It used to be that the only way to counteract the effects of life and aging was to either get extensive plastic surgery or to cake on piles of makeup to (hopefully) cover up one’s flaws. Thankfully, there are a lot more options out there now that bridge the gap between these procedures. Today, whether you’re fighting cellulite, age spots, wrinkles, severe acne… whatever, there are medically proven techniques to “fix” them (aka minimize their effects).
Here are some of the different procedures available to people who are hoping to improve their appearance without going under the knife.
Body Wrapping
Body wrapping has been incredibly popular for a few years. Practitioners often promise that a body wrap can provide miracles like totally ridding your body of toxins, helping you drop a few pounds in just an hour or two, etc. It is important to understand that while body wraps can be beneficial, they aren’t miracle deliverers.
When you go in for a body wrap, a few things will happen. Your body will be scrubbed with an exfoliating scrub. You’ll rinse that off. Then your doctor or spa technician will apply your wrap ingredients to your skin. The ingredients used will depend upon the type of body wrap you want. Once the ingredients have been applied all over your skin, the technician will cover it all with a layer of plastic wrap. You might then be wrapped in blankets or sheets and then you’ll sit or lay down for about a half an hour while the ingredients do their work.
While the wrap won’t help you drop pounds or magically and permanently erase flaws, you will enjoy smooth and supple skin, thanks to all of the exfoliating and moisturizing that has been done. Your skin might also be tighter. You will definitely be more relaxed. Body wraps are incredibly popular; there is no single brand that is better or worse than the others. In fact, many spas develop their own scrubs and topical ingredients.
Cellulite Treatment
Nobody likes cellulite, but it can happen to pretty much anyone and for a lot of reasons, the most common of which is being sedentary. Experts agree that, if you want to reduce the appearance of cellulite, you need to get up and move around more often (and eat a healthy diet). This also, handily, keeps more cellulite from forming.
For cellulite that is problematic, however, there has been a lot of promising work done using massage, infrared light, and radio waves. While it will take more than one session, patients overall say marked improvement in the appearance of their cellulite after a few sessions, usually within twelve weeks or less. More importantly, the results were sustainable and, with an increase in physical activity, most patients manage to keep the cellulite from becoming problematic again. A lot of companies have developed their own delivery devices and you can find these treatments at almost any spa or plastic surgery center.
Lifting Devices
As we get older, our skin loses elasticity and that’s how most of our wrinkles form. When wrinkles happen around our mouths, however, it is typically because our gums have started to recede (it happens as we age). This means that there isn’t as much flesh pushing back against the muscles of the mouth, which causes the skin of the lips to sag and wrinkle.
Many people turn to face lifts and collagen around the mouth to reverse the wrinkles and puckering that happen. One company, Angel Lift, has created a device to reverse the appearance of wrinkles without requiring surgery. The AngelLift mouth wrinkle reduction device is an insert that you place in your mouth, against your gum line. You wear it during the day, which helps develop the muscles in your mouth and lips so that, by the time you’re done wearing the device, they have built up enough to not need anything (aka your gums) to help them retain their shape.
These are just three of the ways that non-surgical treatments can help a person improve his or her physical apppearance and, by extension, self image. Other treatments include chemical peels, laser hair removal, collagen and botox injections, microderm abrasion, even massage and more. The point is: there is no need to undergo an extensive and invasive surgical procedure when there are other less invasive methods of helping yourself look and feel better. Talk to your dermatologist about your options before you rush in for a surgical consultation!
