Whether you are a “virgin” to medical grade skincare and in-office treatments or you have already dipped your toes in the water, this blog is designed to help point you in the right direction when it comes to where to start in regards to keeping your skin youthful and healthy!
Let me paint the picture…You are finally ready to start taking care of your skin. You are finally ready to invest in YOU! You would like to start with a few great preventative treatments. You are open to botox and filler but you want to look natural and not “overdone.” You are nervous, but ready to learn! You just want to age gracefully and do what you can to take care of your skin so that you don’t have regrets when you are older for not taking action sooner. Am I right!? I may or may not have heard this a time or two (or two thousand) over the last decade as a nurse injector!!
So where do you start!? Here are my top 5 recommendations:
1. Medical Grade Skincare
Let’s start easy. Medical grade skincare is the least invasive or manipulative. In medical grade skincare, the formulation of the products are scientifically designed to penetrate into the skin and to be able to yield real results. Medical grade is often very different from the drug store brands. There are no random filler ingredients – just high quality, active products that WORK. These products contain the perfectly crafted and tested mix of active products in a formulation that can be delivered with minimal to no irritation. That is what you are paying for.
I wholeheartedly believe that you will get better results by buying 1 pricier product than you would by buying 5 bottles of the drug store version. Once you invest once you’ll know it’s worth it! Skincare is the perfect way to prep your skin for in office treatments as well as maintain results from those same treatments. This is the one thing you can do at home that makes a HUGE difference!
“Okay but where do I get Medical Grade Skincare?! How do I know what to get?”
Whether you’re looking for anti-aging, acne treatment, or even pregnancy-safe regiments let me help! We help patients nationwide achieve their best skin by using medical grade skincare. We love being able to extend our reach and help people all over the country with the very same products we use daily in our practice. To get started today all you need to do this CLICK HERE and complete this form.
2. Botox For Treating Expression Lines & Wrinkles
Yes, what you heard was true, Botox is a muscle relaxer. But it isn’t permanent. Botox is used to prevent muscles from contracting because when the muscles contract they cause creases in the skin which turn into fine lines and wrinkles. Botox can be used to both prevent and reverse wrinkles in places like your forehead, crows feet and the ‘11s’ lines between your eyebrows.
A Botox appointment generally starts with a discussion with the practitioner about what you need and what is best for you. The injections themselves will take around 5 minutes and then you’ll be on your way! Immediately after the procedure you may see a small red bumps at the injection site but it will likely be gone by the time you get to your car.
You’ll notice the full effect of the relaxed muscles at the 7-10 day mark and then you will notice fine lines and wrinkles begin to slowly fade since the skin is not long being creased over and over and over. On average, the treatments last about 3-4 months.
3. Fillers For Replacing Volume Loss
Simply put fillers are an injectable hyaluronic acid gel that is used to replace this volume loss, fill in facial wrinkles and help restore a smoother appearance.
Fillers are commonly used in the lips, under eyes, cheeks, beside the nose or mouth, temples, jawline, acne scars, sleep lines and even ear lobes! I’m betting there are a few in that list you didn’t know about and that’s because more often than not we can’t tell when someone has had these treatments done. The biggest fear I see in my patients is looking ‘plastic’ or ‘overdone’. But hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring carbohydrate in the body not only is it very safe but it’s also completely reversible! So when you see those people who look ‘overdone’ they chose that, and they have the option to reverse it!
There are quite a few brands of fillers and your practitioner will chose what is right for you based on the area they are treating and the consistency and longevity of the product.
4. BBL + MOXI Laser
The combination therapy of Moxi and BBL is an unbeatable treatment pairing for total body skin renewal. MOXI improves the surface texture of the skin, while BBL evens out areas of excess brown pigment. The effect of the two treatments together is nothing short of perfection. We first start with a round of BBL to target sun damage and photoaging to correct all of the pigment in the skin. Then we will switch devices and go in with the MOXI to work on early fine lines, improve skin surface texture, and make pores less visible. This pairing makes for maximum skin rejuvenation.
