My Rosacea Laser Treatment Tale

I posted this mad scientist pic on my social media a couple of months ago but no one seemed to know what was actually being done to my poor little face:

rosacea laser treatment

Thanks to my Irish/Scottish roots I’m one of those ridiculously fair-skinned folks that has not only flushed & blushed for no apparent reason since childhood but also miserably inherited the rosacea that can appear later in life in those with a pale complexion. Humph!

 And just what is Rosacea (roh-zay-sha)?

A chronic, inflammatory skin condition which principally affects the face. Rosacea causes facial redness, flushing and produces small, red bumpy pustules – gross!

Unfortunately, during the past year my rosacea worsened and what had originally been quite easy to cover with a bit of make-up had transformed into a rather challenging collection of angry-looking raised bumps on my cheeks.

After trying every single natural homeopathic remedy I could get my hands on and having each one fail spectacularly as apparently they only show positive results against bacterial rosacea and have absolutely zero effect on inherited rosacea, I decided to bite the bullet and let my dermatologist scorch it away with a laser.

Here’s what happened:

Rosacea before laser treatment

The day of my laser treatment and my rosily glowing rosacea was clearly visible and bumpy.

Rosacea laser treatment

The treatment itself took less than an hour and, although the bursts of laser light and pulsating sound of the machine were a bit jarring at first, the actual treatment wasn’t very painful. It simply felt like tiny pin pricks, getting my tattoos was loads more uncomfortable but in all honesty neither caused any real pain – that said, I have been told by numerous doctors (& all of my tattoo artists) that I seem to have a higher tolerance for pain than the average norm. (yay?)

Rosacea immediately after laser treatment

Immediately after the laser treatment my face was on fire and I was given what can only be described as hilarious breast implant-esque cooling packs to help ease the burning sensation.

Rosacea treatment medication & cream

The dermatologist sent me home with a pharmacy list & prescription to help future rosacea pustule bumps from forming:

Actinica sunscreen specifically formulated for fair, cancer-risk skin (€16), Oraycea rosacea medication (€5 with prescription) & Aquareva light moisturising cream for dry, senstive skin (€12). 

Rosacea laser treatment day 2

Looking in the mirror the day after my treatment was fairly unpleasant as all of the lasered areas were swollen, puffy and had formed large scabs. Ew.

rosacea treatment after day 6

By day 6 post treatment the swelling had gone down but the scabs had worsened. Ugh.

rosacea treatment after day 12

12 days after the laser treatment and the scabbed areas were healing nicely and the bumpy pustules had completely disappeared. Hooray!

rosacea treatment after day 50

Nearly 2 months post laser treatment and my skin, although still red in certain areas, was smooth and baby soft.

rosacea laser treatment before after makeup

Thankfully the rosacea pustules have yet to return and I am now back to having manageable, easily camouflaged redness – fingers crossed that the bumps have been banished for good (or at least for the 2 – 3 years promised by the dermatologist!)

Update: unfortunately those pesky rosacea pustules returned a few months after the laser treatment. The treatment actually only affects the existing rosacea pustules & veins that are targeted with the laser during the treatment and does absolutely nothing for the redness and flushing nor does it prevent future pustules from forming in a slightly different area. The lengthy healing time was also a huge drawback as it took nearly 2 months for my skin to mend itself (those scabby dry areas were impossible to conceal while they healed).

Take a peek at my Living with Rosacea category and check out all of my completey honest rosacea skincare product reviews (complete with before & after photos), discover how I successfully cover a breakout as well as my gentle rosacea make-up removing routine.

Unfortunately there is no cure for rosacea but knowing the (many) triggers + a proper diet and skin care routine can definitely help keep the visible signs of rosacea under control.

rosacea triggers

Take a peek at my Living with Rosacea category and discover my honest rosacea product reviews as well as my gentle rosacea make-up removing routine.

Got a rosacea tale to tell? Go ahead and share it in the comments below!

For more information about rosacea visit The National Rosacea Society.

11 Comments

  1. I see my name! I had no idea what I was liking, but I liked it anyway.

    You do NOT look happy in the photo where you’re holding those breast implants on your face.

    Also it sounds like everything triggers rosacea, which is awful.

    1. Face-on-fire yet laughing hysterically at those bloody implant-esque cool packs – yup, pretty much anything can trigger a rosacea breakout so I’m really hoping that this treatment holds and I don’t build up a tolerance to the medication, ak!

  2. thanks for the share – i know the way i have been avoiding going out without make up for the past 18 months…. i have always had rosacea (which to me meant delicate skin prone to high colour) but it was so mild it was not noticable only really in extreme temps and then when we moved house a year and half ago, i broke out in huge huge spots, i thought it was hormonal or dental (had an abscess), and lots of things and finally went to doc a few weeks ago to find out its rosacea!. i am on anti biotics so i am hoping this will help. i have since read that for a lot of people the anti biotics only stop the pustules for a while, so i am thinking of trying acupuncture afterwards. my skincare routine is simple, but now using spf 50, and thinking of trying the avene moisturier. i am nervous of doing too much as my skin is dermographic so i have always avoid any agressors….. (so i would be very nervous of laser).

    1. I’ve also heard that medications only prevent the pustules for a limited amount of time so am sticking to a crazy simple & gentle skin care routine & crossing fingers & toes as well. I found the Avene moisturisers to be quite harsh & they actually aggravated my rosacea, the Aquareva Noreva is incredibly light & very gentle and I’ve also discovered a natural “Bio” brand at my local drugstore that seems to work just as well for 1/4 of the price 😀 I’ll be posting my rosacea skincare + makeup routine soon…

      1. thanks for your tip on avene….. my current moisturiser is astral so i may just stay with that….

  3. Jackie Whyte says:

    Typical rosacea triggers = daily life, lol
    Mine is quite mild right now, hopefully it stays that way. Thanks for sharing 🙂

    1. hahahaha! You’re welcome Jackie – the stresses of daily life are most definitely an annoying rosacea trigger, the 4-7-8 relaxing breath really helps me get through some of the daily aggravations I experience living in Berlin 😀 http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00521/three-breathing-exercises.html

  4. Very kind and brave of you to share. I am lucky and don’t have rosacea but your experience will give others good information. So glad to see you got such good results.

    1. Pffft! Not at all brave just oversharingly honest 😉 I found so little “real-life” information & result photos during my research that I simply had to share my own experience, I do hope that my detailed and straightforward reporting will help others suffering with rosacea…

  5. Great results and thanks for posting your experiences. I have a friend whose rosacea is severe, but she is reluctant to try anything. It runs in my family too (my Dad had the nose that a lot of men get), I’ve been lucky so far in that Rozex keeps mine under control, but mine is very, very mild. You look fantastic 🙂

    1. Thanks Jenny, until this past year I actually thought I had pretty damn awesome skin – other than the over-blushing, but that was kinda funny 😉 – and hadn’t even heard of rosacea. Thankfully my vanity had me researching and solution-finding as soon as the pustules appeared (which I, like most people, originally thought were simply a ring of stubborn pimples). Fingers crossed that my positive results continue. I would highly recommend that your friend look into the laser treatment and absolutely have a consultation with her dermatologist

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