My dermatologist experience: SkinDC

I must admit. I used to think that the reason you went to a dermatologist was because you had some issue. You know acne, some bizarre skin development, skin cancer, etc. But the idea of consulting with a dermatologist can be so much more than just medical necessity. Skin wellness can be a vital component of your overall wellness especially with men. As we improve our health through diet and exercise, it makes sense to look after our skin. That’s why I jumped at the chance to consult with a local dermatologist, Dr. Terrance Keaney from Skin DC. I wanted to see what he could do for me,

Often when I think of seeing a dermatologist on an elective basis, I imagine over the top lip injections, wild cheek implants and indulgent botox parties where patients come out looking cartoonish and not at all like their former selves. But a good dermatologist, can help offer guidance to help with proper skincare advice as well as offer treatments to help you look “your best you”.  Last month, I talked about how there were an increasing number of men opting for non-surgical cosmetic treatments. The benefits of these treatments were guys can make little tweaks to improve their appearance with minimal downtime. Now it’s time to share my experience.

Skin assessment

One of the first things I noticed when I met with Dr. Keaney was he wanted to know my concerns. It clearly wasn’t about pushing a procedure or product. I have 2 issues. The first are the dark circles under my eyes. And second were dark spots on my skin as a result of popping zits. Sure for social media, these things can be quickly remedied through Photoshop but I wanted to explore ways to just have clearer skin.

The first thing I did was a skin analysis. Technology is amazing. This was done through the use of the Visia imaging machine. The analysis documents 8 areas of the skin: spots, wrinkles, textures, pores, UV spots, brown spots, red areas and porphyrins (Bacterial excretions that can become lodged in pores). The analysis is use threefold. First to see the baseline of your skin so a dermatologist can help recommend the appropriate treatments. Second as a means to document how the effective any treatment is done over time. And lastly as an assessment to see how your skin compares to others who have undergone the analysis. Based on age and gender, you can see where your skin falls as compared to others.

My results were interesting. On the whole, my skin wasn’t in bad shape. (As competitive as I am, I was pretty happy that I scored low on most of the areas. Naturally I interpreted my results as having skin much younger than I really am.) I mentioned I was concerned with dark spots however according to the analysis my dark spots weren’t that bad. What was surprising was the amount of UV spots that were discovered. Although I’m pretty good about sunscreen, the results proved I’m not as diligent as I should be. However knowing the results, I can now look at preventative measures to keep them from resulting in more serious problems.

Consultation

My main issue was the bags under my eyes. Personally, often times I feel that I look tired and have unslightly bags. Dr. Kearney explained that I don’t really have bags at all. It was more of how my skin has started to sag as I age. His recommendation was the use of Botox to open up my eyes, elevate my brows and reduce my forehead lines so I’d look more awake. As I am not of fan of needles, I wasn’t 100% ready for the injections. However, Dr. Kearney uses insulin needles, some of the tiniest available and I really didn’t feel a thing.

My second issue was my dark spots. My dark spots are the result of acne scars. Although they are too bad, as I’ve gotten older I have been fighting acne. Naturally instead of letting nature run its course, I feel the need to pop these little nuisances. Hence the scarring. The solution? Picoway lasering. Picoway lasering was originally designed to remove tattoos. Now this picosecond laser technology is used to treat acne scars, wrinkles, benign pigmented lesions (dark spots) in addition to tattoo removal. The treatment involves ultra-short laser pulses over the skin. These pulses vaporize their targets before the skin has the chance to overheat. For me it felt like tiny pinpricks against the skin. No real pain. Just a little bit of redness for the day but I was back to normal in no time.

Results

I look at myself everyday so initially I didn’t notice the changes. However upon closer scrutiny, my eyes do look more awake and my lines are less prominent. In consulting with Dr. Keaney, the idea was not to drastically change my appearance. It was to look like me just more “refreshed” but not to do anything that would make me look crazy. I knew I did the right thing when I mom remarked, “You’re skin looks much better!” Mom’s always know best.

Thoughts

Some argue that the idea of enhancing one’s looks may seem superficial or is against the natural process of aging. However had I not disclosed most people would not even know I had work done. And that’s the sign of a good dermatologist. Not only do I look refreshed but my skin has improved in the process. There really is something to be said about Dr. Keaney’s thoughts about doing little tweaks to help people look their best selves.

Dr. Kearney operates SkinDC located at 1525 Wilson Blvd Suite 125, Arlington, VA 22209