I wanted to remove my only tattoo for some time now. I have finally decided to just go ahead and do it. I went with the Picosure option as the amount of time to remove the tattoo is shorter and I have read it is not as painful. My first treatment blistered within 8 hours of treatment, my leg swelled up, as well as my ankle. There was no pain except for when the treatment was completed. I describe it as bees stinging you and then the flare up. The doctor I go to will only use ice to "numb" the area before and during treatment. I was surprised by how much my tattoo faded after one treatment. I just did my second treatment 4 days ago, and I think it hurt more this time around then before, the up side is that it has not blistered at all and the swelling is minimal. With that I don't feel as though it is fading as much as the first time around. I will continue to monitor, it's just a little discouraging. Updated on 1 Dec 2014: The second treatment 2 weeks ago was completely different from the first treatment. I feel that this second treatment hasn't really faded the tattoo at all, but when looking at the before photo I do see changes. I wish I would have taken a "before" photo before the second treatment so I can gage the progress. I am concerned about the 2 really white patches in the tattoo that came from the first treatment. The doctor said it was normal; however it is only the spots that the big blisters were. Has anyone else experienced this? And if so what was the outcome for you? The red in the tattoo has not faded at all, I have done some research and everything indicates that the q-switch is best for this color, has anyone done the q-switch with reds? Did it work? I’m investing a lot of money into removing the tattoo and even though it is only 7 weeks I am concerned I will end up with a faded tattoo instead of a removed one. Updated on 30 Mar 2015: It has been a long time since my last post. I have had a total of 5 treatments to date. I am in the process of healing from the 5th treatment. As you can see from the before photo there is a lot of fading. The process has been long, but so far worth it. I am hoping for complete removal however the doctor is telling me I will need 5 more treatments. The last two sessions the doctor has gone deeper into the skin resulting in far more blistering and healing. Two weeks after the session (I call it the healing period) I have to change my bandage often and have found that using an ace bandage not only helps keep the bandage in place and area protected, but it helps with reducing swelling. I experienced more pain these last two times for the first 24 hours but it is not unbearable, ice and elevation help. Looking forward to the next treatments and hoping to have complete removal.
It is very unlikely that the SculpSure procedure caused a rash. This is not a procedure that has a systemic effect on your body, there are no drugs involved that could cause a rash. The gel used on the skin surface has very little potential to create an allergic response because it is water based.
In my opinion, it is safe to do a second treatment within a few weeks of the first as long as you have passed the healing period. In other words, your soreness in the area should be resolved. Additionally, I recommend that you not begin the second treatment until you are beginning to see results from the first.
Occasionally when a line has been present for many, many years, the crease from the line is still visible even after the muscles are no longer moving. In other words, your face is no longer making the wrinkle but the line is so etched in, it is still visible even though it is flat. The example I give is that when you fold a piece of paper and crease it, when you unfold it the crease is still there even though it is flat. When this occurs, I recommend that patients put some filler in to the crease. This plumps it up and makes the crease not visible. Frequently, once this is done once, it does not need to be repeated as long as you maintain your Dysport or Botox treatments.
