Ultherapy: Stories

I had ulthera done in Glendale, CA on July 27, 2011 for $3000. It is exactly one month today. So far, I do not see any change in my face. I'm beginning to wonder if it is worth the money I paid. I'll give it another month or so and see if I can recommend this to my friends. I also had my first botox injected in my forehead (20 units) for an additional $200. Botox shows immediate results. I am 56 years old, luckily I do not have much wrinkles so my friends think I should not have anything done just yet. My forehead lines bothered me the most. I figured, I'm doing it for me and nobody else and I thought if I pass the age of 65 and did not have anything done, I will not do it any more. So it is now or never! I figured this can't be too bad because it is non-invasive. Why not? I decided to be the guinea pig for my friends. LOL!

The clinic was very professional and a practicing nurse here in the USA but a medical doctor in the Philippines administered the treatment. He was very thorough and was very patient. He explained everything to me before & during the treatment.

The whole procedure lasted a total of 2 hours (1 hr prep & 1 hr treatment). The first thing they did was to apply topical anesthesia on my face while I listened to soothing music for 30 mins. Afterwards, they gave me 15 mg of oral Percoset for pain and allowed me to relax again while listening to music for another 30 mins. After a full hour of prep, the ulthera treatment started.

I have a high tolerance for pain so I thought this would be a piece of cake. NOT! I went through natural childbirth (no anesthesia) without screaming nor crying. So why couldn't I handle ulthera? He started on my chin and I heard a series of fast-beeping escalating sounds (about 6-7 of them) as he went over my skin with the machine. The last 2 to 3 beeps were the most intense & painful. In areas where there are more fatty tissues, it did not hurt, like the chin or cheeks. Areas where there are no fat, like near the forehead and around the sides of the eyes, it was painful & uncomfortable.

Sometimes I felt the heat from the treatment. I had to do my "lamaze" breathing technique to get through it and squeeze the rubber ball he gave me. He did not treat my forehead because that would be too painful and botox is best suited for that. He stopped short on the sides of my forehead just above my outer eyebrows. He did one side of my face first, then the other side. The ulthera treatment itself lasted a full hour. After ulthera, he injected 20 units of botox on my forehead. That didn't hurt at all.

I was so relieved when he told me it was over. Whew! I had to be honest with my best friend who has a low tolerance for pain that she couldn't do it without heavy sedation. There was a feeling of tightening around my face right after the procedure but it went back to normal after a couple of hours. I did not see an immediate improvement. Again, I did not have many facial wrinkles (except for my forehead lines) to begin with so it is difficult to see the result unless I study my face closer.

I thought everything went well with the procedures until 2 hours later. I started getting nauseous and I started throwing up violently. I called the doctor who told me I was having a reaction to the Percoset. I felt so sick. I threw up the whole night until I fell asleep. The following day, I was fine again. No more nausea and the vomiting was gone. Thank goodness! The doctor called to check up on me and I told him I was fine. I couldn't decide if the pain from the ulthera was worse than the after effect of the Percoset.

The following day, my face was bruised up. Bruises on my forehead from the botox and bruises on my chin, jaw and cheeks from the ulthera. The worst bruise was the one under my left cheek which lasted 2 weeks. I got funny stares from strangers and people I know asked me why the bruises on my face so I told them I had ulthera done.

So now, one month after...I do not see any visible improvement from the ulthera. The botox diminished my forehead lines and I'm pleased with that. I will wait another month to see if the ulthera works or not. My friends are eagerly waiting for this guinea pig.

Will I do it again? I'm inclined to say no unless I see a very noticeable improvement after a month from now. Will I go through the pain again? Hmmm, this might stop me from having another one. And botox? I say yes because it did not hurt and the result is immediate. I was told the effects of ulthera should last 1.5 years and botox about 6 months. I read that subsequent botox will make the result last longer. I have a girlfriend who has had numerous botox on her forehead and her has been lasting 1.5 years each time. Interesting!

Ulthera has been advertised as lunch time facelift. Don't believe it. Well, if you don't mind the pain and the bruises when you report back to work, I guess you can do it over a 2 hour lunch break.

Less than 2 months after the procedure, nobody who knows me noticed any change or made a comment. I do not see any improvement myself. The comments of your readers mostly said they see an improvement. I guess it's hard to go by photos alone. I was hoping to get just one person I know say something has changed or something different...almost 3 months later, I'm still waiting. I just posted the 2 month picture. On October 27, it'll be 3 months after the procedure, that's only a few days away.

After 3 months. Still no change noted by myself, my family & my friends except subscribers on realself.com says they see change. The botox is completely gone by 2 months. I feel ulthera did not give me the change I would like to see and at this point, I feel I wasted my money on this procedure. I will not recommend this to my friends. I understand that others have noticeable improvements and were very happy to have it done but I can only speak for myself and my own experience. Too bad there is no money-back guarantee if it does not work. I want to get another botox injection on my forehead as this has been my number one priority and the one that bothered me the most. Even though the first one only lasted 2 months, I want to see if I get a 2nd one if it will last longer. I read that people who have had subsequent botoxs had a longer effect so I'm willing to give it another shot. I also have a friend who had numerous botox to her forehead and she swears they do last longer. The last she had lasted 1.5 years. I hope it does.

After reading all the comments from readers that there is marked change from my before & after photos, I looked at the photos again. You are right, there is visible change from the photos. I do not know how to explain why this is except that the before photo was taken at my friend's house in L.A. under incandescent light whereas the after photos were taken at my home under natural lighting. In person, there is no noticeable improvement. Nobody I know made a single comment about noticing a change in my face.

Just 2 days ago, I told my friends over coffee that I had ulthera done. They all took a 2nd look look at me and I could tell from their expressions that they do not see anything has changed. Then they said, "did it work?" I said, "Do you see any change?" They said, "No, is it suppose to be obvious?" I thought I wasn't going to say a word to my friends and just let them notice but since I was not getting that, I decided to announce it to them about the procedure I had done hoping that they would say, "We do notice a change and you look refreshed!" You see, nobody that knows me & my face noticed a single change.

More than anybody else, I want to believe the $3200 I paid gave me the temporary improvement I was looking for. However, that is not the case here. Unfortunately, the only before photo taken was at the Belo Clinic & that would be under clinic lighting and I do not have a copy of that. I could not go for follow-up because the clinic is in CA and I live in DE. The Belo Clinic also does not have an after photo since I had no follow-up with them. I do not recommend ulthera to my friends and I will not have another one done. The pain, the after effects of Percoset, and the cost without any visible outcome does not justify this temporary fix.