Very Optimistic About This Proceedure - Beverly Hills, CA

Just turned 55, not overweight but getting pronounced sag around my jawline and neck and thought I'd have a little "maintenance" done. I had Thermage 5 years ago with little gain that involved a lot of pain. With Thermage, they were very cautious not to make any guarantee that you would get good results, but Ulthera got glowing reviews all around and they're saying that the results are close to what you'd get with a mini face lift like LifeStyle Lift. I read that people with thinner skin (like mine) usually get good results. The provider's office is beautiful, and the staff very professional and gracious. I had one Vicodin but a topical numbing gel was not used. Although I'm not sure it would help anyway because it would only numb the superficial tissue and not the deeper layers that are affected by the treatment. The procedure was only painful at the jawline and brow. I used Lamaze breathing to help get through the worst, and the technician gave me a roll of gauze to squeeze which also helped. The second round wasn't as intense. Afterward she gave me a nice facial and applied a cooling mask. My jawline looked better, probably because there was slight swelling that filled out the loose skin. I had a little bruising on one side. I told my friends I was having my face "shrink wrapped" which is where you put plastic over something and then apply heat to tighten the plastic over the object. :) My family said my skin looks better now. I'm taking supplements that I read will help build new collagen; multivitamins, Alpha Lipoic Acid, bioflavenoids, MSM, and about 1,500 mg of Vitamin C. Also drinking at least 8 oz soy milk each day and avoiding sugar, which I heard breaks down collagen. They said that it's a good idea to schedule laser treatment after 3 months to erase some of the lines that are left after the skin is tightened. I will post again in a month to report my progress.