Everything that you need to know about microneedling….but were scared to ask

My Skin

I would love to be one of those women that leave the house with a touch of mascara and a sleek of lipgloss, but I have always been more of the, “let’s hide this shit with a miracle base” persuasion! My skin is sensitive, prone to acne and redness. I avoided going for facials for a very long time because I always felt like it was a bit of a pandora’s box situation, you never knew what would be surfacing the weeks following the treatment. I am getting better though, I get facials (not as many as I should) and I have a fairly grown up skin care routine which involves serum and sun protection! I’m under no illusions that this will transform my skin into that of a 22 year old model, but I want to be the best version of myself that I can, both inside and out and my skin is a good a place as any to start. 

I had been curious about microneedling for a couple of years, but never really looked into it, until one day I got chatting to a women who had just finished a course of microneedling and her skin was incredible! I bought a course of three treatments the same day!

Mico What?

Microneedling, or collagen induction therapy, is a technique in which a mini roller made up of around 200 mini needles (normally between 0.5 and 1.5 mm), is rolled across the face in order to stimulate the production of collagen. The technique also serves as a drug delivery system, delivering the actives to the dermis in order to treat discolouration, melasma, acne scars, wrinkles and expression lines, stretch marks and flaccidity, as well as just improving the appearance of the skin in general. The roller perforates the skin, stimulating the production of the collagen (which is important for cell regeneration), creating new blood vessels and improving tissue oxygenation. 

The Procedure

In my case, I wanted to minimise the appearance of fine lines and improve my skin’s texture and appearance, so we opted for the application of vitamin C serum. Vitamin C has antioxidant and anti-aging properties. It protects the skin from pollution and urban damage and regulates the skin tone.

In my first treatment 0.5 mm needles were used. An anaesthetic cream was applied to my skin 20 minutes before the treatment, I’m not going to lie, it still hurt! Maybe it was just because I wasn’t expecting to to be painful, plus, it’s hard not to be to tense when someone is rolling 200 needles very close to your eye ball! I left the treatment room with a hot red face. A minimum interval of 30 days between treatments is recommended, as this is the time that your skin takes to regenerate the collagen and for you to get the full benefit of the treatment.  

For my second and final treatment the needle size was upped to 1mm, in order to achieve deeper results. Strangely, I found the subsequent treatments far less painful. In terms of results, I definitely did notice that my skin’s texture and elasticity was improved and I did have a few comments about my skin so that must mean something! 

Tips

Post treatment, you are advised not to apply anything to you skin for the first 24 hours, not even water, and it is better to wait two to three days to use makeup. This is because the pores have just been opened and are more susceptible to dirt and bacteria straight after the procedure. Plus, piling a base on squeaky clean skin seems…wrong! So make sure you schedule your treatment accordingly and avoid planning a hot date for a couple of days. Fair skinned ladies take note, if you are like me, you will look sunburnt for a couple of days. There are lots of home microneedling kits on the market, but I really strongly advise you to go to a licensed esthetician. Aside from making sure that you receive a uniformed, precise and safe treatment, each roller should only be used once as the needles are not as sharp after the first use, which not only reduces the efficiency of the treatment, but can also damage the skin!