Topics

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Dermarolling / Microneedling / Can Leaving A Layer of Blood After Stamping Affect Healing?

« on: August 27, 2013, 11:36:01 PM »

I realize now that it might not be recommended but each time after I derma stamp, I would get a thick layer of blood and I would leave it to dry. The reason why I did this is because there is quite a bit of pinpoint blooding afterwards. After it dries, i feel a tug in the skin because of it drying. The next day I would moisturize after it loosens up from a shower.

I was wondering, could leaving it to dry like this on the night I stamped affect healing? Like giving me "not as good" results then if I had washed it off and moisturized? Any downfalls what so ever that may affect the "filling of an indent"?

Thanks in advance!

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Dermarolling / Microneedling / 1mm Derma Stamp Or a 1.5mm Derma Stamp?

« on: August 03, 2013, 01:42:52 AM »

Hey Sarah, I was wondering which stamp would be the better choice, the 1mm or 1.5mm. My acne scarring is quite shallow and aren't deep or wide whatsoever but they are there with a bit of hyperpigmentation. I have purchased the 1mm stamp before and used it for about a month with 4-5 sessions and now I'm thinking it's time to get a new one. I have seen a bit of improvement after 1 month but I think it's still too soon to judge on the results so far. Every time I stamp, I do reach quite a bit of blood, even to the point where the entire area is covered in blood. After 1 week from stamping each time, my skin seems to have fully healed where the skin is not flushed red anymore even when I stamp at the intensity of covering the area with blood from stamping. It now seems that the areas that i have stamped have gotten tougher to penetrate unless the needles have become dull. It seems trickier now (on my 4th session) when I stamp areas with no bone in the back to ensure the needles penetrate, since it seems it has gotten "tougher" to penetrate now. This is also a reason why I was wondering if I should get the 1.5mm stamp over the 1mm.

I was wondering if a 1mm stamp is enough to fully penetrate my scars and hyperpigmentation. What kind of scars and how deep of the scar is the 1mm dermastamp meant for compared to the 1.5mm derma stamp? I'm just afraid that I should be using the 1.5mm unless the 1mm should generally be enough for any scar. Are there images of acne scars that you can link to show me of what a 1mm can be used for? Just so I can compare my scars with it and make a judgment whether I need a 1mm or 1.5mm.

Thanks in advance!

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Dermarolling / Microneedling / A Few Questions I have Post Derma Stamping

« on: April 03, 2013, 10:28:55 PM »

A few weeks ago I have started to derma stamp with the 0.5mm and only stamping on 1 scar, so basically I am stamping in the same area but rotating the stamp each time I stamp. The scar is somewhat a wide scar that isn't deep at all, it feels as if I can sand off the edges and it would go flat. So far I have used the 0.5mm twice with a week of down time between the two. Tomorrow will be exactly 2 weeks since I've stamped and plan on stamping again.
History:
Stamp, wait 1 week, Stamp again, wait two weeks, About to stamp again (tomorrow)

Each time I have stamped, I have reached/ see blood come out to the point where the circular area that I had repeatedly stamped is covered in blood and I also hear the popping noises. It does sting for about an hour after stamping and remains red for a few days then it would peel. These are all normal factors but the one thing I don't understand is that I don't see any results yet. Would you say this is normal? My skin is back to normal without any redness at all but the scar that I have stamped 2 times to the point of blood does not seem to have changed.

After the two times I have stamped I put on a mask of plan yogurt mixed with a it of lemon juice. for about 1 hour then I would wash it off and leave my face alone. I put on this mask everyday for about an hour.

Would you say seeing no results so far would be normal? Am I doing something wrong like not moisturizing or would it make a difference? (Since I think the plan yogurt with a bit of lemon juice moisturizes my skin a bit)
I was thinking maybe the needle length isn't long enough and that I should go for a 1mm but I do stamp and reach blood with the 0.5mm so I'm not sure if it would make a difference. This is probably wrong but I had a slight feeling that the blood I see came from the healthy skin surrounding the scar rather then from the actual scar but it's hard to tell since the entire circle is covered in blood. Also to add, the scar came from a whitehead I had about 1 year + ago.

Thanks.

