You look in the mirror, and there is something wrong. Not incorrect, just unlike years past. Maybe the skin looks tired. Or a line that never existed is now visible ever since you stopped frowning? The vast majority of people get here and then go straight to searching for a solution. They read about Botox, lasers, and fillers, and end up more confused than when they started.
The lack of options is not the problem. The issue is that we start to focus on the solution and not the question. Before spending a penny on an anti-aging service, it is imperative to understand what your skin requires. And really, there are only three things it could be.
Angela Savage, RN of Savage Serenity MedSpa in Fresno, sees every consultation breaking down into these three buckets. She does this before suggesting a product or treatment. This is why the order matters so much.
Why Guessing Costs You Money
You walk in thinking you need some filler because your face looks aged. You get filler. Your actual problem was the sun damage stuck in your skin. Now you have paid for volume you did not require, and the brown spots that were genuinely aging you are still present.
That happens more often than you might expect. They seek to self-diagnose with far too much information gleaned from a facetious online source, and layered on the wrong layer of skin.
Let me break it down. One has aging appear in three distinct places, and each requires a different answer.
The color of your skin is not the only issue. Tone is about color. Look at your face in bright light and ask yourself one simple question. Are you spotting brown spots, sun damage, uneven skin tone, or redness that won’t settle?
If yes, that is a tone issue.
- Brown spots from years of sun
- Uneven patches of pigment
- Redness tied to rosacea
- Overall dullness
Filler does not correct underlying tone problems. Sneaking in to accelerate the skin-tightening effects. Well, they respond to things that work based on color, like laser resurfacing, chemical peels, and medical-grade products with Vitamin C, which surprises some. They want a one-solution-fixes-all position, and color does not work that way.
Texture Problems Live on the Surface
Texture is really about touch, not just sight. Stroke your hand to your face. Does the skin feel rough? Does it feel crepey and thin? Are you able to feel fine lines under the fingertips? Do you notice your pores are getting bigger?
That is texture.
The texture is at the very top layer of your skin. It is a surface story. The treatments that do help here resurface, or call for some new collagen underneath:
- Microneedling
- Clear + Brilliant
- Chemical peels
From the perspective of the individual undergoing a texture change, it feels like a dramatic departure, but from the outside, others are likely to take note at first barely. And even for yourself, I mean smooth skin feels better underneath your own hand, and that alone changes the way people carry themselves.
Deeper Down in the Face is Where Volume Loss Lives
This one is different. Volume loss extends beyond the skin and is unrelated to color. It is structural. It actually happens under the skin, where fat shifts and bone changes over decades.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Are my cheeks flatter than before?
- Is my face hollow or, as if working like an overworked machine, does it look tired immediately after sleep?
- Are my under-eyes sunken?
- Has my jawline lost its edge?
No cream fixes this. No peel fixes this. Structure needs structure, aka dermal fillers or biostimulators such as Sculptra that reconstruct support from the inside out.
This one people often confuse with texture. They assume thin, sagging skin is just a surface issue. More often than not, it is the earth below that cracked first.
Most Faces Are a Mix
And this is the part that confuses people. You will likely identify yourself under several of the above categories. That is normal. The real face seldom does only one thing.
You could have sun spots on both cheeks, a coarse texture around your mouth, and some flattening under your eyes, all occurring simultaneously. Two of those may be sore points for you, while one does not. That is fine. The three-question test doesn’t want to put you into a single box. That is, to get it to see clearly, so that no one comes up with an unthinking cure.
This is why the full-face approach is better than hunting down one wrinkle at a time. Angela has so, what in particular plans in mind she looks at all 3 layers together then treats first, second and finally down the road. Maybe top you up first with skincare treatments. Then, a few months later, laser may trail behind it. Volume work may follow that.
How to Use This Before You Go in for Your Consultation
You do not have to show up with a diagnosis. That part is Angela’s job. However, if you come in with a pretty good sense of your own answers, then the whole conversation is more focused.
Try this before you book:
- Ask whether your number one priority is color, feel, or shape.
- Pay attention to which of these ails you most from day to day.
- Then you write it down: what you really want to combine
Then bring that to the table. A 28-year-old trying to prevent early lines does not need the same plan as a 52-year-old seeking to restore volume. Identical three questions, completely distinct responses.
Better skin is a fair goal. It’s merely a starting point, not a plan. The three questions turn a fuzzy want into a concrete action, and can save you the cost of fixing the wrong problem.
Ready to know which layer is actually aging you? Schedule a call, and let Angela work backward from your replies to develop the plan.
