Levulan for Treatment
I just had this treatment done about 36 hours ago,...
I just had this treatment done about 36 hours ago, and I wanted to share my experience (so far) and provide updates. I did a lot of research on this treatment beforehand and part of the reading I did was from reviews here, so I thought I'd return the favor :)
A little background about me, I have cystic hormonal acne on my chin. This only started to develop over the past few years (I am 27), and my chin constantly stays red and irritated. The texture of my skin is quite bumpy, though most of the time the area never develops into a full blown breakout, it's still noticeable and not healthy looking skin. In high school I had mild acne on my cheeks and forehead, and I have been left with red marks that haven't seemed to have gone away since. In the past year or so, I've also now noticed on my cheeks raised red marks that almost look like rosacea. It almost never becomes 'broken out' but doesn't ever go away either. Lately, I have just been super depressed about the fact I am 27 and still getting breakouts. I rarely leave the house without makeup caked on my face and I absolutely HATE wearing makeup. I have tried topical treatments, blue light treatments without the levulan (which worked for approximately 9 months, then I had another round with no results) and IPL. IPL did absolutely nothing for the hyperpigmentation, which was very frustrating because it was so expensive. So I started looking into Levulan as a last resort kind of thing (I will never take accutane or any oral medication, it's just how I am).
I went in yesterday morning for the treatment and the esthetician gave me a 'light' microdermabrasion beforehand. I have never had one before and it was very irritating to my skin, but it didn't hurt or anything. Then she put the Levulan on, which stung badly. A lot of the reviews I've read said the Levulan feels cool but doesn't hurt. I don't know if this was due to the microdermabrasion I had, but it really stung. After 5 minutes or so, the stinging had greatly subsided. I sat there for 50 minutes, then washed off the medicine and went under the blue light for 13 minutes. It was a gradual buildup in pain sitting under the blue light, but it plateaued halfway through. It wasn't fun, though. However, it's not as painful as IPL. I've also had laser tattoo removal, so I figured I could handle pretty much anything. It just feels like your face is on fire, which it pretty much is.
The one issue I had was that the clinic was 45 minutes from my house and I had to drive back in the sunshine. The esthetician gave me a straw hat, though! Obagi hat, who knew. I also brought a wool scarf and put that over my face, so I had nothing exposed but my eyes. People passing me on the interstate must have thought I was crazy.
Within a few hours, I could already feel the active acne I had flattening out and becoming less noticeable. About 12 hours in, I noticed my skin had tiny amounts of liquid on the surface in places. It kind of hurt to run my finger across my cheek, so I thought it might have been some leftover crystals from the microdermabrasion, I didn't know. But apparently it is oil being pushed up from my skin, which is gross, but good since I guess that's what has been causing the problem in the first place.
Today I am still super red, but I have already noticed the raised spots on my cheeks have all but disappeared (I don't know if they'll still be red, since my whole face is still the color of a tomato, but they are no longer raised). I have had no new breakout since the treatment and the ones I had prior have been lessened significantly. So far, so good, I think. The downside, of course, is that you're stuck in the house for two whole days, and you will look awful. I did my research though, and fully anticipated the ugliness. Hopefully I can get back to normal with much better skin in a week or two.
I will continue to update and post pictures when I get a chance (or courage...I look insane). The dermatologist told me it's impossible to know whether it will require only one or multiple treatments. They are quite expensive and require a week of your time, basically, so I hope I only have to go through one, and then maybe another down the line as maintenance. I can't give a worth it/not worth it yet, obviously, but I am seeing positive results so far.
Anyway, I will keep you all updated.
wwrrtt564's provider
Day 4: Today is the afternoon of day 4, and...
Today is the afternoon of day 4, and here is the bad news: I am STILL the same color red I was on day 2. I haven't seen any reduction in the redness and it is starting to irk/worry me. I know my treatment was pretty harsh compared to some others, with the microdermabrasion and the prolonged exposure to the blue light, but it's still kind of frustrating. I am so glad I'm not working currently because it would be really hard to face anybody right now. I have been seeing mild peeling since day 2, but today my face looks like it is about to peel off in its entirety. Yikes. The issue is the skin underneath seems to be the same color red as what is about to peel away.
The good news is that my active breakouts have completely disappeared. I have never seen or felt my skin so smooth. I had some whiteheads come to the surface but they quickly disappear. They have only come up in the areas I was seeing persistent breakouts, so I'm hoping the treatment has cleared up these problem areas. I will continue to update as I heal.
Replies (0)
Day 5: Today is the end of day 5, and I think...
Today is the end of day 5, and I think I can say this treatment has been worth it, even if it probably isn't going to be the miracle I originally hoped for. I have tempered my expectations over the past few days from 100% elimination of hyperpigmentation and scarring to being happy that I have had no new breakouts and my skin feels wonderful. I have seen maybe 30% removal of hyperpigmentation, and I am happy with that since my main issue is with controlling the acne and not getting any NEW breakouts which would eventually become red marks in the future. I do think when the redness fades completely, I will see more reduction in the red marks, so I am looking forward to that. The best part about this treatment (besides the no new breakouts!) is that I put on makeup today and it goes on flawlessly. I have always had a problem with my makeup, no matter what brand, looking caked on my face. I never wore much of it but it still looked cakey and uneven. Now it looks awesome, although after just a little while today, my face started flaking again, so it was pointless to even wear it at all, but I had to run errands and I still look too 'sunburned' in my opinion to be in public. Also, looking at the pictures I've posted, I can definitely tell the redness has been gradually reducing since day 2, I guess I just couldn't see it in the mirror. The pictures may not really do justice, but my skin looks much better than it did before, trust me.
I will say the downtime with this treatment is ridiculous. Yes, you can technically go out in the sun after 48 hours, but it's advised not to, and you definitely will NOT want to show your face after only two days. I think I looked the worst on day 3, it was just dead cracked skin over my entire face that gradually fell off throughout the day. Gross. I would not want to be seen at work/school like that. I think I could have been alright today with makeup, but in reality, I think you need a week set aside for this to feel comfortable facing people. The healing hasn't been difficult or anything, I'm just impatiently waiting to see the final outcome. I really hope I don't need a follow-up treatment any time soon, but if it's an every 6 month thing, I would probably go for that. For those of us who do not want to take antibiotics/accutane, etc. this treatment is a great alternative.
Sorry these are so long! I am just really glad I had people's reviews to help me make a decision about the levulan treatment, and maybe this will help someone else in the future :) I will keep adding to this until I'm totally healed.
Replies (2)
How AWESOME that your makeup is going on so well!! I bet its a time saver for you too, or at least I notice when my skin is "good" I save about 10 mins off my morning routine as opposed to when have to spend a ton of time trying to make my skin look normal.
Any other changes over the last couple of day?
I love the visual of you bundled up in a scarf & a straw hat cruising down the highway, haha too funny! I'm glad you were covered though!!
Thank you so much for sharing so much detail in your review. You definitely know what people are curious to know, and you have addressed it all so far!
When I read about your frustration with having acne still at 27 I could soooo relate. I really hope this gives you a great result. Looking forward to hearing more from you!!