Hi Stoppit&tidyup!
Thank you for the recommendation. I actually haven’t visited Renew Medica, as after the hours spent on this forum I am really keen to be treated using a Gentlelase machine.
Thanks LA girl for your advice especially on the settings.
Here is the update:
Firstly 3 weeks on I am still waiting for HMG to refund my cancelled appointment, and I have been told that it will be at least another week before I get the cheque. This is despite repeated calls, emails, complaints and 3 in person visits!!! I get a different story every time. The “only person that deals with refunds” has changed names 4 times, and now appears to be none of those people but instead a mystery administrative manager “at Head Office”. This is for a £73 cheque! You would think I was asking for a refund of thousands! They promise to return emails and calls but don’t log them and never get back to you.
- Basically I recommend they are avoided if you value your sanity!
I went to the Timeless skincare consultation.
Timeless is a really small clinic, near Kings Cross, I think they only have one machine and one treatment room. I spoke to probably the nicest girl in the world. She really took alot of time over the consultation and explaining potential side effects and listening to me. I think she said she had been doing LHR for 18 months and when I commented that that wasn’t a long time and I was told that experience was quite important she was really nice about it and didn’t take offence at all, and offered to make me an appointment to see their other lady who (i think) has 5 yrs +. The girl I spoke to recommended the 15mm spot and some settings and I said I really wanted 18mm and she was very willing to discuss the different settings and “experiment with them”. She gave me a spot test with 18mm at 16 and 18j, and said she would be happy to treat me or could make an appointment with the more experienced lady. However, she did make an under her breath comment that the more experienced lady would treat me at 18mm 16j but “would not be happy about it”. This put me off quite alot, probably more than it should have. I was also a bit put off as I felt a bit as though I was talking her through how the machine worked rather than the other way around. And also a bit hesitant as it was such a small clinic.
The spot tests she gave me were great and I had no adverse reaction at all.
Later that same day I went to the London Premier Laser Clinic, - The one in Notting Hill.
This clinic is part of a chain across london and it looked like it had 3 treatment rooms. The appointment I had at this clinic was at 5:30pm on a saturday which may go some way to explaining the level of service I received, but I don’t think it can explain it all and it certainly doesn’t make it acceptable. I spoke to a surly and dismissive receptionist who gave me a price list. The prices were much higher than I remembered seeing; she did not look surprised or concerned that the prices were alot higher than I have seen anywhere else in london. Then I was handed the standard forms to fill in and thing to sign. These included a long list of side effects and signing to say that I had read and understood. This was fine with me but there was no follow up chat. Every other clinic I have visited has taken the time to talk me through potential side effects after I have read the forms, and gone through each one with me in detail. Here I got nothing. I handed back the forms and was shown straight into the treatment room, this was a bit of a worry. Meeting the “treatment consultant” did not make me feel any better about the situation. I think she would have given me a spot test without speaking to me at all if I hadn’t asked her what settings she was going to use. She replied to me by telling me in her most condescending voice that the settings she would use would depend on my skin type. And that was all she said. Silence. At this point I thought my head might explode – she was looking right at me and I had just filled in a form about my skin type and medical history, that she very clearly hadn’t read. Anyone who can see me can see immediately that I am a type II skin. I am very pale (in the winter almost blue) with brown hair. I was very restrained, and clarified with “what settings would you use on me?”. I can’t remember exactly what she recommended but after some discussion she agreed to test me with 18mm spot on 12j. Since I was tested the same morning with 18mm and 18j I was not happy at all but asked her to explain why she recommended that. She said company policy, and their training, and that it was better to start low and work up. She had no idea how the laser worked and she was very defensive. Eventually I talked her into a free patch test at 18mm 14j (I am not sure why I didn’t just leave). Then I left.
And now I have been to Laser Clear as well!
It’s the one by Liverpool Street that also does Tattoo Removal.
The initial part of the consultation was done by a manager not the nurse and I think it was the longest and most relaxed consultation I have had yet. I did not feel as though she was just trying to fit me in to her busy schedule at all, she left me alone to read all the forms and things and then took a lot of time explaining everything to me as well. She was really nice, and all the science she explained to me made actual sense. She said they do a range of spot tests and then treat at the highest one that is right for my skin. This was very promising – amazing even. She also said that they generally didn’t like it when patients came in demanding certain settings as the decision needed to be made on the basis of how the skin reacted to a laser, and that it was ultimately a decision that had to be made on the nurses judgement. I was happy with this too as it was apparent that they based their judgements on science and not “Company policy”. She also explained that every individual machine will be calibrated slightly differently, and this can mean variations of up to 30%. So they don’t go one what you have had at other clinics but will always repeat spot tests before treating with their lasers. This was also good to know. I asked her whether she knew if they would use the 18mm or 15mm spot size. This was the only part of her consultation that I was not happy with, she said they would definitely use the 15mm spot size, as the 18mm one would be way too painful and powerful. This was right at the end of speaking to her, it had been going so well, so annoying!! -
Anyway then I met the Laser Clear nurse who was also really lovely and had used to work for HMG but left it as she hated the way they didn’t care about how effective treatments were, only the amount of money they could squeeze out of people. She also said they would only use a 15mm spot size as the 18mm spot penetrates deeper into the skin and is really used for larger areas like the legs. I was really tired, I didn’t even try to argue with her. She said she would try a range of settings, I said ok. I didn’t bother asking her what settings before she did the spot tests as I don’t know anything about what range of joules is appropriate for 15mm spot. Anyway she was really nice – I liked her. After the spot tests I got Aloe Vera gel – this is the first of any of the clinics that has bothered with gel or anything after the spot tests. She told me which area was done on the highest setting so I had to see how that bit in particular reacted, if it was fine then that is what I would be treated at. She didn’t actually tell me the settings, but I was watching her write them down:
15mm spot
20j
22j and
24j
As predicted the 24j area is fine.
Laser Clear is by far the clinic I am most happy with. I just wish they had gone with the 18mm spot and now I am not sure about these 15mm settings. Please could you tell me the 18j/15j equivalence? Before I was happy that I should be treated with 18mm spot on 16 or 18j – what is the equivalent on 15mm? And was any of these spot tests done at a setting that is way too low. And how much better is the 18mm spot than the 15mm one – does it really make that much difference? I feel like I want to go with this clinic so I am not sure if it is worth arguing with them about this. I don’t want to piss them off as they are the best (so far)!
This process has been exhausting!!! Please help me!
Also sorry to anyone who has read all of this for having to plough through this giant post. - I really appreciate all advice. Thank you! xx