I am so very happy with the outcome of my procedure. Dr Susan Silva really listened to what I envisioned for myself. Now, when I look in the mirror the results exceeded my expectations. Thank you so much Dr. Silva.
New patient... I have been in the medical field on and off for about 10 years now, including working for two extremely prestigious Plastic Surgeons in the Washington DC metro area. (One of which came from North Hollywood). I was introduced to Botox at about 22 years old while working with these two Doctors and LOVED IT! OMG it’s amazing!As well as laser hair removal and CoolSculpting. Benefits of working with Plastic Sx... That being said my opinion is very hard to persuade, however the time the Doctor took with me and the sweet nurse definitely deserved my five stars. The front desk gal was awesome as well - you guys rock! I am most definitely referring everyone I know.Great experience all around and compared to the Doctor I saw last year (won’t mention names but the group is off University blvd...). I was a bit hesitant. But Dr. Silvia was just fantastic! Took her time answered all my questions and did an amazing job. So happy I found a great group to frequent, and I am looking forward to more amazing experiences in the future! Keep up the wonderful work you guys are worth the five stars!
A friend works at a medispa and had a Botox party where the injection fee was waived and we got bonus goodies (microdermabrasion, latisse, etc). I got 25 units around my eyes and forehead, so not a ton, but the difference is dramatic to me! I'm 35 and the lines in my forehead and around my eyes have gotten dramatically more noticeable in the last year or so. Since having the Botox done I've actually been getting carded again and people have been telling me I look too young to have 4 kids--it's fantastic!
Hi all. I am 52 and recently retired after 25 very long years in law enforcement. I was raised in Southern California and Florida, so I have spent most of my life in a pool or on the beach. Needless to say, I have a lot of sun damage and wrinkles. I did a lot of research on skin resurfacing. I knew all the supplies I needed, and stocked up on them. I knew I needed an 'aggressive' treatment. But, I was concerned about scarring. I had a consultation with Dr. Susan Silva. She suggested I have the CO2 laser treatment. She answered my questions and I felt comfortable with Dr. Silva, and her staff. I had my procedure on 9-9-14. Oh My Dog! It was painful. I applied numbing cream 2.5 hours prior to my appointment. Once I arrived, another coat was put on my face. I was administered pain medication ( orally and a shot) I had shots of novocaine to my face too. Still, it hurt. The procedure itself did not take that long. But you need time to allow the medicine to set in. The entire process was about 3 hours. ( arrival time to pick up and going home) I will be taking antibiotics and antiviral medicine. This treatment is hardcore and I anticipate a good month of healing. The day after my treatment I had nausea from prior pain meds. My face was a little sore, but no big deal. The second day I awoke to a 'pumpkin head'. I was swollen and brownish/orange looking. I felt like I had a super bad sunburn. But again, not unbearable. Every two hours I do a vinegar and cool water rinse. I get up in the middle of the night too. I sleep sitting upright to avoid additional swelling. I am sleeping in our guest room. My golden and my husband are now 'spooning' without me :-D. After the rinse, I apply a thick coat of aquaphor and will repeat this for one week. I am on day 3 and I am still swollen. I am peeling and my face feels tight. No pain. The worst part of this thing has been wearing greasy gunk on my face 24/7. My hair is getting a great conditioning however. I miss my dog, but need to avoid dander, hair and any possible germs. I wash my hands constantly. Basically, your face is one big wound, so you must be tenacious in keeping things sanitary. I will try and keep you all updated on my journey. Oh yeah, one more thing, day time tv bites. Watching a lot of Netfix and Kindle. Updated on 13 Sep 2014: I thought things were going awfully smooth. I had NO sleep last night. My face itched so badly. I know it is a part of the healing process, but ugh, I need my rest. I also know to not scratch. Tried benedryl, no help. Any other suggestions out there? Updated on 13 Sep 2014: I contacted my doctor and advised her of the itching, I also sent her a photo. She had me come into her office for a culture. She said I looked good, but wanted to rule out an infection. No results for a few days. She was also concerned I may be allergic to the Aquaphor. Anyway, she has me switching to Crisco. No more vinegar. Just soak with distilled water, apply greasy mess. She came into her office on a Saturday. She is very nice, and I never feel rushed. Updated on 15 Sep 2014: No more peeling, and the itching has diminished. I am going a bit stir crazy. But I am healing pretty fast. Check up on Wed. Updated on 15 Sep 2014: No more vinegar rinses. Lots of moisturizer. Updated on 16 Sep 2014: Everything is healing nicely. Still have some red spots. But, so far, so good. :-) Updated on 11 Oct 2014: Hi everyone. It has been a month since my resurfacing. I am very happy with the results. Most of the sun damage and brown spots are gone. Co2 laser is not for the faint of heart. It is a commitment. But it was money and time well spent. Now, I will continue my skin care regimen, with a good sunscreen and good moisturizer. I will also see my dermatologist on a regular basis. I even bought one of those ridiculous looking full face visors. But, it really works well. Thanks for all the support. :-) Updated on 9 Oct 2015: My skin is still clear, and most all of the brown spots and sun damage is gone. I highly recommend this procedure. Updated on 12 Oct 2015: This is my close up. No fillers etc. Updated on 29 Oct 2015: Using a make up app Updated on 17 Feb 2016: My skin is getting better everyday. Updated on 15 Mar 2016: Skin continues to improve. :) Updated on 15 Mar 2016: I'm still working on my photo posting skills, lol.
