POSTED UNDER SmartXide REVIEWS
SmartXide Co2 Laser DOT Treatment - Dallas, TX
ORIGINAL POST
I went in to have the Co2 laser DOT treatment...
gretchenetteApril 28, 2013
WORTH IT$400
I went in to have the Co2 laser DOT treatment yesterday. It started out pretty well, they applied numbing cream immediately after I showed up for my appointment... then they left me in an exam room for nearly two hours but didn't really explain it to me. I thought they forgot about me, so I went looking for someone (also the room was freezing). The numbing cream worked really well, however; as soon as my therapist came in the room she immediately started cleaning my face really well... first with a soap and then with a very strong (it smelled like 90%, which I use at work) alcohol treatment, she said it was to remove all residue of anything on my skin. While she was cleaning it, I felt no superficial sensation whatsoever... just pressure, and it was pretty deep too.
After she cleansed my skin, she put the protective mask on my eyes and asked if I was ready. I said I was--although I was pretty nervous, I thought maybe I wouldn't jump out of the bed! I have read several of these reviews, so I had expected the sensation of rubber bands being popped every time the laser zapped, and that was spot on. She seemed to be holding the laser wand in one hand, and a vacuum in another, or at least positioned so that it sucked up any skin fragments or smoke. And yes, all the same, I smelled singed hair (probably really singed skin). Not the most pleasant smell, but I had expected that. She was very thorough, and she did stop once or maybe twice to change settings, particularly around the eyes, and she did treat one thin pass under my eyebrows and she got to within maybe 3/4" below my lower eyelid, I'm guessing? She did below my jawline too, although just around the bone (not the whole beck or anything, since I paid for just the full face treatment). I asked her if she did a pretty deep setting and she said "We always do." Maybe they weren't terribly customized then? I have pretty even skin (thanks to a recent round of chemical peels that ended a month ago) for the most part though.
Immediately after the procedure I walked downstairs and saw myself in the mirror--WOW, I was already swelling and had bulges under my eyes which hadn't been there before. They reassured me that this was completely normal, however. The guy at the front desk said that he had phoned in my meds to the local drugstore near my house (I had driven from San Antonio), although he had not checked to see what time they closed, and when I got home, sure enough they were closed.
On the way home, I noticed that I was swelled and very red, and I also noticed that the melasma on my forehead, which I had previously managed to erase from using Obagi Clear and orange oil, was now on the surface. Another provider had explained that this was a normal thing, and these dark pigment cells were dead and would fall off in a few days, although they still are apparent. I drove home (it took 4 hours) with the A/C on in my face, and I was careful not to had the sunlight shine on my face, as they had warned against. Once I got almost all the way home, I noticed that my face was very very dry and I re-applied the post-treatment silicone skin lotion (which they had told me I could not apply too much). I noticed throughout the day that the skin seemed to drink that lotion up!! It would only last an hour or less before I needed more. I read on another doctor's website that bacitracin was good too, so I applied that at night. Apparently it is very normal to break out following the treatment due to a lot of open "holes" in the skin, and bacitracin might help retain moisture while keeping down any risk of infection.
After she cleansed my skin, she put the protective mask on my eyes and asked if I was ready. I said I was--although I was pretty nervous, I thought maybe I wouldn't jump out of the bed! I have read several of these reviews, so I had expected the sensation of rubber bands being popped every time the laser zapped, and that was spot on. She seemed to be holding the laser wand in one hand, and a vacuum in another, or at least positioned so that it sucked up any skin fragments or smoke. And yes, all the same, I smelled singed hair (probably really singed skin). Not the most pleasant smell, but I had expected that. She was very thorough, and she did stop once or maybe twice to change settings, particularly around the eyes, and she did treat one thin pass under my eyebrows and she got to within maybe 3/4" below my lower eyelid, I'm guessing? She did below my jawline too, although just around the bone (not the whole beck or anything, since I paid for just the full face treatment). I asked her if she did a pretty deep setting and she said "We always do." Maybe they weren't terribly customized then? I have pretty even skin (thanks to a recent round of chemical peels that ended a month ago) for the most part though.
Immediately after the procedure I walked downstairs and saw myself in the mirror--WOW, I was already swelling and had bulges under my eyes which hadn't been there before. They reassured me that this was completely normal, however. The guy at the front desk said that he had phoned in my meds to the local drugstore near my house (I had driven from San Antonio), although he had not checked to see what time they closed, and when I got home, sure enough they were closed.
