This Little Piggy when to the market… This little Piggy got Laser done!

Laser Toe Fungus

I know this is not a really exciting topic, but did you know 25 million Americans have Onychomycosis; Toenail Fungus. Toenails become thick and turn yellow or blue and black. This ugly discoloration can be prone to swimmer, athletes, and walking barefoot in public areas. Some can be genetically prone to getting the infection too. Ladies usually get it from unsanitary Nail shops.

Total Diva star, Jay Uso, gets toe fungus from an injury while wrestling. His girlfriend, Trinity, get the fungus too because it is contagious. Yup. It is contagious. And yes it can be caused by an injury. 

 

It used to be you go to the doctor and get a prescription for the infection. Most of the medication are harsh to the liver, require blood work, and frequency doctor follow ups. Plus for people that have other health issues, they are unable to take the medication because of contradiction. Not to mention, the prescription are usually ineffective.

With new technology, Doctors and med spas are offering an alternative treatment. Laser Toenail Fungus. It is a quick 10 minute treatment. Depending on the severity of the fungus, it can take couple of sessions before the fungus is completely removed. It is a painless treatment and there’s no side-effectives. Post treatment is easy too… Simply stay away from area that could inhabit fungus.

[Keep in mind FDA hasn’t approved this treatment so it is being used as a “off label” treatment.]

There is no published evidence of efficacy, we just know it works! Doctors don’t fully understand how the laser affect the fungus. I believe the laser deliveries heat to the fungus causing the fungus to burn off.  Some say the laser heats the fungus cause the body’s natural defense to clear the fungus. Either way, the treatment is a great alternative to the medication to Onychomycosis.

Now ladies don’t cover it with nail polish… Get it treated! We offer this treatment at Astoria Med Spa.

iPixel

Fractional Laser

iPixel is the fractional laser we have here at Astoria. I know most of you are thinking... why did you do it? you are so young, you didn't need it, you are crazy! However when you see the effect it had on my skin, you will realize it was defiantly needed. 
This treatment helps with:

• Sun Damage
• Acne Scars
• Hyper pigmentation & Uneven skin tones
• Fine lines and wrinkles
• Promotes healthy skin growth

It uses pinpoint laser beams to penetrate beneath the skins surface to eliminate old and damage skin. Later the body's own natural healing process will replace the damage skin with fresh, glowing, and healthy skin!

Before the iPixel

I started with cleaning my skin with a good cleanser that will remove all oils and debris.  

After I applied ointment 

The beautiful Nuha doing my treatment

Immediately after treatment

My talented co-worker Nuha performed the treatment on me. She covered my eyes because it is a laser and you want to protect your eyes. As you can see my face was red immediately after the treatment. For test purposes, I tried two different post care products. Left side of the face was Resurfix and right was Combat-Ready Balm.You need to apply post care products to assist in the healing process and protect your skin from the environment. On top of these products, I also put SPF 50.

...Couple of hours after the treatment

Just a couple of hours later my face was starting the healing process. Started to get brownish- reddish, meaning it was starting to scab. Even though you don't see in the picture, but I wore big sunglasses and a hat to protect my face from the sun. It was very important to do this because otherwise you can give yourself hyperpigmentation!!! You don't want that!!!

Day 2 

Day 2 

The next day my face continued to scab and turn more brown. I applied both of the post care products with SPF.

Day 3 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Third day I was completely brown. My face was starting to feel stiff because of the scabbing. However when I applied the post care products, it felt much better. The products kept my skin moisturized and protected.  

Day 4 

  

Day 4 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Fourth day I began to peel around my mouth. The peeling always usually starts from the mouth because we use this muscle the most. I was still working during my healing process, so I was talking clients and explaining what I got done.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          



Fifth day the peeling was spreading further up my cheeks. I was still appling left side Resurfix and right side Combat-Ready Balm with a SPF spray of 50. At night, I washed my face with gentle cleanser at home and applied a light moisturize. Despite getting this procedure done, you still need to continue with a home-care regime.

Day 5 

Day 5 

Day 5 

Day 5

Sixth day the peeling of the scabbing was almost all gone. When I was washing my face morning and night the peeling was rubbing off. It was important to remind, while peeling DO NOT PICK at your skin, DO NOT PEEL the scabs. If you do... you run the run the risk of hyperpigmentation by prematurely peel the skin. DO NOT EXFOLIATE your skin during the healing process. DO NOT USE ANY BRUSHES. Your skin is already exfoliating and peeling therefore it will just irritate the skin and cause hyperpigmentation.

Day 6 

Day 6

Day 6 

Day 6 

Day 7

                                                                                                                

OK last day for me was day seven. The only peeling left was around my hairline and sideburns because those muscles we don't use as much. But however, with washing my face with a gentle cleaner the scabbing fell off.

