Cosmetic Acupuncture FAQ.
Photo By Sofia Katherine
By Kari Pettersen
What is cosmetic acupuncture?
Cosmetic acupuncture is a more healthy, natural looking approach to beauty. It is the use of tiny needles in the face, body and ears to reduce the signs of aging or help with conditions like acne, acne scarring or inflammatory skin conditions.
Stimulating collagen buildup. This is done by creating micro trauma with acupuncture needles or micro-needling. The body then fills in with collagen and elastin thus decreasing fine lines and wrinkles, acne scarring and pitting.
Muscle functions including relaxing and/or tightening muscles, softening the face and releasing fascia. This helps with wrinkles and lifting improving double chins, jowls and sagging skin on the neck.
Increases blood flow & lymph drainage to reduce dark mark discoloration, hyper pigmentation, active acne, and reducing facial puffiness.
Improving the quality of the skin so when you have cell turnover in your skin the cells are healthier thus creating a healthier younger looking skin.
Aging and health from within. Environmental factors such as stress, lack of sleep, diet and inflammation can cause us to age quicker, cause hormonal imbalance and skin issues. By addressing the entire body with body acupuncture, we help work on aging and healing from the inside out, to get better results and improve the quality of skin.
Treatments are often combined with Gua Sha, Cupping and Celluma Light Therapy
Gua sha is a traditional technique that uses jade tools. Jade rollers are also another form of gua sha. Jade has a very cooling effect on the skin which helps to reduce inflammation. When used on the face and neck gua sha increases circulation and promotes lymphatic drainage resulting in decreased puffiness and improved skin quality.
Facial cupping is different than the traditional cupping used on the body. Specialized cups are used that will not bruise or mark the skin. Instead they increase local circulation, relax facial muscles and encourage collagen production this results in brightened skin, minimized appearance in fine lines and wrinkles and a naturally dewy look of refreshed and renewed skin.
Celluma light therapy is the therapeutic use of specific wavelengths of light energy to tissue, which helps to improve cellular regeneration. Light therapy is delivered through LED (Light Emitting Diode) devices such as the Celluma.
Acupuncture and Celluma light therapy is the perfect Traditional meets Modern. They are both non-invasive and holistic treatments that helps us look and feel our best by naturally improving the body’s innate healing capabilities. When Acupuncture is used in conjunction with light therapy, the benefits are twofold. Acupuncture creates micro trauma on the skin’s surface to activate a self healing response, which increases circulation, elastin and collagen production. The use of light therapy stimulates cells on a microscopic level, promoting collagen and elastin synthesis and cell turnover.
Underlying health issues may directly affect how a person looks. We use a holistic approach to achieve the desired results.
In TCM, we refer to the importance of complexion for beauty and ‘shen’ also comes into play – viewed via the eyes, facial expression and so on. Our facial expressions from ‘life’ and lifestyle influence all of this. By improving lymph flow or sleep we can also help improve dark circles under the eyes, for instance.
In our treatments we will use constitutional acupuncture and TCM to address these issues. Bad habits, however, need a team effort. I may advise the changes that need to be made to lifestyle and diet to help enhance the treatment and thus decreasing aging long term.
Certain issues like sleep or stress (high cortisol) also affects how a person heals. Studies have been done to show that high cortisol inhibits wound healing. Since we are creating a minor injury to the skin with the needle; people who are stressed will be slower to respond to the acupuncture then someone who is not stressed. By treating stress through auricular and body acupuncture we can accelerate how quickly your face will respond to the treatments. This is just one example of how improving your overall health can help with anti- aging. For other conditions, like acne, hormonal balancing may be necessary.
How long does it take to work?
Collagen takes 28 days to form, so you will start to see the effects after 4 weeks, especially if you are coming once a week, however, some patients can immediately see a softening of the face and glow from the first treatment. It is recommend 10-12 treatments over 3 months. Certain conditions such as acne, acne scarring or deep wrinkles may take longer and more treatments, however, even with tougher skin conditions you can start to see changes in as little as 6 weeks. Then it is recommended to have a once a month for a “touch-up” treatment after the desired effects are achieved. That being said, your treatment plan will be dependant on many factors including age, skin health/conditions, patient concerns, etc. that is why we always do a consult. Some patients require a longer treatment plan with more treatments and some patients do not require as much. Some patients may also require micro needling as part of their treatment plan.
How can you make a difference with scars?
To build a scar our fibroblasts will migrate the the injury site and lay down extracellular matrix. This should even out and smooth out after the healing process, but sometimes it results in a thick, bumpy, hard matrix that results in a scar. We use the needles to stimulate the body to reinstate the acute inflammatory stage to promote the maturation and re-formation of normal skin in the area of the scar.
How is cosmetic acupuncture different from injectables and fillers?
Cosmetic acupuncture is different than both of these. Instead of paralyzing the muscle to reduce fine lines and wrinkles like injectables do, it tightens and lifts them. With cosmetic acupuncture, we are using your body’s existing materials to improve the look of fine lines and wrinkles. By tightening the muscles in the face, this helps keep the fat pads under the skin in place and prevents them from sagging creating a “plumping effect,” the reason why many women (and men) get fillers. In addition, cosmetic acupuncture is significantly less invasive than injectables and/or fillers. We aren’t adding anything to the face that wasn’t already there to begin with, reducing the chances of allergic reactions or unfavourable results.
What if I have had injectables, fillers or cosmetic surgery?
If you’ve recently had injectables, it is recommended to wait 6 weeks until receiving cosmetic acupuncture. For fillers, please contact the administering clinic to check the healing time as it can vary from one type of filler to the next. Patients who have had facial surgery or a face lift are recommended to wait a full year before starting other cosmetic treatments. That being said, after the scars have healed from facelifts, cosmetic acupuncture can prolong the life of a facelift. If you have recently had microdermabrasion or a facial peel, it is best to wait a couple of weeks until the skin has healed before getting cosmetic acupuncture.
Does it hurt?
Great care is taken to ensure that the treatments are pain free. Special needles are used for the face that minimize pain. Some of them, you can’t even feel when they go in because they are finer than a strand of hair. Acupuncture points on the ear and arnica gel are used during treatments to anesthetize the face to make things as comfortable as possible. Most people find acupuncture extremely relaxing and fall asleep during treatment.
Who is the ideal candidate for cosmetic acupuncture?
Any person who has issues with their skin and wants to improve their general well-being is a good candidate for cosmetic acupuncture. It feels like a spa treatment! Younger patients may wish to start cosmetic acupuncture as a preventative. However, please note that cosmetic acupuncture is not recommended for individuals who have chronic migraines, high blood pressure, vertigo, are pregnant, or have a bleeding disorder.
What should I know before my first appointment?
Come with a clean face please! I try not to use alcohol on the face because it has a very drying effect. I offer communion botanicals cleanser if you don’t want to leave the house without something on your face, but if you have sensitive skin or a preference for your own cleanser, please consider that before coming in. A face full of make-up isn’t clean enough to needle on top of. Moisturizers and oils are fine to use on the face before your appointment.