The last weeks of summer are always bittersweet: Though a part of you is probably looking forward to crisp fall air and golden leaves, no one likes to leave the long, sunny days of summer behind. After all, the season’s end means abandoning a more leisurely pace of life and returning to work or school, putting an end to holiday fun with friends and loved ones. Likewise, if you’re in New York like us, you know that the cold, dark days of winter are now edging closer.
If that thought chills you to the bone, you might want to consider fortifying yourself with a few pick-me-up treatments. Knowing that you’ll look (and feel) great in time for the winter holiday season can give you the boost you need to combat cold-weather blues.
Non-Surgical Treatments: Our Top Choices for Fall 2018
Non-surgical treatments are a great way to enhance your appearance because they work with almost every lifestyle. They’re affordable and require no downtime, meaning that even college students can usually find the time (and funds) to make them happen. New moms, athletes, and busy working professionals also enjoy the lack of restrictions associated with these procedures. After having a non-surgical procedure, you won’t have to stop exercising for weeks, avoid lifting pets and children or take time off work. You’ll probably be able to resume all your normal activities within 24 hours of having the treatments discussed below:
CoolSculpting: For Non-surgical Fat Removal
Have you spent all summer trying to shed those last ten pounds or sculpt a six pack, without success? You’re not alone: Stubborn belly fat affects a significant percentage of the population. Some people simply can’t get rid of their love handles or “spare tire,” even if they work out, eat healthily, and aren’t overweight. There are a number of different factors that can lead to the development of diet-resistant fat, such as:
Gender
Both men and women often struggle to lose weight, but women usually have more subcutaneous fat than men do. While this extra layer of fat isn’t unhealthy, it can certainly draw attention to problem areas.
Women who have had children are particularly susceptible to stubborn fat accumulation, especially on the lower belly, flanks, hips, and thighs. This occurs because the body is “programmed” to store additional fat to protect mothers and babies from famine. Furthermore, because many mothers have weakened abdominal muscles, their stomachs tend to protrude even after they’ve lost their baby weight. Even a small amount of belly fat can accentuate this issue.
Age
During middle age, body fat redistributes, becoming more centralized around the abdomen. Many older adults, therefore, develop stubborn belly fat, even if they haven’t gained weight over the years.
Genetics
Fat distribution, like other physical traits, is heritable. If you have close relatives who have diet-resistant fat deposits in a certain area, you have a high probability of developing the same issue.
Fortunately, there are gentler solutions for stubborn fat than extreme dieting or plastic surgery. Non-surgical body contouring procedures like CoolSculpting can permanently remove fatty tissue without creating the need for downtime. CoolSculpting uses a process called cryolipolysis to “freeze” fat cells, leading to a 24% reduction in the size of targeted fat deposits.
During CoolSculpting, a special applicator device is applied to the surface of the skin. It administers cold to the tissues beneath the dermis while keeping the patient’s skin comfortably warm. When exposed to freezing temperatures, the lipids in fat cells break down, even though the surrounding tissues remain unharmed. This is possible because fat cells are surprisingly fragile—they break down much more easily than skin cells, muscle cells, etc. Likewise, dissolving fat cells doesn’t create any harmful side-effects. Once fat cells are rendered nonviable, the body simply absorbs them and excretes them.
CoolSculpting makes the perfect end of summer body sculpting procedure, for a couple of different reasons: First and foremost, unlike liposuction, this treatment doesn’t produce rapid results, so it’s important to time your procedure well. It takes time for the body to excrete damaged fat cells; patients can expect to wait two to three months to see the results of their CoolSculpting treatment. This means that if you have CoolSculpting performed at the end of the summer, your body should be slimmer just in time for the winter holiday season. Secondly, a small minority of CoolSculpting patients (about 10%) experience some swelling in treated areas for a few weeks after their procedure. While this swelling is nothing to worry about (it rarely indicates a more serious problem; some bodies just have a stronger inflammatory response than others), it can be embarrassing. You may, therefore, want to wait until bikini season is over to try this treatment.
Before you book your CoolSculpting consultation, it’s important to be aware that this treatment is not intended to function as a substitute for weight loss surgery. CoolSculpting candidates must be within about 25 pounds of their ideal weight before they have this procedure. Fat freezing won’t harm an overweight patient in any way, but the results it produces aren’t usually visible enough to be satisfying when the patient has a high body fat percentage. CoolSculpting is intended to “spot reduce” small to mid-sized fat deposits on the stomach, hips, flanks, thighs, and arms.
ThermiVA: For Vaginal Rejuvenation
Did you know that late summer (early to mid-September, specifically) is the busiest time of year for maternity wards? More new babies are born in September than any other month of the year. Researchers believe that this is the case because the winter holidays (which occur roughly 40 weeks before September) give couples the time they need to plan, and start, a family. Cold weather also tends to increase our desire to seek warmth and intimacy.
