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But dermatologists tend to be pretty selective about what they try on themselves.
That doesnt mean they arent well-versed in the machines, lasers, peels, andinjectablesthey offer.
To me, skin treatments are maintenance through time to keep things tuned upjust like with a car.
Its calculated maintenance to keep things humming.
Courtesy of Laurel Naversen Geraghty, MD
My very favorite treatment that I do consistently is tox to my masseter [chewing] muscles.
I haven’t chomped through my night guard since I started doing this a few years ago.
Some people also undergotox to the masseterfor the face-slimming effect, which is entirely real.
Courtesy of Laura Scott, MD
When you walk past rooms full of lasers a hundred times a day, thats not a lot.
I’m not in the business of changing faces.
Right now, the procedure that I do the most is what I call baby Dysport.
Courtesy of Melissa K. Levin, MD
(With Dysport, a typical dose is 36 units in the 11s and 30 units in the forehead.
I do about 15 units in the 11s and five or six units in the forehead.)
Typically, by day five or six, I have my full onset.
Courtesy of Pearl E. Grimes, MD, FAAD
So, patients can actually schedule their touch-up a week after Dysport versus two weeks after Botox.
I also like that it diffuses a little bit more.
Ive been doing Dysport since I was 29 or 30, when I was in my residency.
Courtesy of Rebecca Marcus, MD, FAAD
We used to volunteer to inject each other as part of our training.
At the time, I was told you couldn’t do it while you’re breastfeeding either.
This is the longest stretch Ive gone without being pregnant or breastfeeding.
Courtesy of Michelle Henry, MD
I’m a little bit filler averse for myself.
The smile lines are what I know will show most.
I look at my mom’s face and I can see what’s waiting for me down the line.
Courtesy of Heather Woolery-Lloyd, MD
Right now, instead of filler, I do undereyeplatelet rich plasma (PRP).
I’ve only done it twice, six months apart.
Realistically, it’s something that you should do a little bit more frequently to see the full results.
Courtesy of Shereene Idriss, MD
It’s meant to just support that undereye skin.
I’m trying to increase the density of that dermal layer and promote collagen growth there.
Ive foundPRP works wellfor me to stimulate some baby hairs to grow in those areas.
Courtesy of Mona Gohara, MD
I inject into my middle part and my temples with multiple injections.
I first started doing it back in 2019 when I worked with Dr. Heather Woolery-Lloyd.
Then I fell off for a little bit after I left Miami.
Courtesy of Naana Boakye, MD, MPH, FAAD
Once I got my own practice up and running in 2023, I started doing it again.
And then you just do upkeep.
There are so many: resurfacing lasers, targeting lasers, IPL, skin-tightening ultrasound, radiofrequency.
Courtesy of Saranya P. Wyles, MD, PhD
Oftentimes I combine it with a bio-stimulator [an injectable that triggers collagen production] like hyper-diluted Radiesse.
Thats an injectable that we can use for sculpting and improving the skin quality itself.
I started doing Radiesse maybe three years ago after I had a child.
I used to only treat my jawline, but now I treat my mid-face and my neck.
I am someone who hasmelasma, as many women do.
But the melasma trigger for me that brought it to the forefront was postpartum breastfeeding.
Five or six months after I had my daughter, that was when my symptoms first started.
An oral prescription medication that can be used for the appropriate patient istranexamic acid.
Ive been doing this treatment for 10 years.
As with many patients, mine flares with heat.
Even this treatment itself can flare melasma.
There are many treatments that can help with melasmamicroneedling,Fraxel, chemical peels.
So when people are like Do the risks outweigh the complications?
It also helps with old acne marks and red marks.
People now are so hyper-focused on having great skin.
I always want to look like a younger, natural version of myself.
I do Botox about once every six months, but I use a lower dose.
I looked in the mirror and was like, Pearl, I think you better treat your 11s.
I’m not so concerned about the wrinkles around my eyes anymore.
Mycrows feetreally don’t bother me, so I dont usually treat them.
I still have some lines, but Im okay with that.
Im a creature of habitmy go-to filler isJuvedermbecause it works well for me.
Ill just use a syringe because an overfilled face is an unattractive face.
And they often say, Dr. Grimes, dont make me look like someone else.
And I will always tell them to look at me.
Do I look any different?
I do the same things that I am recommending to them.
