After a Year of Hating my Skin Decided to Go for CO2RE Laser Full Face. Wall, NJ

About a year ago I noticed a significant change in my skin. I feel like overnight it became more dry, sensitive, mature and aged. I also lost facial fat which honestly im not sure if its from natural aging or an ipl treatment that i had bc ive read people on here experiencing that from ipls. Maybe even from hormones my skin changed i just don't know but it went from decent to terrible quickly. From about the age of 15 I became addicted to the sun. I'm 45 now and fair skinned. I would lay out with no sun screen on my face and get red and burned but loved the tan that would come soon after. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I honestly did not know what I was doing to my skin long term. My skin became very weathered looking about a year ago. Lots of fine lines and scattered scarring I'm guessing from teenage acne that showed up when my skin began breaking down and losing collagen and elastin from all the sun damage. Total nightmare. I tried a chemical peel, laser geneis, ipl, retin a, microdermabrasion and microneedling treatments all with little to no results. I started reading how Co2 lasers were the gold standard treatment for younger looking skin and every thing it said it treated I was dealing with. I actually went for a consultation back in October for the Co2 but the esthetician there suggested I try rejuvapen treatments first being it is a less agressive treatment so I agreed to 4 treatments one month apart which did not give me the results are I was looking for. I then went for another consultation and decided to go ahead with the CO2RE fractional laser resurfacing treatment. I had the treatment done on Thursday and today is Saturday which is the reason for the NOT SURE review which i'm praying will be changed to WORTH IT in about 3 weeks. I just want to be a success story finally. I also spoke to a patient that had this procedure done 3 months ago and she said she 100% trusts this dr and her results are wonderful and would do it again when the time comes. That was wonderful to hear! The procedure went well. I took a percocet and 2 valium beforehand and felt relaxed but was given about 12 needles in my facial nerves which were very painful and then the procedure began which took about 30 minutes for my full face. Some areas I barely felt and others hurt alot but I never once asked the dr to stop bc I just wanted it done and over with. Both the dr and nurse commented that I took it like a champ and that most people don't. I left there feeling like I had a bad sun burn and face swelled up but not too much redness yet and had like a charred look to it. My husband drove me home and the recovery began. After about 3 hours the burning subsided but the oozing and pinpoint bleeding started. I iced my face 2x which felt good bc feeling very sore. I am using the ointment they gave me in my aftercare kit which will be used for the next 4 days. I am also taking valtrex and arnicare in addition to the percocet and valium as needed. I cleansed my face with cerave put on the ointment and slept with head elevated. Not feeling too bad considering what my poor skin has just been through. Day 2 Woke up really looking like a burn victim. Went to see the dr to make sure things are looking okay. He said so far so good. I am to start the facial soaks today using what was given to me in the after care kit along with the ointment. Im still having pin point bleeding and oozing but not too terrible. Very swollen today. Skin feels very tight and sore. Dr said surface skin will look great in about 3 weeks and then over the next 3-6 months collagen will build and fill in the deeper wrinkles and lines. Im due back for another check up in a week from today. Day 3 Still very swollen, face feels tight and still look like a burn victim. Lots of redness but no more spot bleeding. Will continue to ice and do my soaks 4x a day and use the ointment. Hoping the real peeling starts soon. If anyone has any advice for me during this recovery please share. I will not be posting pics at this time simply bc i am not comfortable doing so yet. If this procedure goes well it will be life changing for me as I have been very down on myself and have not felt good about myself in a year. Makes you not want to be around people or do anything when you don't feel good about yourself. It's a terrible feeling. Praying I did the right thing and have a wonderful result like many others on here. Im writing this review bc I loved reading everyones experiences and it helped make my final decision so hopefully my story can help someone too. I plan to keep updating daily so if you have any questions for me please ask.

Swelling has gone down a little but am still extremely red. Face feels very dry and tight and is cracking. Really hope to start peeling soon. I am continuing to ice and do my soaks and put on my ointment every 3 hours. Feels very good to soak and put on the ointment. The second time I did it today skin started peeling off a little bit here and there. So happy!

Skin continues to be very dry, tight and red. Swelling has gone down a little. Lots of dry dead skin (scabs). Face still little sore. Continuing soaks and ointment every 3 hours. Skin is continuing to flake off as I put on the ointment which is great. Spoke to esthetician today who said peeling can last up to 2 weeks which seems so long and hoping it doesn't take that long. She also said to use a thin film of ointment to avoid breakouts. I also asked about pigmentation issues as I am nervous about that. She said that would not be seen until 4-6 week after treatment. Just continuing to pray all goes well. Follow up appointment this Friday.