Dermarolling for Stretchmarks
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free skin care · Sun Apr 26, 2009 3:01 pm

Hi everyone,

While we do have a HUGE (!!!) and fantastic dermaroller thread, I've found that the number of us who are rolling for stretchmarks is increasing dramatically, thus our stretchmark discussion seems to be taking over the dermaroller thread.

So I felt it would be best if we had a place where we can discuss rolling specifically for stretchmarks without forcing people who are rolling for acne scars, skin laxity and aging to wade through our woes.

AND, we should still participate in the main dermaroller thread as we're gathering a lot of shared experience and knowledge that would be helpful to all, but we can keep most of our stretchmark (SM) discussion here.

-Erin

P.S. It would probably be a good idea if those of us who have some experience post our "story" (age of SM, where we have them) and how we're going about treating them with the dermaroller and our results so that those who are brand new to this can just start right off reading the good stuff.

free skin care · Sun Apr 26, 2009 3:13 pm

So I'll start...

I have SM of varying ages on my arms, my boobs, my upper and lower abdomen, my hips, horizontal ones above my butt, and behind my knees. Many are from puberty, but some are from weight gain after I got married. All of them are at least 5 years old.

I started using the 1.5 mm. Dr. Roller in January, but it was a very halfhearted attempt with absolutely no pressure and no topicals. In February I started using more pressure and eventually added Retin-A. I started seeing results on my arms very soon after I started the Retin-A.

I've been trying to add the DIY Vit. C spray (I'll post links to all products after this post) to my morning routine but I'm not doing a great job at remembering to use it. I've vowed to introduce it regularly.

I have the Climax spray for numbing, but I rarely use it. Ice does work pretty well but it's kind of a pain. For the most part I don't use numbing.

I roll at the beginning of every month, but I don't do all areas. I have a rolling diary and my treatment schedule of where to roll is a little staggered. I think it's best to not try to roll all areas at once, but rather to focus on a few and seek resolution of those first.

I roll with medium to aggressive pressure. Medium=using some force to push the roller down and aggressive=pushing as hard as I possibly can. I get some blood, but not a lot.

Here's what I do:

1. Wipe the area with alcohol

2. Roll (I tend to not follow the star pattern because I'm not that organized...I just roll the heck out of the area and go over every area in a lot of directions)

3. Shower & dry off

4. Apply Retin-A

5. Apply Vit. C in the morning (and every morning thereafter) and I now apply Retin-A every 2 days because I was getting rashes.

6. Wait one month and do it all again.

Results: My arms and boobs (where I started) are showing dramatic improvement to the point where I can wear sleeveless shirts in public now. My abdomen is much slower at responding, but there is some improvement. I can't really tell behind the knees because 1) I can't see it very well and 2) it hurts SO badly there that I've only rolled it twice.

free skin care · Fri Oct 16, 2009 12:56 pm

I have just read a new post on another stretch mark thread I am a 'member' of.

I am not sure if the poster is on this site or not...

Anyway, what I read I found interesting...

Quote:

Finnaly I have some good news to report.
Some months ago I started to treat my stretch marks with a single needle that I received together with my dermaroller. I emailed them and she explained me how to do it. I only prick stretch marks not the skin around and I go deeper than my 1.5 dermaroller does. I did all my stretch marks 3times (once a month). I was really scared at the beginning but the needle is very thin and I don't need any numbing. I do about 50 stretch marks a day.

Some stretch marks start to break up! I noticed it last week but I though I was fooling myself. I checked it today in many different lights and I even used a magnifying glass and some stretch marks are breaking up and there are tiny areas of normal looking skin in the stretch marks.

It takes quite a while to heal thought. I couldn’t hide it form my boyfriend and when he saw the red stripes on my abdomen after my first treatment he said ”looks like you were attacked by a bear”.lol He didn’t even ask me what I did .He got used to me doing very weird stuff with my skinJ
I also used that single needle on my scar caused by vaccination but I only did it once- there is no improvement yet.

