For those of us who want younger-looking skin while we still have younger-looking skin (looking at you, anxious Millennial planners), we’ve probably started dabbling in fun things like BOTOX®, JUVÉDERM®, and other lesser-discussed treatments like Morpheus8.
The next step in our *prejuvenation* (the act of initiating a series of thoughtfully planned steps to prevent or impede the changes associated with the appearance of “aged” skin—lines, wrinkles, brown spots, and thin, dry skin) journey? Lasers!
But, not just any laser, and certainly not the super-intense lasers that make our faces peel for weeks and force us to avoid the sun while we watch our besties bounce on beaches around the world via our little hand-held computer screens. We’re talking about the Moxi™ laser by Sciton—a prejuvenation treatment that I did on my lunch break and then hid from people for only a few hours after experiencing it.
Really.
Allow me to tell you more.
What Is The Moxi™?
A non-ablative 1927nm fractionated laser designed for everyone, including me (I’m about to turn 37) to my mom (who is 67, shhhh. Don’t tell her I wrote that on the Internet. Also, when I called her to tell her I did the Moxi, she said, “Ugh, how was it?! I’ve been wanting to try!”), Moxi is ideal for those of us who want to delay the appearance of aging. We’re talking visible fine lines and wrinkles, sun spots, uneven texture, pigmentation, and all of those not-so-sexy skin things.
It targets water within cells to work with the body’s natural healing processes. It’s relatively gentle—as far as lasers go—and comes with little-to-no downtime. All skin types work well with Moxi, and everyone should expect to come away with clear, glowing skin within a few days of the treatment.
Moxi™ Power Levels
Depending on your age and stage, you can opt for intensity levels between 1 (Prevent & Refresh) and 3 (Transform & Renew). Working with my provider, I decided Level 2 (Revitalize & Maintain) would be best for my initial round.
I got on the table, she explained what to expect, gave me after-care instructions, and we got to business.
The Moxi™ Treatment
Honestly, the longest part of the appointment is the face-numbing. A topical Lidocaine was applied to my face, careful to avoid my eyes, which sat for about thirty minutes. After that, the laser itself was quick! It felt warmest on my cheeks, which were already burning a bit from the Lidocaine. My skin is very sensitive.
The Moxi itself took ten, maybe fifteen minutes, felt like a warm mechanical pencil running up, down, and around my face, and sounded like one of those electric bug swatters my husband keeps in one hand while he eats breakfast with the other for at least one full month every summer. Bees have nothing on him and his weapon of choice.
Anyway, while I was lying on the table (with a blanket on my legs that my provider offered to me and I accepted—major perk) thinking about how to describe the feel and sound of the laser, she let me know it was over.
She handed me a mirror, which I reluctantly took from her hand, and I saw that my face looked like I had been sitting in the sun without sunscreen for 30 minutes and crying violently: Very pink, very splotchy. My initial urge was to run straight to my car with my head down, but then I remembered how many people come in and out of KMP Aesthetics looking even wilder than I did at that moment, so I waved my goodbyes to the front desk staff and waited until I got in the elevator to assess if I needed to hide my face. Thankfully, I rode to the parking garage solo. VIP treatment all around!
The Days Following Moxi™
My face was pretty pink for the rest of the day, but it did even out to look just like a sunburn versus a heaving-sobs-aftermath-combined-with-a-sunburn by the time I picked up my kids from school a few hours after the treatment.
My skin started to feel tight and by the next morning, it started to peel slightly, but not that noticeably to anyone except for me. For the first few days, it’s recommended that you don’t wash your face with anything except for a gentle cleaner and use a light moisturizer and SPF. 24 hours after the treatment, I started wearing my favorite BB cream again.
By day two, the small brownish specks of skin my provider mentioned would rise to the surface and eventually fall off arrived. My face felt like sandpaper, but it was kind of fascinating? I’d find myself running a finger along my jawline (where the last of the sandpapery skin remained) just to feel it. Imagine all the sun damage and uneven skin tone rising out of your skin, coming to the surface, and falling away a few days later. That’s what this process was like. Granted, I am a Western European mutt by ancestry. I haven’t done my 23andMe, but a lot of my family members have. I am fair-skinned and light-eyed. I don’t know if other skin tones would show more noticeable skin texture changes in the days after the treatment, but given how short the whole process is, I honestly don’t think anyone with any skin color would need to hide at home—not for long, at least.
By day five, my face skin felt like my kids’. They are four and six and I know their skin intimately because not only do I lotion them after every bath, but I also spend a lot of time kissing their cheeks. They still smell so good!
Final Thoughts on Moxi™
It’s been about three weeks since I got the Moxi treatment and I am lov-ing my skin. It has never felt softer. It’s dewy and glowy and feels like my kids’ perfectly smooth and unblemished epidermis. I’m feeling on the edge of addiction—like I can’t wait to go in for my next treatment to see how much closer I can get my skin to theirs. I am not concerned about this emotional reaction and believe it to be a completely sane and expected feeling about many things beauty. Right? Right.
Would I Do It Again?
If the answer wasn’t pretty obvious, I would totally do another Moxi treatment, especially since 2-4 treatments are typically recommended. It’s reasonably priced at around $750 pending any specials or package deals and boosted my confidence so much that the feeling is priceless. If you have any skin concerns at all, Moxi is the perfect laser treatment to dip your toe into the deep pool of aesthetics.
Interested in the nitty gritty, like the depth of the laser penetration and other frequently asked questions? Head to this page to get all the answers. And if you’re already sold and ready to book your consultation, you can join me on the baby skin journey and do that here.