Also posted on another thread, but this is probably more appropriate...
I have an update on the Lyma laser, for what it's worth. I've been using it since Aug last year (minus a few periods of a few weeks each when I didn't use it for one reason or another), and it absolutely works. Skin is tighter and kind of glows. Amazing results on scars including older ones that are decades old. Fine lines are reduced. Doesn't seem to work on hyperpigmentation and deep wrinkles, though. However, I have now decided it is not for me. Why? It burns fat. The Lyma laser website does say that the device can reduce fat and cellulite on the body, but I just assumed it was a marketing ploy, especially since it also says it only burns body fat not face fat. That's such a ridiculous statement since facial fat is biologically no different from body fat and behaves in exactly the same manner. If you lose weight, you also lose fat on your face (unfortunately). There are no magical properties of facial fat that make it impervious to lipolysis. In any case, I didn't believe that Lyma can burn any fat and happily used it for months.
BUT READ ON...
Five weeks ago, I had a cooking accident where quite a large quantity of very hot cooking oil splashed on my face. The burns basically covered the the left side of my face, not like one continuous area of burn, but about 15 spots of varying sizes. The oil even managed to get on my left eyeball (damn eyelid didn't close in time) and burned about 50% of my cornea off. Yes, I was rushed off to the ER and the whole thing was a giant palaver not to mention extremely scary as I thought I had blinded myself for life. Following the incident, I decided I would use the Lyma laser only on the left side of my face until the burns healed as they needed all the help they could get. Although I had reservations using the Lyma laser directly on my eyeball (I didn't ask the doctor if I should do this as I thought he would think I was insane. Also, I would first have to explain what the hell the Lyma laser is, and I just felt a bit silly knowing that doctors are extremely busy people.), I decided to take the risk. I used the laser on my eye with the eyelid closed, directly over the burnt spot on my cornea for 5-10 min a day. The result? My cornea fully regenerated within 3 days. I went from not being able to see anything immediately after the incident (it was like fog had descended on my eye) to having perfect vision again. It was freaky. I also used the laser on all the burn spots once or twice a day for about 10-15 min per spot. The skin took longer to heal than the eye. Four weeks later, discolouration on the burn spots was still present, although I have to admit they had still healed really well. I had no complications or infections, everything closed up fine, etc. it was just the colour (darker than the rest of the skin). BUT THIS IS WHEN I got the shock of my life. I was studying my face in the mirror exactly four weeks after the incident, when I saw that the left side of my face was noticeably thinner than my right. In profile, I could clearly see that the left cheek was flat, not curved like the right one, the left temple was much hollower than the right, the forehead was much bonier than the right, and the nasolabial line on the left was much shallower than on the right because the left cheek had flattened so much! The only thing that could have caused this is the Lyma laser that was I using exclusively on the left side of my face due to the burns. And because I was desperate to heal quickly, I was using it for about 4-5 hours a day. I'm 47 years old, very thin (5'2" and 98-100lb), and have a very thin face. It's one of my biggest complexes and I've even had fat grafts on my face because of this. It is an understatement to say that I am devastated. Prior to the accident, I had been using the laser on my face, knees, chest, butt, and in none of these places can I afford to lose any fat!! If the benefits of tighter skin, etc. come at the expense of fat (volume), the device, unfortunately, is useless to me. The risk of fat loss is the very reason I had never tried devices that use RF, ultrasound, and other heat-generating methods, so I feel extremely let down that the company that makes Lyma laser does not make this issue clear. In fact, they use questionable science to state that the device can somehow burn body fat while leaving facial fat intact. I mean, come on... As of now, I have stopped using the device completely as I wait to see if the fat loss is temporary or permanent. I am really really hoping that the fat will come back now that I no longer use it. Anyway, I thought I would warn others of this side effect. I am also aware that there are many (lucky) women out there for whom fat loss would be an additional benefit not a drawback. If you are one of these, I would heartily recommend this device. As evidenced by my cornea that completely regenerated itself in three days (in fact, my vision in that eye is even better than before the accident!), this thing most definitely works.