skin volume loss crisis
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Thu Aug 21, 2008 1:03 pm

I have a huge problem, and I realize it's a weird one that might scare people off from replying. (That's happened to me before on forums when I come up with my weird skin reactions, but I still need input from smart, experienced people like you!)

From an herbal-healer type friend, last week, I dabbed an herbal concoction of Hibiscus sabdariffa (roselle flowers, he calls them "flores de jamaica" in Spanish - diuretic, astringent, tonic), water, and a bit of garlic (antibacterial, metabolizes lipids in the blood) all over my face. My face seemed to shrink the next morning after my lower cheeks swelled. Now my lower cheeks are hollow and my upper cheeks gaunt; next to my ears is especially sunken, and moreso on the right so that tells me it was from my uneven dabbing of the concoction (on top of my slightly-drying sunscreen and light foundation).

Around 2 days after, out of panic I put on some Dr. Perricone's Hand Lipid Replenishment cream, which contains DMAE (they are being difficult about telling me what percentage), phospholipids, Vitamin E, and other stuff in it. I didn't notice any help (which is probably a good sign that vacuolization didn't occur) so I washed it off at some point, probably a few hours later.

The end result is, my face looks terrible and sunken. I have exaggerated cheekbones, with harsh contours. I used to have softer contours, though I had already had some volume loss from a reaction to another skin product 2 years ago. Anyway, the dermatologist said I should go for Sculptra injections. I'm devastated.

My question is: Can the skin recover from such things, theoretically (and what can you do to maximize that besides rich ceramide creams which I am doing)? (I also used Kinerase on two occasions for only 10 minutes, to even out my melasma which was worsening the contrast, and also to enable better retention of the ceramide cream.) If fibroblasts or skin cells or even fat cells died, can they be replaced by the body eventually? (I realize they are different things, and in the case of fat cells - if they were merely emptied, can they re-fill on their own like when people gain weight?) Is it all over with? (as in, is plastic surgery my only hope?) This just happened so 9 days ago.

Thanks so much for any input. I will check back tonight, if I don't have time before I leave the computer soon.

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 1:49 pm

Gosh, you have had a tough time! Were there any other ingredients in this concoction that you may not have been aware of? To have such a dramatic change so fast, it sounds like some fluid was just pulled out of the tissues, kind of like dehydration. It sounds like you have experienced this before, maybe you are sensitive to a certain ingredient that you aren't aware of? Is is the same as what you experienced before? Just try to relax as best you can, eat well, drink lots of water, stay out of the sun for awhile, keep away from alcohol and take your supplements and give yourself a chance to normalize. Sure that is not much help, but I just wanted to give you some support! Wink

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:03 pm

I agree with the dehydration thought....drink a ton of water, slather on some emu oil (repeatedly throughout the day, and try to leave your skin alone....it just needs time to revenuate and heal.

Btw, exactly what were you try to accomplish when you used this?

Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:32 pm

bethany and lilybear: Thanks for the support. I kind of had thought the same thing, that maybe it's just a bad case of dehydration. I think in the past it was mostly that too, since in time it did look at least a little better. Actually, my nose looked caved in on one side too, one day, and it has already gotten back to almost normal.

I'm not sure what else he may have put in there, as I don't want to drill him about it anymore than I already have since I don't want further contact (and he's being evasive). He claims the herbs just "clean the blood." He did briefly toss a quartz crystal which had been on one of my chakras, into the water. Which brings me to bethany's question:

He's a spiritual so-called healer whom I've known for a while - in the realm of santería-type (? don't know what you call what he does) stuff. He was supposedly trying to help something else that was going on with my face. (I wasn't doing anything wrong but seems he may have also been up to no good.) Explaining it would be difficult and another strange story I'd rather not tell; suffice it to say I was having a hard time after a Reiki initiation. And I was in a sleepy-ish state of mind that day; normally I would've been more careful for sure. All I can do now is damage control and stay away from that kind of situation in the future.

Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:14 pm

lilybear and bethany: I forgot to say - I've been drinking 8 glasses of water a day (a quart and a half), at least, for more than 3 weeks now. I never drink near that much water. I did miss a couple days in there. But wouldn't that volume of water mean I couldn't possibly have dehydrated skin?

