Look Naturally Youthful and Better: With a Multi-Level Makeover

By Hema Sundaram, MA, MD, FAAD

Sundaram Dermatology, Cosmetic & Laser Surgery Center

. http://doctorhema.com

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Look Naturally Youthful and Better: With a Multi-Level Makeover

How do we view midlife? If you’re like most baby boomers and Gen Xers, you probably have every expectation that the second half of your life will be fulfilling, inspiring and productive. And that what you see when you look in the mirror truly reflects how you feel inside.

Today’s 30- to 70-somethings and beyond want to balance their external persona with the youthful vigor and vitality that they strive for internally. In doing so, they are redefining midlife, revolutionizing cosmetic surgery for women and men of all ages, and removing the old stigmas. A number of patients in our clinics are in their 90’s, living life to its fullest, and typically mistaken for being 20-30 years younger than they actually are.

This life philosophy has led to the development of new, minimally invasive cosmetic surgery techniques that naturally rejuvenate you while preserving your individuality and avoiding the “done look.” In recent academy and educational programs for dermatologists and plastic surgeons, state-of-the-art techniques and technology in cosmetic surgery have been the focus.

The latest concept is to rejuvenate your skin layer by layer by harnessing your body’s own capacity to renew itself. This approach reflects an advanced understanding of the aging process. If started in time, this can save you from ever having to go under the surgical knife.

The uppermost layer of your skin can be treated with Elos Plus photofacials, GentleMax, laser micropeels, VBeam pulse dye laser, natural fruit acid chemical peels, and other advanced technologies, to fade discolorations, spider veins, prominent pores, acne and rosacea and give your skin a beautiful glow. There is typically little or no recovery time, and skin tightening can be an added benefit.

Photofacials can be alternated with DermaSweep MD, a more effective, aluminum-free, medical-level alternative to microdermabrasion, which painlessly polishes your skin and then infuses it with customized therapies to fade discolorations, tighten pores, improve acne, and give your skin a youthful glow. The newest skin epi-infusions also offer the power of stem cells.

The middle skin layer can be stimulated to produce new collagen with fractional lasers such as the new eMatrix Sublative, eTwo, CO2RE or Fraxel resurfacing laser. These are breakthrough technologies that remove wrinkles, scars, stretch marks and other blemishes with no scarring and little or no down time.

Voluma, Volbella, Restylane, Juvederm and Belotero fillers are pure synthetic forms of the hyaluronic acid that naturally supports your skin and is lost with time. Radiesse is a natural calcium-based filler. Sculptra is another volumizing filler. These fillers, and also your own natural fat, can fill lines around the mouth and gaunt cheeks to make thinning lips full again and to free you of under eye hollows. The newest techniques of natural fat grafting transform the quality of your skin at every level and truly regenerate its youthful qualities.

Expert techniques don’t just fill wrinkles… they can actually reshape your face, to restore your original facial contours and lift your face subtly and beautifully with no scarring and minimal down time. Recent studies show that precise and targeted placement of these fillers can also stimulate your skin to produce its own permanent collagen and elastic tissue, for better and longer lasting results.

A new addition is platelet-rich plasma with microneedling, the so-called “Vampire Face Lift” that harnesses the regenerative power of your body’s own platelet cells to restore smooth, radiant skin. For the best results, it is important to use the most advanced techniques.

The lowest layer of your skin can be treated with Ultherapy micro-focused ultrasound, Exilis Ultra or Sublime lasers, the newest no-downtime, no-surgery face lifting and tightening treatments. Ultherapy tightens collagen and elastic tissue, to lift your brows and cheeks, re-contour your chin and jaw line and tighten and lift your neck, chest, abdomen, buttocks arms and elsewhere. You will see prompt results that improve even further over time. Stimulation of your skin’s self-tightening is long lasting and completely natural looking. These revolutionary lasers not only tighten and lift; they can also improve loose skin, cellulite and stretch marks on body areas such as your stomach, arms, knees, buttocks and legs.

Kybella injections or LipoLite laser treatment can remove unwanted fat with no down time and no anesthesia to re-contour your jaw line. You can also painlessly melt fat away from your hips, abdomen, waistline, buttocks, arms and other areas.

Precise doses of Botox, Dysport, Xeomin or Jeuveau (Newtox) neuromodulators can be injected in the right places to safely relax overactive muscles, smooth frown lines, worry lines, crow’s feet, lines around the mouth and neck wrinkles. Expert treatment preserves your natural facial expressions and avoids a telltale frozen look.

Rather than focusing on individual procedures, this multi-level makeover integrates state-of-the-art techniques to achieve natural-looking results with no scarring and minimal recovery time. The key is to select a board certified dermatologist or plastic surgeon who has a deep understanding of how to do this, and who has many different technologies from which to select. The most advanced experts are involved in cutting-edge research including FDA principal investigators to bring the next generation of techniques and technologies to the U.S. Always ask if your doctor is board certified and, if so, in what. The American Board of Medical Specialities recognizes four types of doctor as having the appropriate qualifications and training to perform cosmetic procedures. They are: dermatology, plastic surgery, oculoplastic surgery and facial plastic surgery.

This highly sophisticated approach does not morph you into a “new you.” Better yet, it balances how you feel inside with how you look outside and allows you to re-discover the real you, maximizing your personal and professional success at any age.