Along with new babies come new moms who are in need of aesthetic and medical care. Pregnancy, while it’s a rewarding experience for most moms, can have unwanted effects on the body. It can cause everything from breast ptosis (sagging) to muscle damage in the abdomen and a loss of vaginal sensation. The most effective treatment for these issues is the surgical mommy makeover, but new moms can’t have surgery right away. To be an eligible candidate for a surgical mommy makeover, you need to be at least six months postpartum. There are other factors to consider before having a mommy makeover, too: Some women don’t like the idea of needing to rest in bed for weeks while their children are young. Others aren’t willing to hire a nanny to assist with childcare duties while they heal. This is why we offer non-surgical alternatives to treat problems related to childbirth at Aristocrat Plastic Surgery: Procedures like ThemiVA can’t replace the mommy makeover, but they can greatly improve your quality of life while you wait for the right time to have surgery.
ThermiVA uses safe, gentle radio frequency (RF) energy to rejuvenate damaged vaginal tissue. RF energy prompts the production of collagen, a compound that helps to heal wounds and keep our skin and connective tissues strong. Applying RF energy to vaginal tissue creates lasting improvements in sensation and functionality, all without the need for a single incision. ThermiVA can enhance the patient’s ability to have enjoyable intercourse, treat urinary incontinence, treat vaginal dryness, and reduce pain and inflammation of the pelvis. It also creates cosmetic improvements, tightening the vaginal opening so that it returns to the shape it had before childbirth.
Administering ThermiVA only takes about half an hour, and you won’t have to rest after having this procedure. You can resume all the duties of motherhood while knowing that your intimate life is secure. Furthermore, because ThermiVA is so gentle, you can have this treatment just six weeks after giving birth.
The HydraFacial: For Healthy, Glowing Skin
The HydraFacial is our go-to solution for summer skin damage. This procedure is gentle enough for use on dry, irritated, or sensitive skin, but effective enough that it can peel away the signs of UV damage.
The HydraFacial system employs a unique multi-step process that’s part mild chemical peel, part deep exfoliation, and part nourishing face mask. First, debris is loosened and sucked away, then stronger abrading agents are used to remove the uppermost layer of the skin. (This is necessary because most blemishes are located within the top layer of the epidermis.) Finally, a hydrating nutrient-rich serum is applied to the patient’s skin, encouraging the growth of healthy new skin cells. The patient can choose from one of four different healing serums that are designed to target specific problems, like acne, skin laxity, dullness, and discoloration. By combining these healing serums with the use of mild acids, the HydraFacial system creates beneficial changes in skin condition on par with more invasive treatments (e.g., chemical peels), without causing lasting redness or flaking.
The HydraFacial system can treat all of the following skin problems:
Acne and acne scars.
During every HydraFacial, mild organic acids are used to dissolve excess oil, dead skin cells, and debris, cleansing the patient’s pores so that his or her skin can “breathe” again. These acids, particularly salicylic acid, are also potent acne-fighting agents. They eliminate acne-causing bacteria, reducing the frequency and severity of breakouts. Finally, by abrading the top layer of the skin, the HydraFacial system gradually removes superficial scar tissue.
Wrinkles, fine lines, and loose skin.
The HydraFacial system stimulates collagen production in two distinct ways: One, removing the uppermost layer of the skin activates the body’s healing response, which prompts a temporary surge in collagen production. Two, while the skin is regenerating, it’s provided with essential antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and plant compounds. Boosting collagen production in this way reverses some of the effects of age-related collagen loss, making the skin stronger, smoother, firmer, and more radiant.
Texture and pigmentation problems.
Over the course of multiple treatments, the HydraFacial system can gradually remove damaged skin cells and broken capillaries. This process reduces redness and causes sun spots, freckles, and patches of rough or thickened skin to disappear.
Botox: America’s Favorite Wrinkle Reducer
Botox is the most popular anti-aging treatment in America; each year, over seven million people in the United States try this simple, convenient procedure. Botox works by temporarily relaxing small groups of muscles in the face, preventing them from creasing the skin. This leads to a visible reduction in the number of dynamic wrinkles a patient has. (Dynamic wrinkles are deep lines that appear when we make facial expressions, like crow’s feet and forehead lines.)
Emerging evidence suggests that Botox may also prevent or delay the formation of static wrinkles. (Static wrinkles are lines that become etched into the skin over time. Unlike dynamic wrinkles, they’re visible even when your face is at rest.) After age 30, our skin slowly becomes weaker owing to a gradual decline in collagen production. As a result, the pulling and squeezing motions needed to make facial expressions start to take a toll on skin condition. The skin stretches in areas where it’s pulled, gradually becoming looser. In places where it’s compressed, it develops imprinted “stress lines.” By relaxing the muscles in key problem areas, Botox can halt the creasing and stretching motions that lead to wrinkles. For best results, we recommend combining Botox injections with a collagen-stimulating treatment. HydraFacials, dermal fillers, and laser skin tightening are all excellent complementary procedures that we suggest to patients seeking Botox injections.
The end of summer doesn’t have to mean the end of self-care. Autumn has long been seen as a time when we look inward and strive for self-improvement, so it’s the perfect occasion to start investigating cosmetic treatments. If you would like to learn more about the rejuvenating effects of the procedures discussed in this guide, feel free to contact us. We’ll be happy to arrange a personal consultation for you, where you can communicate your cosmetic goals directly to Dr. Tehrani. With his help, you can turn this season’s end into something beautiful.