Beauty On Cue – When to Get Aesthetic Treatments for Special Occasions
Looking your best for significant events like a wedding, graduation, or other special occasions can provide a major confidence boost and make your memories even better. Facials, chemical peels, injectable fillers, and other aesthetic treatments can go a long way in ensuring you look radiant – but how far in advance should you schedule these treatments?
We asked expert dermatologist Dr. Bertha Baum at Aventura Dermatology for her recommendations when it comes to timing your beauty treatments ahead of a big event.
Why Timing Your Beauty Treatment Matters
Your skin is a durable but sensitive organ that needs time to adjust and heal after an aesthetic treatment. Some of today’s most popular skin rejuvenating treatments work by deliberately triggering your skin’s healing factors to boost blood circulation, collagen production, and new skin cell generation.
As Dr. Baum notes, “Getting the timing right for your beauty treatments is crucial. If you do it too early, your results may begin to fade before your big day. But, if you schedule something like a chemical peel or microdermabrasion too close to your event, you could spend your day stressing out about residual redness and swelling. That’s why when a patient tells us they have an important event coming up, we make sure to schedule their treatments with plenty of time to allow for post-care healing.”
If you are in the Aventura, FL area and planning a big event, vacation, or just want to pamper yourself, trust the team at Aventura Dermatology to provide exceptional care and beautiful, natural-looking results.
When to Schedule Your Aesthetic Treatment
The best timeline for your beauty treatment depends on several factors, including your skin type, existing medical conditions, and the specific service. Everyone’s recovery time varies, but these general guidelines can help you plan your appointment effectively:
1 – 3 Weeks Before Your Event
Traditional facials, Aquagold microneedling facials, skincare infusions, and other topical treatments should typically be scheduled one to three weeks before your event. This timeframe allows any redness, swelling, or other side effects to subside, leaving your skin glowing and refreshed.
If you want to address specific skin concerns like acne, discoloration, or scarring before your big day, consult a board-certified dermatologist like Dr. Baum to determine your best scheduling options, as sometimes such treatments can take months to achieve your full results.
“At Aventura Dermatology, we personalize skin care treatments based on the patient’s specific concerns. Depending on what we are targeting, treatments can take anywhere from one to three or more sessions to achieve the desired results,” Dr. Baum explains.
After a chemical peel or microneedling, it’s crucial to be mindful of your skin’s sensitivity. Avoid excessive sun exposure and irritating skin products to give your skin the best chance to heal quickly and beautifully. Follow your provider’s specific post-treatment care instructions closely for optimal results.
3 – 6 Weeks Before Your Event
If you’re looking into cosmetic injectables like BOTOX® or any other neurotoxin or dermal fillers, plan to see your licensed injector at least three to six weeks beforehand. While neurotoxin and filler parties can seem fun, convenient, and cost-effective, the potential risks aren’t worth it.
“It is incredibly important to have your injections performed by a thoroughly trained injector who is not only board-certified in the field but also regularly performs cosmetic treatments,” said Dr. Baum. “The money you might save on a procedure will never outweigh the potential safety hazards that come with inexperienced injectors. Your comfort and safety are more important than saving a few dollars.”
Injectable treatments like dermal fillers, BOTOX®, Dysport®, XEOMIN® and other neurotoxins require time to fully take effect. Sometimes a touch-up session is also necessary since the neurotoxins don’t produce immediate effects on the targeted muscles. Fillers need time to settle and you might experience some initial swelling and bruising after the injection, but these side effects will eventually subside.
In the unlikely case that you are dissatisfied with your results, dermal fillers can be easily dissolved. However, this also takes time – it can take up to two weeks for the swelling to recede after getting the filler dissolved. BOTOX® and other muscle-relaxing neuromodulators are not reversible, which is why it’s important to be sure of your decision before you get injected.
3 to 6 weeks ahead of your event is also the best time to do some skin hydration: either with hyaluronic acids, vitamins, and amino acids, or with bio-revitalizing infusions to the skin such as Skinvive, PRX-T33, or other hydrating options.
3 – 6+ Months Before Your Event
Certain cosmetic procedures may require multiple sessions to achieve your desired results. Laser skin resurfacing treatments, microneedling radiofrequency and IPL light therapies are highly effective for addressing various skin concerns such as fine lines, wrinkles, uneven skin tone, and sun damage. However, achieving your specific goals may necessitate scheduling several sessions. The same is true with biostimulator injectables such as Sculptra and Radiesse, which may require time to fully give you the collagen production effects on your skin.
“The number and timing of treatments will vary from person to person,” Dr. Baum shared, “Most patients achieve excellent results after two to three IPL sessions spaced about a month apart. Other more intensive resurfacing treatments may require less frequent sessions, but you still need to give your skin time to recovery. Maintenance treatments typically range from one to three times per year.”
Both laser and light therapies stimulate your skin’s natural healing process, encouraging new collagen production and enhancing skin cell turnover. These treatments offer natural and enduring results but they require some downtime and therefore should be done some months before the big day.