You can buy the derma roller +individual needle kit from here for $49: http://www.owndoc.com/health-and-beauty-products/ / http://dermaroller.owndoc.com/

Here are the 'before and after' pics from someone who used the single needle (don't ask me whether they are fake or not, because I have no idea): http://www.owndoc.com/stretchmarks/stretchmarks-single-needle-before-and-after/

free skin care · Tue Dec 15, 2009 2:53 am

Single needles: Some advice I received from Sarah Vaughter (owndoc.com) on how to use single needles for individual scars.

Before working with the single needle, roll the entire skin area (scars plus surrounding skin) with a 1.5mm roller to stimulate the surrounding tissue. Do this 5 days before using the single needle.

Use the single needle on scar tissue, not the surrounding skin.

Stretchmarks/scars: You need to do many pricks - more than a dermaroller will give. This dense needling is called 'needle abrasion'. Always test raised scars first with a small area as raised scars are unpredictable.

Acne/chicken pox scars: Make 10 to 20 pricks into the scar with the needle. The pricks should be in a slightly different place within the scar. The approximate pricking should be 2mm. Do not needle-abrade acne or chicken pox scars.

Do not single-needle more than once a month, otherwise you will destroy the newly-formed collagen bundles. If you prick the skin densely, do the same scar only every 6 to 8 weeks.

Do not use a tattoo needle - their diameter is .35mm which is too large (single needles are .25mm).

The full dermaroller instructions (needles and rollers) can be found here:

http://www.owndoc.com/support/

Smile

free skin care · Wed Jan 13, 2010 11:34 am

I was just browsing the http://www.owndoc.com website because I wanted to purchase my single needling kit today, but unfortunately the kit that comes with a 1.5mm roller is out of stock at the moment, more stock is due January 18th... so will wait until then.

I also noticed they have a forum.

I just signed up, and in the Dermarolling / Microneedling section found this thread 'Dermaroller for bodybuilding stretchmarks'... Sarah Vaughter's reply:

Quote:

The problem with stretch marks is that although they are often called scars, they are in fact not scars. Our skin (when I simplify it) has 2 layers. The top layer is the Epidermis and then there is the Dermis underneath.

Ordinary scars are usually only present in the epidermis and in the top part of the dermis. Stretchmarks are cracks that exist throughout the entire epidermis and most part of the dermis.

So a stretchmark is not a scar, it is a deep crack in the skin. That's why it is such a difficult problem and current dermatology is not capable of removing stretchmarks.

Concerning dermarolling, none of our customers attained a complete disappearance of their stretch marks. Lots of our customers achieved a significant improvement though, some a mild one and some no improvement but if they continue they might obtain it. Collagen induction triggered by dermarolling is a very slow process and it can take a year to see improvement. If you are consistent with dermarolling and follow our dermarolling instructions, you have a chance that your stretch marks will get shallower, narrower and improve in color and texture but this takes a long time.

To treat stretch marks you need long needles: 1.5 mm. If it is too painful for you, numb the skin with an icepack.

Yes, you can use a dermaroller on those area's.
Definitely yes. The only part of skin that a dermaroller must not be used is the eyelids and you have to be extra careful around your eyes.

Link to the forum (where Sarah Vaughter replies) http://forum.owndoc.com/index.php

free skin care · Fri Jan 29, 2010 3:58 pm

Hey Miranda, I just rcvd. my roller from the ebay store that I mentioned, it is exactly the same one from own doc. same brand !! You should be getting your .020 soon I imagine.

free skin care · Fri Feb 26, 2010 3:16 pm

Kay2008 wrote:

I would have needled my skin no more than once every 4-6 weeks,

Where are you reading that you should needle more than once every 4-6 weeks? You seem to be saying that you disagree with something you read that says you can needle more often.

Or is it the rolling then 5 days later needling that you're questioning?