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:13 pm

Not knowing what was in the "mixture" and thinking along the same lines of everyone, why don't you try drinking something that has electrolytes. It could be a fluke that it has something to do with what you put on your face, or maybe you dehydrated yourself and your body, more than you thought. This is a good read about electrolytes.
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/electrolytes/article_em.htm

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:30 pm

thats very curious that a simple herbal preparation would do that.Yes sculptra is a fabulous volumizer,but you have to keep going back for touchups and you need an experienced injector.www.markbermanmd.com click on the right side where it says spacelift.He has a very informative video on replacing lost volume in a face via fat grafting.He has many photos and case histories with before and after photos.It is quite informative and explains the best solution to volume loss,not surgery but volume replacement.

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:59 pm

rubicon wrote:

lilybear and bethany: I forgot to say - I've been drinking 8 glasses of water a day (a quart and a half), at least, for more than 3 weeks now. I never drink near that much water. I did miss a couple days in there. But wouldn't that volume of water mean I couldn't possibly have dehydrated skin?

Not necessarily...your skin may not be able to hold water right now.

Regarding the guy...he either doesn't know what he is doing, or he is not very nice. Neither is a good option for you.

Assuming this just happened, it is way too early to be considering fillers at this point...can you imagine what you would look like if you got pumped full of Sculptra (which lasts about 2 years) and THEN your natural volume came back? Shock

Though Halloween IS just around the corner...

Take it easy on yourself and your skin...it will recover. Smile

free skin care · Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:36 pm

Have you lost any weight? Even five pounds can make a difference in our faces as we grow older. It seems to be where my weight loss goes.

I agree water, water, water.

Fri Aug 22, 2008 4:12 pm

thank you everyone! i agree that i should give it time. i got a balancing acupuncture combo treatment yesterday, and my whole face looks more healthy and full. it's not back to normal, but much improved.

and bergquis: i think you are right about the electrolytes. it dawned on me yesterday that i've been mega-loading myself with water for the past month without also increasing the electrolytes to make up for what might be depleted by the additional water. so i started adding some little Gatorade. i had learned this lesson a few years ago, when i went on a "health food" eating-plan-gone-wrong.

Fri Aug 22, 2008 11:22 pm

HAD TO ADD MY TWO CENTS WORTH ON SCULPTRA...

HAD IT, LOVE IT! HOWEVER, HERE ARE A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION. THE MAIN THING IN GETTING AN INJECTION OF ANY KIND IS THE SKILL OF THE PRACTITIONER. WITH SCULPTRA, THIS IS A KEY FACTOR. UNLIKE OTHER FILLERS, SCULPTRA CAN BE UNEVEN AND "LUMPY". SO BY ALL MEANS, RESEARCH THE DOC BEFORE.

GOOD LUCK!

free skin care · Sat Aug 23, 2008 10:07 am

Quote:

rubicon

and bergquis: i think you are right about the electrolytes. it dawned on me yesterday that i've been mega-loading myself with water for the past month without also increasing the electrolytes to make up for what might be depleted by the additional water. so i started adding some little Gatorade. i had learned this lesson a few years ago, when i went on a "health food" eating-plan-gone-wrong.

Rubicon, you are welcome, I too learned this when I started drinking a lot of water. My problem with water drinking, is I drink a lot of it and I go to the restroom A LOT! My Dr. said that although drinking water is GREAT for your body and skin, I am depleting my body of nutrients because I am basically "peeing" them out constantly. So I still drink a lot of water, but I do add my electrolytes back in with some other "drinks". I hope things are getting better for you.

Thu Aug 28, 2008 8:55 pm

yes, thank you, silkie. the more i read about these fillers, the more mental notes i make to research it all thoroughly. i would rather not use them, if possible, though. i'm so prone to reactions that it sounds like a recipe for disaster.

silkie wrote:

HAD TO ADD MY TWO CENTS WORTH ON SCULPTRA...

HAD IT, LOVE IT! HOWEVER, HERE ARE A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION. THE MAIN THING IN GETTING AN INJECTION OF ANY KIND IS THE SKILL OF THE PRACTITIONER. WITH SCULPTRA, THIS IS A KEY FACTOR. UNLIKE OTHER FILLERS, SCULPTRA CAN BE UNEVEN AND "LUMPY". SO BY ALL MEANS, RESEARCH THE DOC BEFORE.

GOOD LUCK!

free skin care · Sun Aug 31, 2008 1:54 pm

Rubicon,
Can you post a picture so that maybe someone seeing it can better assist you.
It seems that you are very sensitive and maybe you shouldn't use natural systems or products. Maybe stick to more mainstream products.
Also, you could go to the make me heal forum where you can post to a doctor. They might be able to assist you.
You said this had happened to you before, what cause it before?

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