I am not going to make them look like a caricature of themselves.
It softens your face when its done correctly and youre not overfilled.
It should be used appropriately.
I think fillers are getting a bad reputation because fillers have been abusedthere’s so manyoverfilled faces.
But the beauty of filler is you get an immediate effect.
Tightening devices, biostimulatorsnothing else gives you an immediate effect.
I love chemical peels and use multiple types, including salicylic acid peels and custom mixes.
I have multiple brands and I even have proprietary peels.
I just think peels make a huge difference in being able to impact pigmentation, texture, tone.
Ive been doing chemical peels on myself for well over 20 years.
I started doing peels from the research perspective, and then I started doing them on myself.
I take a stab at do one moderate and one or two light treatments per year.
The CO2 laser we use in our office has very adjustable controls.
Pain during treatment is minimal to none, as we use topical numbing cream.
The night of the treatment, my skin feels very hot, but not painful.
In my experience, the whole process is very tolerable.
I am a working mom, which means I never have downtime!
I love the glow that everyone notices about two weeks after a treatment.
EmSculpt Neo is my favorite body treatment.
It really helped me to tone up after having my babies.
But its important to supplement with a greatexercise routine.
It is a fairly painless treatment.
The intensity of the contractions and the degree of heat can both be adjusted depending on your comfort level.
There is no downtime or recovery.
People often ask if Im sore the next day, and the answer is no.
I stay on top of myBotoxI do my forehead, I do mycrow’s feet.
Sometimes I’ll Botox my chin a little bit.
It can get a little bit wrinkly.
I Botox my neck to soften these little bands.
So I’m full of Botox.
But not volumizing [fillers]volumizing I haven’t done in a very long time.
My face is a little bit round, so I don’t do filler anymore.
I start to see more lines.
Morpheus8 is a treatment that combinesmicroneedlingwith radiofrequency energy to improve skin texture, tone, and firmness.
Each session lasts 30 to 60 minutes.
It’s not as uncomfortable as everyone says it isthere’s all this hoopla about how uncomfortable Morpheus is.
I give myself lots of numbing cream for about an hour beforehand.
I only do things myselfI’ve never had anyone else treat me in any way.
When I was a resident I did, and I learned really quickly that I should do it myself.
Its an old-school laser.
I’ve used it for 12 years at this point.
It can do dark skin.
It can do fair skin.
It can dohair removaland IPL.
It’s one of my workhorse lasers.
When I see that hair coming, I have to treat it.
I usually say maybe laser hair reduction is a better way to describe it.
I get a fair amount of hyperpigmentationunderneath the eyesits just part of aging.
I sometimes also use the Vitalize Peel by SkinMedica.
With peels, you see results pretty quicklywithin about a week.
You see improved glow.
You see reduction in pigment.
I do two or three a year.
I don’t have a 10-step skin-care routine.
I do have some non-negotiables.
Obviously the biggest is sunscreen, and a really good moisturizer.
Dermatosis papulosa nigraare a really common issue, especially for women of color.
Removing them is probably one of the most common skin procedures that I do.
I always describe them as background noise.
They turn into a tiny scab and fall off within three to seven days, leaving clear skin underneath.
I do that to myself at least once a year.
But you might get news ones.
I primarily get them on my cheeks.
They are a throw in of photoaging that is hereditary.
We think of it as a pop in of normal aging in darker skin types.
DPN are very common in Black patients, also common in Asian and Latin patients and skin of color.
Its very low risk when in the right hands.
Ive been doingBotoxinconsistentlyIm not a clockwork person with itI would say for at least 10 years.
I probably do it on average about twice a year.
Botox, for me, tends to last a little bit longer than the typical three to four months.
I have, I guess you could call it, a monolidI just have flat eyelids.
For me, it’s a very noticeable difference.
I do not do my forehead for the exact same reason.
And even just a little bit of that loss of lift can make your eyes look smaller.
You would notice that your eyes felt smaller too.
I really likeUltherapy, but I am overdue for treatment.
It uses high frequency ultrasound to tighten the skin.
You need one to two treatments, and the results are gradual over time.
But it’s something high up on my list that I have to schedule in the next few months.
I really want to do it again and I’m planning to do it this year.
Everything great was once new, but not everything new is great.
I dont believe in jumping on the bandwagon with the latest and greatest treatments out there.
