I've Had Four Fraxels in the Past Year - New York, NY

I have some residual cystic acne scarring from my teen years. 6 years of IPL (Photorejuvenation) sessions took my skin about 60% to where I want to be - but I still have a ways to go. So, my derm suggested Fraxel. Why she chose this for me over V-Beam, Cool Touch, CO2, Pixel, and many others available, I'm not sure - but since I love and trust my derm so much, I decided to take the plunge.

The appointment began with the nurses taking a Before shot of me. A shower cap was placed on my head, and numbing cream was applied on cheeks, forehead, and chin, then a painkiller with a glass of water. I asked one nurse, 'So, does this hurt?' Her answer without hesitating was, 'Mm-hmm.' Asked a second nurse who came in if it hurt. She gave me a flat 'Yes.' Yowkay. Here we go.

Well, after cooling my heels for about half an hour, I was told to wash my face with Cetaphil. Then I put on my goggles and it was on.

As the nurse stood over my right with the chilled air system blowing cold air on my face, my derm at left began the procedure, which took about 15 minutes total. It hurt a *lot* less than I expected, but was still uncomfortable; I was definitely looking forward to it being over. It felt like a blunt knife scraping on the skin towards the end of it - especially down towards the mouth area. But! I refuse to move, flinch, jerk, or make a single peep during treatments like this - why, so the doctor can turn the megajoules way down? At the cost of 45 tanks of gas, I make sure it's Stoic City. But for what it's worth, my derm did remark on more than one occasion that I was pretty quiet & still. Two passes on my left cheek, one pass on my right, and one pass to each my forehead and chin. There's work to be done, and I want to be gorgeous everywhere.

Afterward, I could feel my face pulsating because, as my derm put it, I was 'on fire'! The skin was very pink, but not full-on scarlet red as I was expecting and fully prepared to be. Cold compresses were applied to my face, which helped the flush, and I was to lie there a good 20-30 minutes. After this, 5% hydrocortisone was applied, which I am to do thrice a day for a week. Then I was sent on my way.

A few hours later, my cheeks began crusting. It looked like a fresh skier's sunburn. After applying foundation, it looked like a skier's sunburn I got a couple of days before. The thickest little spot of cheek crust looks like dried, caked-on concealor that hasn't been rubbed in all the way. For the day OF the procedure, just go home. In a life/death situation, you're cool - but it's not partytime yet.

By that night (last night) 12 hours after the treatment, I looked work-ready - with makeup. By this morning, I looked fine. My cheeks are still tight and feel crusty-ish. Imagine how the thinnest layer of clay masque would feel on your cheeks 20 minutes after applying - that's EXACTLY how it feels. My derm informed me that this crusting should peel off in a few days.

By the way my skin looks and feels now, I would imagine doing this on a Friday right after work would put you at A-OK in time for heading back to work on Monday morning.