Not since microneedling with radio frequency has there been such a results-driven combination. These two high-powered lasers work synergistically to erase sun damage, hyperpigmentation and photoaging along with treating texture, tone, pore size, tightening and brightening the skin.
Regular BBL treatments literally stop genetic coding and allow your skin to remain more youthful, even though you are physically aging. Both MOXI and BBL are completely customizable and allow the provider to adjust the depths and energy levels of each treatment. Together these two lasers pack a symbiotic punch of skin renewal and radiance with ease.
With little to no downtime, this laser combination is a powerful, robust and proven combination that will transform and renew your skin!
5. Microneedling with PRP or Exosomes For Improving Skin Texture
Whether you’re looking to treat large pores, scarring, or just wanting to have even and glowing skin texture, microneedling can drastically help. Microneedling involves making teeny tiny punctures to the skin to stimulate the growth of new cells and collagen production. The treatment requires taking a sample of your blood and applying it back into your skin. I know it sounds crazy but it works wonders.
The reason we take the blood sample is to extract Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) which is a miracle substance that your body is already creating. PRP is incredible for wound healing so by pairing the small micro-injuries with a healing plasma you are getting quite literally a new face of skin. Before this procedure the skin is numbed with a cream and most patients feel very little irritation during the microneedling.
Using exosomes for anti-aging might be the future of rejuvenation. It certainly seems to be the best stage in the evolution of rejuvenation therapy. Microneedling creates hundreds to thousands of “micro” channels to stimulate the skin’s natural wound healing process to prompt tissue remodeling without causing scar tissue formation. The rapid release of growth factors in exosomes promotes the body’s natural healing process.
The rapid release of growth factors in exosomes promotes the body’s natural healing process. The leads to an improvement in both the appearance and texture of your skin by stimulating collagen and elastin production. This is a great way to boost microneedling and a wonderful option for those who do not want their blood drawn for PRP.
Skin will be red and a bit swollen after a microneedling treatment but healing time is minimal.
6. Custom & Corrective Facial For Exfoliation & Hydration
If you’re looking for a noninvasive treatment with zero to little “downtime” then this is the treatment for you! The Custom + Corrective Facial is a totally customizable medical grade facial. It’s so much more than just getting your face washed and exfoliated spa-style. This treatment will hydrate to improve skin quality, fine lines and wrinkles, pore size and hyperpigmentation.
Your provider will start out with a deep thorough cleanse, skin analysis, and extractions. You and your provider will then choose blended treatment options such as Biobrasion, dermaplaning, enzymes, superficial chemical pees, skin tightening RF, micro current eye treatment, and/or Celluma Light Therapy.
This facial treatment is definitely relaxing, but the technique and one-on-one consulting with your provider make it next level!
Where to Begin with Clinical Skin Care Treatments
You do not have to jump into everything at once! I always tell my patients the best thing you can do is pick a treatment or two that would fit your needs and goals and just get started. By starting maintenance treatments and just slowly mixing them all in over time you will continue to see drastic changes in your skin. Your skin will not completely change over night. It takes effort, patience, and compliance slowly over time to achieve skin goals. I always compare it to working out. You don’t get fit overnight, and if you completely stop working out you will slowly return to baseline. It is maintenance, but it is SO worth it to feel confident in your skin for the long haul.
Skincare is not one size fits all when it comes to products or treatments. What really sets RFA apart is that we love to work one on one with you to help you achieve the best possible results. Not only are your purchasing the highest quality products, but with that comes professionally guidance from practicing professionals who transform skin day in and day out.
At RFA we create complimentary, customized skincare regimens for our clients. We are able to do this via email and in the convenience of your own home. I will be here to help you every step of the way throughout your skin journey!
If you would like to start achieving your best skin today, CLICK HERE and complete the form. Based on your answers I will send back a plan that fits your individualized needs and help you reach your skinare goals!
XO
Racquel
