If you want to improve your skin, restore youth, and combat the signs of aging, microneedling is the perfect rejuvenating skin treatment that can help begin a complexion transformation. At H-MD Medical Spa in Oklahoma City, OK, we offer this effective form of collagen induction therapy to help you get the most beautiful skin possible.
How Often Can You Schedule Microneedling Sessions?
Once you experience all that a microneedling session has to offer, you’ll be counting down the days until you can schedule another appointment. You may be wondering what a safe timeframe to schedule these treatments is. Typically, the number of sessions you need and those sessions’ frequency are based on your skin condition, what you want to treat, and your ultimate goals.
Microneedling creates tiny injuries in the skin, so it’s important that you have experienced complete healing before undergoing another treatment. We usually recommend that patients schedule treatments every four to six weeks to achieve the best results. When you come in for your initial consultation, we will create a treatment plan for you. This plan will include the total number of treatments you need to see results and the frequency of those sessions.
At-Home Rollers vs. In-Office Treatments
Some companies make at-home derma rollers and market them so that consumers feel compelled to use them daily to get results. These needles aren’t as deep as those in a professional device, so they will not deliver the same results. In-office treatments use precise needle depths to effectively penetrate and pierce the skin, so full healing is necessary before undergoing additional treatments.
How Many Treatments Will I Need?
Typically, we recommend that patients schedule three sessions for the best results. These three sessions will help your body produce ample amounts of collagen in your desired treatment area so that you can see the transformative skin effects that come from increased collagen and elastin production. One to three sessions can help improve the appearance of more superficial skin concerns.
If you seek out this treatment to improve the appearance of acne scars, you may need additional sessions to achieve the best results possible. During your initial consultation, we will evaluate your skin condition. This consultation is important because it will give us a better idea of your skin needs and what type of goals you have for your skin and your problem areas.
What Is Microneedling?
Microneedling is also known as collagen induction therapy. It is a treatment designed to repair the skin from the inside out by creating micro-injuries on the skin’s surface. These injuries are tiny and aren’t visible to the naked eye. Still, your body recognizes that an injury has occurred in the skin and responds by increasing collagen and elastin production. These two body proteins are essential for youthful-looking skin and a beautiful complexion.
Needle Depth
One way to customize this treatment to your needs is by adjusting the needle depth. We can adjust the needles from .25 mm up to 2.5mm. Shorter lengths help treat more sensitive areas, like the eyes, while longer depth needles are determined both by the patient’s problem areas and skin thickness. Those who want to improve the appearance of their acne scars will require a longer needle to effectively stimulate collagen production in the area.
Longer needles like those with 1.5 to 2mm depths help treat acne scars and other more severe scars and skin issues since they can penetrate into the deeper layer of the skin known as the dermis. Shorter needles reach into the top layer of the skin, known as the epidermis, like those ranging from .25 to 1mm. These are used to treat fine lines and wrinkles and help reduce pore size.
The Three Phases
The results from this treatment occur in three different phases: the inflammatory phase, the proliferation phase, and the remodeling phase. Each phase builds upon the previous one, and each is essential to help improve the skin and ultimately restore a youthful-looking appearance to the skin. One of these phases happens here at our office; the other two occur after the treatment is complete.
Phase One
The inflammation phase takes place during the microneedling treatment itself. During treatment, your esthetician will use the device fitted with needles to pierce your skin. As a result, platelets in the body release different growth factors and cytokines, activating a response from the immune system.
The body uses the immune system to clean these wounds, clear out any dirt or debris in the area, and increases blood flow to the area. It then also begins creating new tissue, which is what will give you that glow.
Phase Two
Phase two of this process is called the proliferation phase. The body renews the skin by creating new skin cells, repairing damage, and increasing collagen and elastin production.
Phase Three
Phase three is called the remodeling phase. By the time this phase occurs, the wounds created during your treatment sessions will have undergone complete healing. New skin cells have been created, and it shows.
New collagen and tissue have replaced the old tissue, making your skin stronger, tighter, and firmer. It is at this point that you will notice the most visible results from this treatment. You’ll see an improvement in your problem areas, and your complexion will improve. These results will last for six months or longer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Happens During Treatment?
