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Thu Jul 25, 2013 4:54 am  |
I frequently read of posters here claiming that this or that thing made a positive difference in their skin and I wonder how they know what to attribute it to?
Here's where I am going with this line of thought -
My regimen is combination of products and methods that are all clinically, independently proven. I don't know which one is most effective because they are all done in combination - so I credit my success to my regimen, not to any one product or device or method.
So that leads to my question...how do you know?
BFG |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 6:01 am |
I am not sure you REALLY do know.
There are a few things that I can see results right after I use the gadget. Like ultrasound on my under eye bags. There is fluid in that area before the treatment and it is gone afterwards. So I attribute that to the machine but I am not sure what other if any long term results this gadget produces.
Microcurrent I would think should be another one you should be able to see both short and long term results and be able to judge if it is or isn't working for you personally. I take photos every once and awhile before a Beautiful Image treatment. Do half of my face. Take another picture. Then do the other half and take another picture. I then compare. I think you should be able to see some kind of immediate lift after a treatment if you have been doing it for a month or so. I just did this a couple days ago and I'm still not impressed with my results. I was ready to buy the Pico toner for travel but these photos convinced me to wait. Again you can keep these photos to see long term if there are any changes that are taking place that you can't see on an ongoing bases.
Other things like dermarolling I think are a lot harder because the full results are not seen for 6 months to a year after your last treatment. I do attribute some of my better results to dermarolling but I have no scientific way of justifying this. It is just my general observation.
On lotions/potions I think you have to give it at least 3 months and that is what I try to do. Unless I really hate the texture, smell etc. of a product. Even then I never expect much from a topical. I just think there is only so much they can do. I think if you skin is either really dehydrated or your skin barrier is damaged you are probably more likely to see results from a topical but if your skin is already in good condition it is less likely to make radical changes. There are some topicals that work on sun damage and you can see results from those kind of products. The only ones I use that have stayed in my routine are RA and a Vit. C product. I do think these work for me and there is a lot of clinical research behind them but even those, don't work for everyone.
I think overall pictures are the best way to track your progress. I have a calender where I keep my treatment schedule. It helps me know when I did what treatment series. I look back at this and my pictures to try to decide if I want to continue using each gadget/product or not. I only have so much time in the day and I try to find out what gives me the best bang for my buck. Obviously it is not the most scientific way but it does have an element of science and I not just wishing and hoping I see results. |
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Everything has beauty but not everyone sees it |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 11:08 am |
| The best way to tell if something works is to only use it on half of your face or body for three months and then compare the corresponding opposite area. Either use nothing on the other side or an entirely different product. |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 11:28 am |
I started keeping a journal recently instead of only a calendar, because sometimes I want more than just dates. I like to record a few random thoughts about this or that, plus due to comments it may be easier to pinpoint what does work.
But like Cookie, I'm not sure most of us will be able to pinpoint definitively. That's one of the problems of using "the kichen sink" approach that is so popular here.  But I'm not willing to stop using it just to try to objectively prove whether this or that thing helped the most. As long as I'm happy with my combined results I'll keep using the sink and be resigned to speculating about the best thing in it.
I did get lucky with microcurrent in that I could tell some improvement right away that translated a bit into the pics I took, when I was still new to all this. So I know my results at that time were definitely microcurrent. But even with that, I still don't know if it was the BI or the combination of BI and Pico that gave me those results.
However, I will be doing my first BI treatment next week after a few weeks break from microcurrent. That will be a good test to see if I get the same instant lift of brows and jowls with BI now that I haven't been using the Pico for a while.
| SoftSkin wrote: |
| The best way to tell if something works is to only use it on half of your face or body for three months and then compare the corresponding opposite area. Either use nothing on the other side or an entirely different product. |
Um...no thanks!