Now to answer all your questions... 

• my acne scars are gone
• my skin is even
• my skin lighter
• my skin brighter
• my skin healthier
• my sun damage is gone
• my skin is fuller with new collagen 
• and even though some of you think I was too young to do it, that's not true. Doing an aggressive once in a while for my age group is good. It will prevent aging and help remove all the sun damage that had accumulated from earlier years. 

Day 7 

Day 7 

Day 7 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

The test I did with the post care... Combat-Ready Balm was the best. Despite with my oily skin type it was able to moisturize and heal my skin. Resurfix gave me mila, whiteheads and oily feeling.

Check out the video of the treatment on our facebook page : Astoria Laser Clinic & Med Spa

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to make an FREE Consultation appointment with me at Astoria Med Spa. iPixel can be done on most skin type but however during the consultation I can see your skin and recommend what path to take to achieve the skin you desire! 

Lunch Time Facelift

Clearlift

Ladies and gentleman, I present to you my favorite treatment! Clearlift! I'm in love with this amazing treatment. This treatment is done by Alma Lasers, its a volumizer laser. This can take place of fillers and botox. It delivers a controlled dermal wound without harming the overlying epidermis (top layer of the skin). Plus its gentle enough to treat area that are typically too sensitive to treats with traditional ablative laser; like under eyes, neck, mouth, and chest.  

Clearlift ...

• improves fine lines and wrinkles
• the appearance of small veins
• plumps up the lips
• reduce the appearance of sun damage
• gets rid of age spots
• promotes collagen growth 
• pain-free 
• no numbing required
• no downtime
• BONUS! we do a microdermbrasion before the Clearlift treatment 

There at Astoria, its our Red Carpet Treatments, you can get this done the day of an event and not worry about redness or downtime. Unlike other lasers, this treatment is comfortable.



<---After the Clearlift treatment, you can see a flawless finish to the skin. Lips feel and look plumper. Skin instantly feels tighter and smooth! 

                  

               Me before the treatment! --->

<---The Beautiful Marisol doing my treatment! 

                

Lasers! Lasers! Lasers!

The Age of Lasers

Lasers, it seems like everything you want done can be done by a laser. Lasers offer variety of skincare treatments. For example: optical procedures, hair removal, spider veins treatment, skin resurfacing treatments, and more treatments are being introduced. However, the thing with laser are you have to very careful and know what you are doing.

When you pick out an office/med spa ask questions. ALOTS of them!

• Are they licensed? [Most states require laser tech to be at least esthetician if not master esthetician or physician. There are some exception to this depending on practice, a physician may allow experienced medical staff to perform procedure. Again its depends on state and practice] 
• Where they got their training?
•  How long have they been doing the treatment/procedure?  
• What are the side-effects?
• Is my skin type suitable for the procedure/treatment?  (Take note: Dark skin type need to be extra careful with this! Because most lasers are not for skin type four and up. Check what Fitzpatrick scale is your skin type. However new technology does allow procedure to be perform on darker skin type.)
• Is there any medication to avoid pre and post treatment? [Some procedure may require you to discontinue any medication that makes you photo sensitive. Ask you technician and review your medication with them]

These are just some of the basic questions. Depending on the treatment being performed, there are other questions you may ask.

This is a Fitzpatrick Scale below. It allows laser techs and estheticians to classify skin type. Ethnicity also is something the laser tech has to consider. For example, I have Indian origins but my face color is much little than a topically Indian, so the technician is going to factor in my ethnicity. My ethnicity is what determines how my skin will response to the laser. I am a skin type 4.   

Once upon a time... it all started...

Introduction to my life!

 Hello! Hi! & Sat Sri Akal! Yes I am a Sikh-Punjabi Medical Aesthetician. I have been born and raised in Virginia, USA!

I have not always like skincare or beauty but little did I know that I would be writing a blog because I am so passionate about it!

Junior year in high school, I started attending Monroe Technology Center in Leesburg, VA for Cosmetology Classes. I had a great teacher that I will never forget, Mrs. Dee Edmond. (RIP she has passed away this summer of 2013 fighting Breast Cancer) Not only was she a big part of my change in personality but appearance too, setting my foundation in the world of beauty.

After finishing and getting my cosmetology license, I realized that I have more of a passion for skin. I went to a local aesthetic school where I completed my basic and master aesthetic course. I attend all skincare, laser, and training seminars that were available to me to get all the knowledge I could about skin. Kept up to date with the latest technology and ingredients for proper skincare as they are important in this field

 Me! Back in 2007

There you go! That is a glimpse of my background! I will post more about me later. However I will be focusing on skincare products, makeup, laser, technology, and anything else that is related to the beauty field! And of course about my crazy fun Punjabi married life!!