Before I go on about what my title is about, I watched some Oprah yesterday since a couple of the cast members from Grey's Anatomy were on. I think I must love Isaiah Washington's acting even more now. Dr. Burke doesn't have Isaiah's accent.

Anyhow, as much as I don't want to, I might skip my workout today to save my face. 

Yesterday, I went to my Nd-YAG scan appointment, so today, my face is more than a little irritated. Before I rant about how unprofessional this service provider is...I'll just talk about what's happened to my face. I knew it would be somewhat irritated, but I'm just really inflamed right now. It's splotchy and swollen.

I'm sure I am supposed to stay out of the sun right now -- not that there is much out here today. I think the last time I had my treatment, I was recommended to not sweat?? I just don't want to risk irritating my face and making it worse than it already is. That's why I tend to want to get these treatments right before a long weekend, so it can rest.

Anyway, I have been going to Richmond Laser Skin Care off and on for the last year to repair the damage to my face from acne (I still can't get over how I haven't gotten one breakout since I had my bed moved!!). THAT PLACE IS HORRIBLE. I cringe that that business is so good for the clinic owner, Dr. Phoebus Wong. He is just out there to make as much money as possible. I'm not sure he's very ethical. I heard he went into skin care when he did something bad as a medical doctor. I am not sure.

I have not seen the results that he claims to be able to give...because every time I see him, he changes my treatment suggestions. 

When you call to make an appointment to see him for a consultation, he makes you wait a month. Apparently, he's a very busy man, BUT if you want to make an appointment for a treatment, they can almost fit you in the day you call. 

The first time I saw him, he prescribed some lotions and tried to sell me stuff from his skin care line. Actually, the time he spends with patients is very little. He has his staff to sell his products for him and lots of staff doing a lot of the procedures and treatments. And you always have to wait at least half an hour before anyone can see you after you get there. I HATE THAT.

He did recommend some procedures for me, but I held off. Each of his treatments are typically around $200 each, and multple treatments are always required. 

The second time I saw him, it was pretty much the same thing. He recommended 4-6 treatments of the Nd:YAG scan and a couple sessions of Photodynamic Therapy.

I eventually went for one Nd:YAG scan treatment. I did some research on the 'net afterwards. They were supposed to tell me stop using my Retin-A cream for a few days before my treatment. (The cream thins out your skin), but they told me to stop using it the night before.

I just HATE how this "doctor" is so greedy. Every time he sees me, he asks me if I am a student. He wants to know if I can afford his treatments. One time he told the creams would only do so much for me and I should go his procedures. Another time he told me the creams would just take longer. 

But yesterday was the LAST STRAW.

My appointment was at 5, and I left the office at 6:30. The procedure took about 5 minutes. So what happened?

1. I arrived at the office.
2. I was shuffled to another room to remove my makeup and to have my photo taken.
3. I was shuffled to another room and given ice packs for my face to cool down the skin. Or maybe it's to numb my skin...who really knows.
4. The ice packs had melted completely by the time Dr. Phoebus Wong saw me. And I had to ASK to see him. Otherwise, I would have gotten my treatment with no other info.
5. When he saw me, he asked his questions again. "Are you a student? What do you do? Do you have to deal with a lot of people?"

The asshole was setting himself up to sell me his newest FRAXEL treatment. It's so powerful that I would only need 1 - 2 treatments. Then he told me that I was getting wasn't going to do me anything, but he didn't tell me to not do it. I'll say more about FRAXEL later. He did not answer my question of "what are my next steps?" I wanted to know how many more times I had to go back to his frickin' office and was he going to recommend me any more creams?

6. With my face no longer chilly...I got another ice pack, and the technician came. We started the procedure.
7. The machine shut off.
8. We had 15 minutes to wait for the machine to warm up again. Apparently, it just shuts off like that sometimes because IT'S OLD. So I am in an office that uses DECREPIT machinery. During the 15 minutes, the technician told me about FRAXEL.

The "doctor" said it would take a weekend to recover. Nope -- 7 - 10 days is what the technician told me, and it's ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS A TREATMENT. That "doctor" is an asshole. And your face turns blue for a day or two after the treatment, and for the rest of the recovery time, your face is all red. And you are required to go in two hours prior to your treatment to get numbing cream put on your face. Why the hell would anyone want to go through this? I guess the same people who want face lifts...

9. We continued with my treatment, and even though the machine started shutting off (?), it was okay this time.
10. She finished and put some cream on my face.

She said patients usually put the cream on their own faces, but she would give me a treat. I would have much rather put the cream on my own face because I would have slathered it on all over in a thick layer!!! And she never took her gloves off the whole time we were in the room. She had been touching machinery...the FRAXEL book...everything. I don't think her hands were that clean. And she had only been doing this for THREE MONTHS.

I fear for my face.

It was peeling last night. Now it's just irritated, like I've been sunburned. It took a long time for me to feel recovered from last time. That's why it took me so long to go back (and the cost was a factor, too). 

What the Nd:YAG scan does is that the laser goes over your face and it makes your skin produce more collagen. For me, the pits left from the acne would get filled, sort of. And over my time, my skin would smooth out. And then I could have gotten another treatment to even out the skin tone. Well, forget that. I am NEVER going back to that place AGAIN. I am sure there are other places that are a little less greedy should i want to spend money on such services again.

I'll just look for different skin care products.