If you’ve been dealing with unwanted cellulite, you’re more than likely frustrated with the way over-the-counter topical treatments promise the moon and deliver next to nothing. These creams and serums can’t do much against the problem of cellulite, but there is a cellulite treatment that can. At Adoro Medical Spa in Severna Park, MD, we offer Thermage: a skin-tightening, smoothing, cellulite-fighting treatment that actually works.
Cellulite Treatment: Thermage
How It Works
This effective treatment uses radiofrequency energy to warm the skin. This causes the fibers in your skin’s collagen to contract, and this, in turn, encourages your body to produce more collagen. As these fibers contract, you notice visible tightening in the area. In fact, tightening is often visible on the very first day. Results just continue to improve over the next six months because your body continues to make new collagen.
About Treatment
Treatment is very simple. It begins when we clean the area you are having treated and mark the skin with a pattern that we will follow during treatment. We then put the applicator against your body and direct it along your treatment marks so the radio frequency energy reaches the inner layers of the skin in the right places.
All you will feel is a pleasant warming sensation, followed by coolness. Every treatment is different depending on exactly how much of your body you’re having treated, but it usually takes about 45 minutes to cover a treatment area completely. We will be in discussion with you throughout the treatment to ensure your perfect comfort and adjust levels of heat as needed.
After Treatment
There are no special aftercare instructions other than to take good care of your skin. Stay hydrated, keep your skin clean, moisturize, and always wear sunscreen or cover the treatment area well when you go outside.
FAQ
Does This Really Work?
This treatment really does work. It doesn’t work by applying something from the outside but by stimulating your body to take care of itself from the inside, which is why it’s so effective. When we are young, we don’t have cellulite and our skin is smooth and resilient because of the collagen our body produces. As we get older, we stop making collagen at the same level, and our skin weakens in consequence. This cellulite treatment simply tells the body to go back to higher level collagen production.
Don’t be fooled into thinking the treatment does not work because it takes a little while for the final results to fully develop. It takes a little time because the body is producing collagen effectively again and needs time to do so. Your results may last as long as two years before a maintenance treatment is necessary to re-stimulate collagen production.
Which Areas of the Body Can It Treat?
This treatment can be used all over the body, and for various reasons. It is an effective cellulite treatment, but it is also effective on the face to reduce the appearance of wrinkles around the forehead and eyes or to improve jawline and cheek definition. It can be used to remove stretch marks, tighten skin anywhere, and fight back against cellulite.
Should I Wait to Seek Treatment Until I See Significant Issues?
Many people do not really think about addressing the signs of aging until they become very noticeable. While this is certainly an option if that’s what you prefer, we typically recommend that people undergo this treatment as soon as they notice cellulite forming or the skin sagging. The sooner you address the issue, the more effective this treatment will be. It only makes good sense: if you wait too long and allow a lot of cellulite to develop, your body has to engage in a great deal of repairing before it does anything else.
Sometimes patients with early signs of aging and sagging ask us if they should wait and address those symptoms when they become more noticeable. We usually recommend that patients undergo this treatment as soon as they notice sagging: and as soon as they are able to. If you delay treatment for too long, you may find that one treatment won’t give you the best results.
Is This a Safe Treatment?
Thermage has been in use since it was approved by the FDA in 2002. It has been used many times since then by people all around the United States. This is a very safe treatment, and the only concern is to shield your eyes against any accidental exposure to radiofrequency energy. We provide eye shields for everyone involved to ensure this can’t happen.
Will This Work With Other Treatments?
If you have treated your cellulite with laser therapy, plastic surgery, injectables, or cosmetic treatments, there’s nothing to be concerned about. This treatment will still be effective effective
What Are the Benefits of Thermage?
Convenient
One of our favorite things about this treatment is how convenient it is. Many treatments require multiple sessions to see the final effects, but this one requires only one session. It is non-invasive, so there is very little to do to prepare and no recovery time.
Effective
It does take a few months for the results of this treatment to completely develop, so this is not a treatment that you get the night before a big event. But, unlike those night-before treatments, this one really works. It’s not just a temporary cosmetic change. It’s also a long-lasting treatment that brings definition to the skin, leaves it softer and more supple, tightens the skin and improves cellulite, and can even address wrinkles and lines on the face.
What Is Cellulite?
Cellulite is a condition of the connective cords that run between our skin and the muscle directly beneath it. We do not understand exactly what causes cellulite, though a few things are known. For one, putting on weight does tend to increase the risk of cellulite, and it is believed this happens because fat builds up under the skin, putting pressure on these fibrous cords and pulling down certain spots on the skin in response.
We also know that cellulite is more common in women than in men, and this is likely because of differences in the support structure between the skin of men and women. Women tend to have support structures that run in only one direction, which allows the skin to move more easily in order to accommodate weight gain in pregnancy. The support structures of men’s skin are crossed over each other in both directions, making them stronger.
Other factors in cellulite development include hormonal changes, skin type, and even simple genetics: there are many young and fit people who develop cellulite for basically unknown reasons. However, in many cases, they have family members who also suffer from the early onset of cellulite.
Is This Treatment Right for Me?
If you have mild to moderately loose skin, sagging, or cellulite, you are probably a candidate. There are a few signs that indicate this is right for you:
Health
With most cosmetic treatments, the best results are experienced by those whose health is generally good. This is not a good treatment for anyone who is pregnant or who has an autoimmune disease. If you have any kind of skin issue in the treatment area, you would want to wait until it clears up before seeking treatment. Finally, smokers will never see the same level of effectiveness as non-smokers. This is because smoking actively destroys collagen and works against the health of the skin.
Expectations
Good candidates should also have realistic expectations about what to expect. Most people are very happy with the results, but it is important to understand that this is a more subtle treatment than surgery. It improves the look of lines, wrinkles, sagging, and cellulite, but it’s still important to talk to us about what a radio frequency energy treatment can accomplish for you, personally, before you get started.
See If Thermage Is Right for You
If you have noticed cellulite building up on your body, or if you are unhappy with other skin-related signs of aging like wrinkles and sagging, this treatment could be perfect for you. Radiofrequency treatments are very effective in creating smoother, tighter, and younger-looking skin. This treatment is non-invasive, convenient, simple, and effective. It produces long-lasting results for those who are willing to wait patiently for their body’s collagen to naturally repair their skin.
To find out more, come talk to us at Adoro Medical Spa in Severna Park, MD today.