Although maybe if you use your thigh or something it wouldn't be so bad. |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 6:33 pm |
I asked a similar question on the Skin Care Forum a while back. I'm not against mixing products, but it seems to me that it will be much harder to make a judgement, but there are so many products to choose from these days that it is difficult to limit to just one. The big issue, and I hate to repeat it, is that because of age and skin type and life style, etc, etc, etc...a product that works miracles for one person might just do nothing for someone else, so person A is thrilled and person B is annoyed, but that's the dynamic of skincare.
There is a U-tube video of an interview with Dr. Fernandez where he states that a topical requires 18 months to see results - EIGHTEEN MONTHS. Of course he's speaking about Vitamin A and C products, but still.
So back to what works, it's impossible to say. |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 9:58 pm |
| Barefootgirl wrote: |
I frequently read of posters here claiming that this or that thing made a positive difference in their skin and I wonder how they know what to attribute it to?
Here's where I am going with this line of thought -
My regimen is combination of products and methods that are all clinically, independently proven. I don't know which one is most effective because they are all done in combination - so I credit my success to my regimen, not to any one product or device or method.
So that leads to my question...how do you know?
BFG |
What I know is that if something is put into a regime independent of anything else and used for a while and a change is seen ...that is probably the variable that has created the change. Aside from hydration and hopefully no change in mineral balance, etc. (DUH) So, I would say ..the answer is isolation.
But then you make a great point BF --- maybe things used in tandem or as a regime make the total differnce as wouldn't be seen otherwise.
At this point for me one product is a definite and the others can be intertwined. My big helpers are the gadgets.
Bottom line: know what is *your* thing ...whatworksforyou. And that is trial and error ...being aware... and knowing things change as your skin changes. |
_________________
Enjoying dermalogica with my ASG and Pico toner ** Disclosure: I was a participant without remuneration in promotional videos for Ageless Secret Gold and the Neurotris Pico Emmy event. |
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Thu Jul 25, 2013 10:10 pm |
| I have one skincare must and then I interchange copper peptides, retinoic acid, c serums and oxygenating serums. Moisturizers can come and go. I am into gadgets mostly to create change. I like science but sometimes I step outside the bounds if it makes sense to me and my knowldege base. |
_________________
Enjoying dermalogica with my ASG and Pico toner ** Disclosure: I was a participant without remuneration in promotional videos for Ageless Secret Gold and the Neurotris Pico Emmy event. |
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Sun Jul 28, 2013 3:33 pm |
| Yubs wrote: |
| SoftSkin wrote: |
| The best way to tell if something works is to only use it on half of your face or body for three months and then compare the corresponding opposite area. Either use nothing on the other side or an entirely different product. |
Um...no thanks!
Although maybe if you use your thigh or something it wouldn't be so bad. |
Do you really think any topical would give you such drastic results? If that were true, we'd all be using it! |
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Sun Jul 28, 2013 5:42 pm |
| Maybe we need a thread that defines the term "works"? |
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Sun Jul 28, 2013 6:11 pm |
| SoftSkin wrote: |
| Yubs wrote: |
| SoftSkin wrote: |
| The best way to tell if something works is to only use it on half of your face or body for three months and then compare the corresponding opposite area. Either use nothing on the other side or an entirely different product. |
Um...no thanks!
Although maybe if you use your thigh or something it wouldn't be so bad. |
Do you really think any topical would give you such drastic results? If that were true, we'd all be using it! |
If you're not hoping for drastic difference what's the point? Why not just take pictures instead of going to the trouble of only doing one side of your face?
If it's noticeable enough that I can tell a difference between one side and the other after doing a half-face test over a period of time, then it's drastic enough that I'd want it on both sides of my face, always. Not into looking like I had a stroke or something. 
YMMV. |
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Sun Jul 28, 2013 8:20 pm |
Botox, fillers, lasers and surgery give drastic results. Topicals give subtle results. Sometimes so subtle most people looking at you wouldn't know the difference. Cosmetic companies make lots of money from women who are hoping for drastic results. That's why creams are called "hope in a jar."
Everyone has to find what works for them. |
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