On a bright late afternoon prepping for an important dinner event and trying my hand at a lite version of my usual smoky eye.
My good skin is the result of good habits over the long term rather than quick fixes. However it’s not all the time that my skin feels up to accepting an unexpected invitation to attend an event or meet a person, so what do I do?
Whether you are a newbie to medical aesthetics or have tried everything up to date, if you need good skin in a jiffy, I would always recommend a laser treatment with an experienced doctor like Dr Joseph Yang from Aesthetic & Medical Clinic. Quick-fix treatments should produce results while keeping downtime – needle marks, bruising, redness, and other side effects – to the minimum, as it could get in the way of your making an excellent first impression. An experienced doctor like Dr Yang would tailor a gentle treatment for you that would still produce noticeable results, that even brown-skinned women like me have no fear of developing hyperpigmentation.
The treatment was very similar to a particular treatment I have undergone in the past. It was practically painless and could go on for only as long as you have the time; the more time you have, the more time Dr Yang has to treat your skin and the more time you have to let the effects set in.
I have always liked the Dual Yellow laser’s very relaxing effect which can help reduce that butterflies-in-the- tummy feeling before that important meeting. In this instance it also had the happy side effect of reducing the size of the single stress pimple which recently popped up on my chin. However, I would not guarantee that it would instantaneously reduce acne for people who have been having acne.
The laser treatment reduced fine dehydration wrinkles and pigmentation on my skin, making it appear brighter and more even-toned.
Dr Yang’s usual recommendation was that I go without makeup for the rest of the day to allow the effects to set in but because I had an important dinner to attend, I had to flout this. Makeup and colours applied like magic after the treatment; as the skin was better moisturised, effects of makeup and colours looked natural, blended in and not cakey. In fact, my skin was so good after this treatment that because I used less makeup than usual, I had more time to perfect my eyeshadow techniques.
When people ask me how is it I get good skin, I usually say: (a) my good skin is no accident (b) I have had help and Rejuran is one of them.
Taken this morning in my husband’s hand-me-down singlet. Other than eyebrow embroidery from Paramedic Aesthetics and eyelash extensions from Eyelash Diva which I will blog about soon, skin is bare except for a smidgen of moisturiser and great lighting. My hair did wake up like that (sorry no products/ treatments to recommend here!)
In my work as a PR consultant specialising in the medical and healthcare industry, I have been exposed to numerous minimally-invasive medical aesthetic treatments. However only a handful — like the Rejuran treatment — makes it to my blog. Compared to my ‘20s, when I was just discovering the wonders of makeup and slathering it on at every opportunity, these days I prefer using as little foundation and powder as possible. However, to go barefaced and often, one must have good skin and one way to achieve good skin is to undergo the Rejuran treatment.
Extracted from salmon DNA, Rejuran is made of polynucleotide (PN or PDRN) which has wound healing and anti-inflammatory properties. Safe, stable and compatible with human skin, it revitalises the skin by promoting cell growth through fibroblast production, which improves its elasticity, tone and texture while balancing its oil and moisture levels. Many studies have shown that PN stimulates cell growth and wound healing from inside out.
At my first consultation at Ageless Medical Centre last December, Dr Lam Bee Lan said, “It is especially useful for those with skin damage from sun exposure and those with fine lines and wrinkles around the mouth and eyes.” She was referring to the pigmentation on my temples, my dark circles and the fine wrinkles around under my eyes.
From when I was ushered into the treatment room, I had a feeling that this treatment was going to hurt more than the previous treatments that I had undergone with Dr Lam. The clinic assistant applied a generous layer of numbing cream which was allowed to set over 20 minutes. Dr Lam then injected lidocaine under my eyes, above my eyebrows and on my cheeks. Thereafter, the assistant kept pressing ice packs onto the areas to be treated, that not only had my skin become numb, my speech had begun to slur and I was beginning to shiver a little.
The Rejuran was injected superficially into multiple sites on the face – from the forehead, temples, under-eyes, cheeks, nasolabial areas and jawline — which felt like I was bitten by ants with some areas being practically painless, and some areas more painful than I had imagined. But it was all over in 10 minutes.
Warning: Before you embark on the treatment, be sure to clear your calendar of any social activities for the next 24 hours after the treatment as weals will form on your skin. After the treatment, your face would look like it has been bitten by a swarm of mosquitoes; definitely not a good look when trying to make an impression. The weals after my first treatment in December last year took about 16 hours to completely subside, with the weals under my eyes taking longer to subside than the rest of my face.
According to Dr Lam, for best results, one should have three treatments spaced one month apart, so I returned for a second treatment recently. This time I took a painkiller and antihistamines to further cut down on the pain and reduce the formation of weals respectively. This time, the weals took a few hours to completely subside; with those under the eyes taking longer to subside than the rest of my face.
Precautions to take after the treatment include not participating in water sports (such as swimming or snorkelling) as you do not want to risk infecting the injection sites. You can exercise as per usual.
The effects of the treatment will vary from person to person, but the experience for me has been:
Clearer, brighter, skin that looked moisturised from inside out that I was confident enough to go barefaced or with minimal makeup even on special occasions.
Makeup colours (such as eyeshadow and blusher) applied more easily onto the skin with the colours retaining for longer and with less need for touch-ups.
The skin felt smooth to the touch, as if I had undergone a laser the day before; only that the texture lasted for weeks after the treatment, unlike laser treatments that I had undergone where the texture lasted only for several days.
Fine lines under my eyes were diminished by at least 40 percent with most of them not returning in the weeks following the first treatment.
There were sun spots around my eyes and temples that would usually return to its original intensity a few weeks after a laser treatment. However, due to the repairing properties of Rejuran, the sun spots did not return, all factors remaining the same such as skincare and application of sunscreen.
I had a spot of mild psoriasis on my left cheek. On good days it appeared pink and dry and did not pick up makeup colours as well as the other parts of my face. On bad days it could get red and itchy especially at night. Since the treatment, the redness and dryness have completely disappeared and the area can take in makeup colours much better now.
For more information, visit iamageless.com.sg or call +65 67344007 or clinic mobile +65 81810680.
