THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH?

Dear Currie,
My 42 birthday is coming up and I feel and look old. Please help.

The above is an excerpt from the actual email I sent to my friends at the Currie Hair, Skin and Nails salon a few weeks ago. Getting older is kind of a process that sneaks up on you. Although it’s happening slowly sometimes it feels like it hits us overnight. While your body decides to grow old your mind can get stuck at a certain age. I am a 42 year old mother of two children, yet I frequently look around the room for another adult when someone needs to be responsible. My sense of humor is on the same level as the Elf movies and I’ve yet to learn how to cook more than about 2 things. In other words, as embarrassing as it is to admit, there is a part of me that still feels like my 23 year-old naive self. Except then I look in that damn mirror and I no longer look my 23 year self. Or, I’m at the grocery store and the cashier calls me Ma’am, and I suddenly remember that I’m old enough to be the mother of the cashier.
Per usual, my team at Currie knew exactly what to do. Not only do they always know how to help me but I can always be confident that if there is new technology and techniques they will be one of the first to know about and to educate themselves on how it works. All I knew going into my appointment was that I was scheduled with Mia Prezio, an esthetician at Currie Day Spa’s Glen Mills location, and I would be trying out VIVACE. So like a blind date where I didn’t know the person or what we would be doing I said yes. My only question was recovery time, as that Saturday I had an event to attend to do with my husband and I didn’t want to have any kind of Freddie Krueger type recovery going on. They assured me I would be good to go and that was pretty much all I knew going into the appointment. Here’s my rundown and full on honest review on my experience.

The Appointment

Here I am on the way to the appointment with no-makeup. To be clear, I never, ever leave the house without it!

I checked in at the front desk and was escorted beyond the hustle and bustle of the busy salon into what was a complete sanctuary of peace. It was here that I met Mia…and the Vivace machine. Mia, and Vivace are in love. In all serious Mia is one of those people who truly, obsessively loves her job. It’s a lifestyle of continuing education for her and she couldn’t have more excited to answer all of my questions and explain the process.

Mia, really, really, really loves this machine. Which is exactly what you want someone to feel who will be using it on your face.

I had a lot of questions and I’m sure you will too so here’s my quick rundown of the process. First and foremost…What exactly is it?

You can read all the technical jargon on the company website (click HERE) but in simple terms it is a stamp-like tool that puts insulated or non insulated (depending on your skin) into your face and pulls them right back out again (aka Microneedling) while using a radio frequency (rf) that provides heat to stimulate collagen production.

Why would I do that to my face?

Because I am not going down without a fight when it comes to aging. Vivace microneedling with radio frequency is a non-surgical way to contour the face, neck, hands and body, with the main purpose to create a controlled damage of the skin at different depths to stimulate collagen and regenerate new skin cell growth; the LED light is meant to help with collagen renewal but also treat inflammation to help the skin heal. The tiny holes open up the pores creating an expressway of sorts for the recommended serum to get to work quickly and effectively. The products used post treatment are just as important as the process to get the proper results.

What exactly is collagen and why do I want my face to make more of it?

Collagen is a protein that binds our tissues together and therefore helps reduce the look of fine lines and wrinkles resulting in tighter and younger looking skin, something we all want!

How long does it take?

The overall appointment takes approximately 1 hour, and most of that time is spent numbing your face. So you can totally sing along with The Weekend and say “I can’t feel my face when I’m with you…” So the breakdown is about 30 minutes for numbing and 20-45 minutes for the actual treatment. And yes, you can still talk, unlike being at the dentist.

What do I wear? Do I have to get changed?

This may sound like a silly question to some but I know if I am going somewhere and have to change I tend to stick with something easy to take on and off (i.e. no belts and/or button down shirts). Because we were only working on my face and I was not there to get any other services I just wore something comfortable to lay down in. So really anything goes.

Does it hurt? Honestly??

This one is a bit tricky because I’ve given birth and that sort of sets the standard for real pain! But seriously I would put it around bikini wax type of uncomfortableness. But because the wand is touching you with a stamping type of motion by the time it feels slightly uncomfortable it is out and moved on to the next spot. Mostly it was just weird at first because it’s a different kind of feeling. By the end I could have fallen asleep. There is a cooling mask that goes on afterwards that helps seal in all the good stuff and calms down your skin. And the whole time Mia checks in on you to make sure you are comfortable and that there isn’t any excessive pain. Each treatment is customized to the depth level that works on each individual.

Right after the treatment.

How long till the numbing cream wears off?

Within a couple hours my face felt completely normal. I even went out to lunch afterwards and felt fine. There is also a post treatment soothing mask that you can do at home or at the salon. At this point you do look like Michael Myers but at least you won’t look like Freddy Krueger when it comes off.

What happens post treatment?

Remember how I said that this treatment basically clears the freeway of your pores? Well that means anything can go in, good or bad. So it’s important to check in with Mia regarding exactly what you should and shouldn’t put on your face. Sitting out in the sun, using retinol, anything harsh is not recommended, including excessive sweating so don’t plan a spin class the next day. I did have to go without makeup for the rest of the day and evening to let me skin breathe, and I looked a little pink. By the next morning I looked more glowing as opposed to pink and by 24hours later I put on makeup and went out for my event.

24 Hours later.

The result was that my skin felt lighter, looked brig hter, and overall there was a fresh glow. Yes, there are still wrinkles, age spots, etc., but this felt like a fresh start to my overall skin quality. I found that I didn’t feel the need to put on as makeup since I was happy to have my skin standout on it’s own. Plus once you know you have everything all cleaned out you are much more conscience of what you start putting back on and into the skin on your face. I even cleaned all my makeup brushes and stuck to my mineral makeup. It’s kind of like when you get new carpet and you are crazy diligent about taking off your shoes and not eating on the new carpet! This picture below is about a month out from the initial treatment. Sorry for the weird face (my daughter says I make the duckface and I am desperately trying not to do that!!)

Next step? Part 2 of the recommended 3 time treatment. I’m looking forward to it and I will keep you updated….