com serves a great purpose for both patients and physicians who may need answers to their problems. On sites such as this, the negative results seem to predominate. Happy and satisfied patients are less likely to take the time to comment. Just as in the "real world" do something good for someone and they will tell 4 of their friends, but do something bad to the same person, and "everyone" will hear about it. Enjoy your younger looking face and keep us informed of your progress. Thank you. Dr. P

Dr P It has now been 2 weeks since my procedure, and I would say I have seen a 50% improvement in acne scars. I am 60 and wonder how much collegen improvement I can expect, or hope for. I went into this expecting at least 2 lasers. I had mine done at 70mj and 60%, 4 passes and except for tightness in the face I feel like I am totally recovered. I am a very quick healer.

Sounds great. I think that you will produce some collagen. I'm seeing that a lot of the changes are early, about 30% are late. I'd see how you are after about 3-4 months and decide if you want another one, Steve Weiner, MD

Hi Dazed, You should continue to see improvement over time. You will likely get more improvement with your second treatment. Please let me know what that fabulous "cocktail" you received that made the Fraxel repair experience so tolerable. I would love to share that we my patients. Thanks. Dr. P

Dr. P. Sorry it took so long to reply, but I finally called the office today and here is the Cocktail - Demoral-Phenergan and Versed, plus a Xanax 1 hour prior to the procedure. To me this sounds like a pretty powerful mix, but it sure made it easy for me.

Hi D, No wonder you were dazed. Thank you for the information. Wish you continued improvement with your Fraxel repair results over the next few months. Be well. Dr. P

Dr. P and Dr Weiner Do you have any comments on Copper Peptides after Re:pair - best brands - strength?

Hi Dazed, I posted a comment recently about the anti-inflammatory benefits of copper peptides. I think that Skin Biology, Neutrogenia, and ProCyte are effective. Good luck and be well. Dr. P

Kendra, I believe there are only 30-35 Re:pair machine in the whole US, and by his comment about getting a new machine I would say that he doesn't have the Re:pair yet. To avoid confusion I don't even use the word Fraxel anymore. If you come back on with what you are hoping to accomplish the doctors will advise you on what is best for you.

Hi Kendra, Go to the Fraxel.com site, put in the zip code of your physician, and then scroll down until you see your doctor's name. Under his name, there are icons for restore, refine, and repair. Make sure that restore is listed under his name. The company will not list the icon until the laser is in the office. Let us know what you find and if your confusion is cured. Good luck and be well. Dr. P

Thanks for the comment. The pineapple juice idea is interesting. I know other RealSelf readers would love to hear more about your experience. Please consider writing a review. Click here to write about your experience with Fraxel. In fact, if anyone else has an experience with a cosmetic procedure we also want to hear from you! Go here to share your story.

Can you tell me of your results from the Fraxel restore?  Did it help tighten your facial area?  Improve pore size?  I also am thinking of having this treatment. Thanks!

Hopefully you will be hearing from patients who have had Fraxel repair treatments. I have now treated about 40 patients, 39 have had phenomenal results. One patient did not get the tightening of skin that we had hoped for, nor the overall improvement desired. People are different and we all have slightly different skin health, and we all recover and heal uniquely. My patients and I have found that there is an overall younger appearance of 5 to 10 years. Patients say that they are hearing, "You look rested and healthy". We are seeing tightening of the forehead with a slight elevation of the eyebrows. The affect on the upper and lower eyelids is remarkable making the eyes look younger, in the majority of cases the results are nearly as good as or better than actual eyelid surgery. The most consistent finding is increased fullness and lifting of the cheeks and midface area. This reverses the process of volume loss and sagging that we unfortunately see as the aging process travels through our late 30's, 40's and in those lucky individuals, 50's. The treatment does not get rid of "jowls", but helps a bit. In patients with lax neck skin there is marked improvement. The treatment is not a face or neck lift, and does not replace those surgeries. Overall tone, texture, and color of the skin are very nicely improved. Pore size is improved as well. The results on brown pigmentation have been spectacular, as have the results on acne scarring (both color and evenness of the skin surface). I look forward to continued improvement in patients treated with fraxel repair for up to 6 months after their treatment as there is continued new production of collagen. My only caveat that Fraxel re:pair laser is an extremely powerful laser technology so please choose your physician most carefully. Be well. Dr. P

Dazed I am in my 4th day of Re:pair, wasn't told about the pineapple, but will try it. I had a full face, brow and neck. I have a regement 4 to 5 times a day including vinegar andcold water soaks. Still a lot of redness but swelling is slowly going away.. What do you use on your face? Sue

Hi LSue, Be patient. I have found that the redness really decreases between 7 to 14 days. It also depends on the aggressiveness of your treatment. The deeper and denser the treatment, the longer it takes for the erythema (redness) to go away. But the good news is that you should see spectacular results. Jane Iredale mineral make up is excellent at concealing redness to cut down on your social downtime. I hope that you recover quickly. Dr. P

I finished my 2nd fraxel restore treatment and it was a little more painful then the first treatment. I love the results so far! Treatment 3 is in a few weeks. They told me to just use a mild cleanser and moisturizer and a daily sunscreen. So far I can see a significant reduction in acne scarring on my cheeks, tighter pores, a few fine lines (crowsfeet) I had around my eyes are completely gone, my pores are tighter & my skin overall looks brighter and clearer. I can't wait for the results from #3!!

LSUE, after the initial vinegar period I started using Cetaphil. I am now using Skin Biology Super Cop 2x and Super CP Serum. These are Copper Peptides. I hope this posts correctly because something is messed up with the box I am typing.