One Treatment, but I Think That's It for Me

Had considered Fraxel Repair, but didn't like that it was so traumatic to the skin. Decided to go with Restore. Saw a plastic surgeon instead of my dermatolgist. He talked more about Botox and fillers. I'm not interested in making my 58-year-old skin flawless or wrinkle free. Just wanted wrinkles softened and overall look to be fresher. I bought a package of 3 treatments, which was cheaper than individual treatments. Was surprised the doctor didn't do the procedure. It was a young girl whose title I don't know. (Yes, these are questions I should have asked beforehand.) She applied Lidocaine gel to my face an hour before the Fraxel. Thank goodness. It was pretty painful around the edges, more than IPL which I had done a year ago (I was very happy with that.) I did ask how agressive the setting was, and she said the doctor had ordered a medium setting, but it was more agressive in some areas and less in others. The swelling began immediately afterward, which also surprised me. And my face was burning. Couldn't wait to get home to put ice on it. I was inrecognizable. The ice pack felt good, and I slept propped up. The swelling was no worse the next morning, and began lessening the 3rd day. It wasn't completely gone until about a week later, and now almost 3 weeks later, I think my cheeks are still a little swollen. I also very quickly got the brown spots. What I didn't like was that I looked like I had been burned around my mouth. I assume that is where the setting was more aggressive. And that is where the crusting and flaking were the worst on the 3rd day. I didn't feel comfortable going out in public until the 4th day, with lots of moisturizer and mineral makeup. And it still looked bad. It didn't start to look better until about 10 days after the procedure. Now, almost 3 weeks later, the skin around my mouth still looks like a healing burn - a little rough and red. And I have tiny, rough dots on my cheeks, which I expect and hope will go away as healing continues. I have decided this, too, was more traumatic than I would like - maybe not a good idea to damage healthy skin. So I will not have any more treatments, and hope I can get some of my money back. I have also since read the negative reviews and don't want to take any more changes. Time will tell if one treatment helped. Nice if it does, but I think I'll stick with IPL. That faded some brown spots and also make my skin smoother.