When you come in for your session, you will need to lie down on our treatment bench, and we will clean your skin to ensure that it is ready for the needles. We will then apply a topical numbing cream so that you maintain optimal comfort during your treatment. During treatment, your esthetician will use a device called the SkinPen, fitted with twelve needles that vibrate back and forth.
Before beginning the needling, we will infuse a hyaluronic acid into the skin to hydrate the area, help the SkinPen glide back and forth, and plump the skin.
Once this device contacts your skin, it will penetrate the surface and create tiny micro-channels across the skin. Your esthetician will work in sections across your face, focusing on and spending extra time on your problem areas. Extra passes will be made in problem areas to achieve optimal results.
What Kind of Results Can I Expect?
After you complete the necessary number of treatments, you will have 400 percent more collagen in your treatment areas. Some people begin this treatment with higher collagen levels than others, which is one reason that results vary among patients. The visible improvements in the skin resulting from this treatment are one of the many reasons why this treatment is so popular. It is effective and delivers some truly skin-transforming results. You can expect:
- Increased collagen and elastin
- Thicker skin
- Reduced pore size
- Improved appearance of acne scars
- Firmer and tighter skin
- Decreased appearance of hyperpigmentation
- Diminished appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
How Long Will My Results Last?
Results from this treatment are long-lasting. Once you complete the recommended number of treatments, you can expect your results to last for several months. We will develop a treatment plan that helps you get amazing skin. Once you notice that your results are not quite as visible as they used to be, we can schedule a follow-up treatment to increase collagen and elastin production again.
Is It Painful?
This treatment is completely painless, even though it does involve the use of multiple needles intended to create micro-injuries on the skin’s surface. You will feel a vibrating sensation made by the SkinPen, but you won’t feel any pain. We’ll apply a topical numbing cream to your skin so that you can enjoy the treatment and maintain optimal comfort.
What Are the Benefits?
This treatment has many different benefits. It is completely versatile, and not only does it improve your skin, but it treats many different skin conditions. It improves the appearance of both acne scars, generalized skin scarring, and stretch marks. It also improves the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and tightens loose skin. This treatment can help create new skin cells if you have uneven skin tone to make your skin more even and brighter.
It also treats acne by resolving excess oil production in the skin—microneedles in the device work to unclog pores while simultaneously minimizing your pore size. Smaller and tighter pores are more resistant to breakouts. Patients of all different skin types and with all different problematic skin conditions can benefit from all of the skin-transformative results that this treatment has to offer.
Do At-Home Treatments Work?
The most effective form of microneedling is the kind that is performed in an office setting. There are many different treatment devices that you can purchase online that promise to deliver the same kind of results as an in-office treatment, but the truth is, they cannot. You may see a slight improvement in skin elasticity and firmness by using these rollers, but you won’t get the dramatic type of results that you will from an in-office treatment like this one.
Am I a Candidate?
This treatment is an investment in your skin. In the same way that a workout helps your body, this treatment helps your skin. It can improve your complexion, increase your confidence, and help you get one step closer to feeling fully confident with a makeup-free face.
If you want to get a better complexion, improve your skin, and target stubborn skin imperfections, this treatment can help you do just that. Some individuals will not qualify for treatment, including those who take blood thinners, have diabetes, have raised acne scars or regular scars, or are pregnant. If you aren’t sure if this treatment is right for you, simply schedule an initial consultation here at our office.
Your Consultation
We always offer free consultations so that you can learn more about this treatment and help determine if you are a candidate. We’ll examine your skin, discuss your concerns, and help determine if the treatment can deliver the kind of results that you are hoping for. Then, we’ll schedule your first appointment so that you can begin your collagen induction therapy.
Schedule Your Initial Consultation Today
Beautiful skin is just an appointment away. You can improve your complexion, target stubborn problem areas, and rejuvenate your skin in just a few microneedling treatments. We want to help you feel confident in the skin you’re in, and thanks to SkinPen microneedling, we will help improve your complexion and increase your confidence in your skin. Contact us today at H-MD Medical Spa in Oklahoma City, OK, and schedule your initial consultation.