If it is, then I do a 1.5mm roll then needle 5 days later. I figured the collagen has only just started to repair at the 5 day stage so I won't be destroying newly-formed collagen bundles with the needling (however I'm green on the technicals so could be way out here). Also I only needle a couple of very small patches which I don't believe my roller does as precisely so I see the procedures as slightly different. I don't always draw blood with my roller but do with the needle. If I waited one month apart to do either, then I'd never get anything done.
I hope I'm on the right track here in answering your query!

Wed Mar 03, 2010 11:18 am

Hello ladies!

I've been off the forums for a while due to school being insanely busy. I just wanted to do another update. I single-needled my deeper stretch marks for the third time about a week ago. (That makes it 3-4 months since I started single-needling and 9 months-ish since I started rolling). And I really think I can wear shorts by this summer guys! I'm so excited. (I have horrendous stretch marks behind the knees, from a growth spurt I had when I was 12--or should I say, I used to, lol ).

Anyway, I just wanted to post that as encouragement for everyone else. Results are slow, but they do come. Patience is key. =)

They're still there, don't get me wrong. But there is no more question of whether it's wishful thinking or not anymore. They are definitely like, 90% better than when I started. Actually for some reason my one knee seems to be responding a lot more than my other one. My theory is that I could reach it better with my dominant hand when needling.

Anyway that's it. I hope you guys get the results you want as well!

free skin care · Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:35 pm

Owndoc will sell 5 single needles separately for 9 dollars soon: single needles

free skin care · Fri Jun 18, 2010 6:05 am

Kris_HK wrote:

Is This is Miranda here? I wanna know how things are with you coz you said you're seeing improvements then you said the SMs looked worse...It's really confusing Sad

Hi Kris,
I saw clear skin breaking through between the mild SM's and ridges of skin building on the deep ones. But when I was in Italy (whilst wearing bikini), my SM's looked really obvious.

Firstly the sunlight in Italy is much clearer and stronger than gloomy London so everything is 'magnified'.
Secondly, I haven't used Retin A 0.1% since March. Previously I had been using that regularly for 18 months. I've just started using it again.
Thirdly, someone made the point that the sun doesn't tan SM's. I got a very slight tan which may have made the scarred tissue show up more.
Lastly, I've been on a mission to exercise and my stomach is now more toned. As the skin is so damaged by a gargantuan pregnancy, it doesn't snap into shape when the abs tone up so there is a slight looseness to it.
Or maybe, psychologically I had in my mind that there should have been a big improvement and was shocked when I saw there wasn't. I'm not impatient but did feel a little demoralised that I still feel embarrassed about my stomach despite it being a good shape. It's only the SM's marring it.

Kris, I think with your growth SM's, you won't have the same issues as me in terms of lax skin.
And so my advice is.... no one go to Italy!!

free skin care · Wed Jul 14, 2010 3:05 am

Good grief! How many more posts from newbies who obviously haven't bothered reading any specialist info!

My skin is hugely important to me; I hate the fact that I have scars so I am trying to do something about them but I won't sacrifice the condition my skin is in right now in the name of self-esteem (scars aren't dangerous it's just they don't look nice and make me and many others feel bad about ourselves).

Why would anyone who has been rolling for two months say that the doctors/specialists are wrong and that they are right in that deep rolling excessively is not detrimental?

Why are the questions "can I roll then put Retin A" or "How often do I roll" being asked?

The reason why this thread is becoming so useless for new people to read through is because it's being filled up with questions that shouldn't even be asked if one has done even just 30 mins worth of research.

I read through the whole of the mammoth Dermarolling thread plus this one plus every piece of legit info I could find before I started puncturing my skin. Yes I made some mistakes along the way and needed some questions answered. But really folks, these last few posts are just space-wasters and both Barry and PapayaWhip's techniques are positively harmful.

For the last time use link below, read ALL of them and then you will have a pretty good idea on how to roll safely and correctly.

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?tid=29860

And have patience.

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