On the way home, I noticed that I was swelled and very red, and I also noticed that the melasma on my forehead, which I had previously managed to erase from using Obagi Clear and orange oil, was now on the surface. Another provider had explained that this was a normal thing, and these dark pigment cells were dead and would fall off in a few days, although they still are apparent. I drove home (it took 4 hours) with the A/C on in my face, and I was careful not to had the sunlight shine on my face, as they had warned against. Once I got almost all the way home, I noticed that my face was very very dry and I re-applied the post-treatment silicone skin lotion (which they had told me I could not apply too much). I noticed throughout the day that the skin seemed to drink that lotion up!! It would only last an hour or less before I needed more. I read on another doctor's website that bacitracin was good too, so I applied that at night. Apparently it is very normal to break out following the treatment due to a lot of open "holes" in the skin, and bacitracin might help retain moisture while keeping down any risk of infection.
UPDATED FROM gretchenette
3 days post
Recovery day #1--I awoke the day after the...
gretchenetteApril 30, 2013
Recovery day #1--I awoke the day after the procedure having slept sitting up, as instructed. I normally sleep very very soundly, but this position made it difficult to sleep. Nevertheless, I woke up and was very swelled up, particularly around the eyes, but in the cheek and chin too--pretty much all over my face, and very red too. I saw the marks very well where the therapist had changed the pattern and then treated around the sides of my face, under my chin, and below my eyes, in a horizontal dot pattern.
I kept the moisturizing cream (whose main ingredient was silicone) on and mixed it with some bacitracin (as specified on another doctor's office website) to prevent any infection during the morning. I didn't keep it up throughout the day, however, and later on I developed some pimples on my chin. That evening I went to Walgreens and discovered burn pads--eureka! They worked wonders, keeping my dry skin from drying out even more (even with the silicone moisturizer on my skin was still extremely dry). They kept the skin moist while preventing the moisture from evaporating, which was VERY helpful, especially during the night, when it seemed to dry out no matter what.
Later on in the day, most of the swelling in my cheeks and chin went down for the most part, but the eye swelling remained. Some of the redness went down, too.
I kept the moisturizing cream (whose main ingredient was silicone) on and mixed it with some bacitracin (as specified on another doctor's office website) to prevent any infection during the morning. I didn't keep it up throughout the day, however, and later on I developed some pimples on my chin. That evening I went to Walgreens and discovered burn pads--eureka! They worked wonders, keeping my dry skin from drying out even more (even with the silicone moisturizer on my skin was still extremely dry). They kept the skin moist while preventing the moisture from evaporating, which was VERY helpful, especially during the night, when it seemed to dry out no matter what.
Later on in the day, most of the swelling in my cheeks and chin went down for the most part, but the eye swelling remained. Some of the redness went down, too.
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UPDATED FROM gretchenette
3 days post
Recovery day #2--I woke up after sleeping upright...
gretchenetteApril 30, 2013
recovery day #2--I woke up after sleeping upright again, only with the Walgreen's burn pads covering as much of my face as possible--they only come 4 to a pack, so I was able to cover my cheeks and under my eyes, but not my chin, nose, or forehead. Where I had left them on was beautiful, moist, smooth skin--I highly recommend them! The swelling was pretty much gone too, except for under my right eye (I woke up with my head tilted slightly to the right), and to a lesser extent, just a tad below my left eye. The laser marks on my forehead, around my face and eyes, and under my chin (where they set the laser for a horizontal-dotted line pattern) were still very much apparent, and I could feel the ridges too. The rest of my forehead nose, and chin were generally just very very dry and rough. The skin throughout was still very red too.
Throughout the day I picked up another package of the burn pads, and took a nap with them all over my face. When I woke up, the covered skin (pretty much all over my face, just small sections left uncovered) was all very nice and smooth, less red, and all the swelling was almost entirely gone! Some minor peeling occurred when I washed my face afterwards (like yesterday, although I forgot to mention that the majority of peeling happened yesterday), and I reapplied the silicone moisturizer the doctor gave me.
Throughout the day I picked up another package of the burn pads, and took a nap with them all over my face. When I woke up, the covered skin (pretty much all over my face, just small sections left uncovered) was all very nice and smooth, less red, and all the swelling was almost entirely gone! Some minor peeling occurred when I washed my face afterwards (like yesterday, although I forgot to mention that the majority of peeling happened yesterday), and I reapplied the silicone moisturizer the doctor gave me.
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