Ultherapy is one of the most underrated treatments out there, but one of the most impactful.
In 2014, at 30, I noticed heaviness beginning in my upper eyelids and my jawline.
Vbeam is another treatment Ive done over the course of the last decade for my rosacea.
Its a pulsed dyelaserthat reduces redness by collapsing blood vessels, preventing increased blood flow that causes redness.
The last one I did was around two years ago.
And I usually inject myself.
I rely onRestylanefor the lateral aspects of my face including temples, and have occasionally usedRadiessefor the jawline.
It diffuses the least in my experience and is the most subtle in my hands when injected.
I do not inject my under eyes with filler.
My routine includes an antioxidantvitamin C serumfromSkinceuticalsand theSkinmedica HA5hyaluronic acid moisturizer.
Much like one would approach exercise or healthy eating, I approach my daily skin care.
I’ve been enjoying them for nine years and my skin has never been happier.
I get [one] every three months, like clockwork.
It’s my secret weapon for maintainingor trying to maintain at the age of almost 50a radiant complexion.
For women in middle age, as our estrogenand hyaluronic acid levelsplummet, our skin dries out.
People underestimate how much better your skin can look if it is well watered.
Think about a raisin versus a grapethe difference is water.
Ive been gettingBotoxfor a year now, and Im hooked.
I was a 47-year-old Botox virginalmost unheard of amongst dermatologists.
A little maintenance goes a long way.
Botox in my opinion is preventative, as much as it is for reversing expression-induced wrinkles.
No one can tell Ive had it done, but I look refreshed.
For me, this promoted confidence, especially as things change dramatically in my perimenopause era.
Topical treatments can only do so much.
Botox goes deeper, quite literally, and delivers more effective results.
I still have a very robust skin-care routine but Botox provides more noticeable and immediate results.
When you get a six-pack, you dont stop going to the gym.
Perhaps you go three times a week instead of six days a week.
I really love combining PRP, microneedling, and chemical peels.
They work so well together and deliver transformative results without much downtime.
As I age, I noticemelasmaand fine lines becoming more prominent.
I love it because it helps with so many conditionslike melasma and acne scarsand rejuvenation.
I also use my own skin-care line, Dr. Naana Boakye, faithfullyfor enhancing skin hydration and addressing pigmentation.
Its a core part of my daily regimen.
Lastly, chemical peels exfoliate the outer layer of the skin, removing dead skin cells.
The goal is to receive these treatments four times a year, ideally on a quarterly basis.
However, due to time constraints, I sometimes average about two to three sessions annually.
If feasible, its ideal to get treatments regularly to sustain long-term results.
Predictability is crucial, which is why PRP, microneedling, and peels are great options.
That said, I always confirm not to project my personal feelings when patients come in for their injections.
My personal goal is to minimize forehead movement to maintain a smoother appearance without overdoing it.
Toxin is predictable and easy, especially when you don’t overdo it.
Im a big fan of lasers for skin-tightening.
I think, fundamentally, the science is there and its solid.
Im an avid researcher, and my background is inexosomes.
I look for things to fight extrinsic damagelike dark spotsand intrinsic damage, things that cause injury to DNA.
Im a big fan ofSculptraa poly-L-lactic acid filler.
Its a biostimulator that targets fibroblasts to produce collagen.
Ive been doing diluted Sculptra for three years, and I get it about once a year.
I focus on the cheeks and the jawline for a more structured appearance.
The other reason I like Sculptra is because it often has a glow thats associated with it.
So, in addition to volume, it also helps create a healthier skin micro environment for moreradiant skin.
If you think about stimulating fibroblasts, its not just making collagen and elastin.
Its also making other components of the extracellular matrix (ECM), or the scaffolding of the skin.
Its those other components of the ECM that are creating that glow.
Thats part of the reason that I got on the Sculptra train.
What do I need to tell them?
What am I not remembering?
Ive been doing it for about a year sporadically.
It does a great job for melasma, but it also just overall corrects pigmentation.
I always followKorean skin-care trendsand they love the PICO in Korea.
They go for PICO every four weeks, sometimes every two.
Its definitely something that, over time, I can see myself using more.
Were always on our phones, and Im the worst, constantly writing emails and looking down.
This creates a subtle tightness, too, as a reminder to hey, dont be looking down.
The neck is definitely an area that is underrepresented in our toolkit of aesthetics.