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Dermarolling / Microneedling / I Have A Few Questions Before I begin Derma Stamping

« on: January 28, 2013, 09:32:12 PM »

Hi Sarah

I have a few questions that I need to clear up in order to help me understand better about derma stamping before I actually begin. I’m an Asian male, 19 years of age and have very pale/ white/ yellow skin colour as my normal skin tone. I want to give a quick description about my skin first. I’m going to be using the stamp on my face for very shallow acne scarring and a bit of hyperpigmentation. The areas that have the minor acne scars are the areas right next to the nose on both sides, which is also, for some reason, the only areas including my nose that gets oily during the day. It doesn’t get very oily where you can see a shine but is oilier then other parts on my face which practically have no oil. These 2 areas are where I had the most acne when I had acne which makes sense since these area’s produces more oil. It also sort of have, I’m not 100% sure, noticeable pores. I’m confused whether these noticeable pores were due to acne and are now shallow scars or are they natural due to genetics and because the skin is oily. I know that oil accumulation can make pores appear ‘larger’ since after a shower, the pores are less noticeable.

Here are the questions I have that I hope may help others who have the same questions too:

1) Would you recommend me exfoliating my skin with my fingers in the showers before I derma stamp? (I do this once- twice a week and I get all this gunk and layer of dead skin afterwards)

2)Should I be stamping dry? As in, do I need to put on any oils/creams to first moisturize the skin before stamping?

3) Do the use of topicals before and after the stamping play a big role in actually inducing collagen? Like say if I only use the stamp, 60% of collagen will be induced but if I use a topical, 80% will be induced. Is this true? Or is the end result all the same whether I use a topical to encourage collagen (Vitamin C) or just stamping and moisturizing?

4) If someone had seen improvements in reducing their pore size, is there a point where the pore will stop getting “smaller”? Or will it keep going until it becomes officially unnoticeable? I’m asking this because I feel as though my pores are already quite smaller, and even after I stamp, they won’t “shrink” any further.

5) Since I have tiny isolated noticeable pores, if I penetrate a pore, like if the needle goes directly into a pore, will it stretch it? This is just a visual fear that I had thought about and I know that there are many needles surrounding each needle and that this would make more sense if it was a single needle. This is the only possibility that I see that a pore can get “bigger”/ worse. If there are other factors that a pore can get larger, please let me know.

6) Is there any possibility that my derma stamp can give me hyperpigmentation? What is the difference between a white head giving me hyperpigmentation then a derma stamp?

7) Is it OK to moisturize right after I derma stamp? Can I use oils such as coconut oil, olive oil, or almond oil? Which one would be better with the less chance of encouraging any breakouts as I have never used oils but I want to for my derma stamping.

8 ) My skin has decreased a lot in terms of being red since my acne days (acne subsided about a year ago) but it still is a little bit pink. Once I derma stamp, I know that my skin will get really red and somewhat swollen but since right now it is still a little bit pink, will making it more red with stamping encourage my  skin to remain somewhat pink for ever?

Those are the questions I have, hope it isn’t too much!
Once I begin derma stamping I plan on eating more vegetables, fruits, and protein, not that I don’t now. I also am planning to get a lot of sleep every night and stay indoors for about a week. All in all, my biggest fear would be if the pores get bigger and “stretch out” more rather then becoming smaller. I have purchased the 0.5mm derma stamp as I heard it is the shortest needle length that can induce collagen and also since I have shallow and isolated and minor scarring with a few hyperpigmention. I think it’s best to start out small to see how my skin reacts first.

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Dermarolling / Microneedling / Do I Need To Reach Blood To Induce Collagen?

« on: January 13, 2013, 09:39:18 PM »

Hi Sarah,
I was wondering whether or not I need to Derma Stamp until I see blood come out of my skin on the face, in order to induce collagen production.  Can I just rough up the skin until it's really red but not till it bleeds to induce collagen? Or do I need to see blood for collagen to actual form?

Are there any cases where people had seen scar improvement without seeing blood?

I have very very shallow and minor acne scarring that are located in 2 small areas, on both sides of my nose. The look like pores that a bit enlarged but not a lot.

Thanks in advance!