I had my fraxel laser repair done Oct. 22nd so it’s been just a month. Right now my face looks great but it feels a little like sunburnt skin. You know, when you sunburn, the top layer of skin feels really smooth and is beautiful right before the whole thing peels off? That’s what my face feels like right now. I will report back again in April when 6 months have gone by since others have posted that the long term effects were not what they imagined. When I had the procedure done, I discovered this website and perused it extensively hoping for hints of what I should be experiencing day by day, to verify is what was happening was “normal”. (There is a good U-tube video by a woman who had fraxel restore done that was very reassuring the first few days.) This is my experience: Day 1, more painful than getting a tattoo but I guess I have a high tolerance for pain because I just put up with it, my face was bloody on the way home and covered Aquafor. Day 2, all the bloody spots are gone but face is really starting to swell, I used Vaseline instead of Aquafor and I really looked forward to the vinegar soaks because I kept a batch in the fridge and it was soothing. Day 3, face looks like a red pumpkin, the Vaseline is all over my hair and pillow, I still look forward to the vinegar soaks as the highlight of my day. Day 4 and 5, the swelling is starting to go down but I’m still very red, Day 6, my doc says I can stop the Vaseline and vinegar soaks but the area around my mouth is still very red and swollen so even though I use a thick cream for the rest of my face, I continue with the Vaseline and vinegar soaks just around the mouth area. Day 7 through 10, the swelling and redness continues to go down but very slowly. My doc noticed a spot she missed (the lines of demarcation are very easy to see) so she zaps me again near my eye. I had a topical numbing cream on for 20 min to ease the pain but I just put up with the pain because of time constraints. Day 11 through 24, I go back to work self-conscious about my “bad sunburn” skin. The reduced swelling exposes more wrinkles and my large pores on the nose and cheeks are starting to come back. My face still doesn’t feel “normal”, when I wrinkle my face I can still feel some numbness and swelling in the area around my mouth. My lips have returned to normal size (they did look cute swollen and plump but they are back to their skinny selves.) Day 25, I mentioned to my doc that I’m disappointed that my brown spots have not gone away. The reason I went to her in the first place was for the brown spots not wrinkles. She zapped me with a Q-switch red ruby laser that day, no charge. Day 26, the scabs from this new laser form and my face looks like I have overly large freckles Day 27, these new scabs fall off magically on their own leaving beautiful pink skin Day 28, all the new scabs are gone leaving no brown spots and I don’t have the fine line wrinkles around my eyes and mouth. My upper lids are noticeably higher, everyone at work tells me I don’t look different and that I always looked young. This is because they can’t remember what I looked like before. That’s the thing about this procedure, it’s not as drastic as a face lift but subtle. You will know the difference (especially if you have “ before” pictures) but other people (including my husband) can’t tell the difference and will think your skin was always this good. Because it’s only been a month and I still detect a little swelling around my mouth and right eye, I can’t tell you my final verdict. I’ll give an update in 5 months. By the way, I still managed to get fever blisters on my lips even though I was on anti-viral meds. Updated on 10 Apr 2009: It is now nearly 6 months since I had my fraxel repair and I have to say it was worth it. I was concerned that I would be disappointed since I read others who had it done months ago didn't notice a difference but I have noticed a very positive difference.
