Beauty Doc Blog

How soon can you return to work after having non-invasive cosmetic enhancement procedures? This is a common question, and the answer actually varies a bit from patient to patient, but there are some general ideas a person can go by. Remember of course that some of it depends on you, on your individual metabolism and on the procedure you had. It also partly depends on the type of work you do. For instance, dermabrasion or deep chemical peels using phenol will require a patient to avoid sunlight. Sun blocks should be worn, long sleeves, wide brimmed hats and other methods of apparel and protection to avoid excessive solar radiation. If your job requires you to be outside for extended periods of time in an environment that is sunny, then it will be quite some time before normal work duties can be resumed. However, if you work inside, in a office for instance, protected from the sun, then you can probably return to work much quicker.

Take a look at a few of the common non-invasive cosmetic enhancement procedures.  Laser treatments to improve skin and remove unwanted hair, intense pulsed light, chemical peels, dermabrasion and microdermabrasion, among others.

After intense pulsed light treatment or laser treatment the sun should be avoided. Take a few days off if at all possible. Discomfort will be minimal if the sun and exposure to it is avoided. The same is true of intense pulsed light, or IPL.  With chemical peels dermabrasion is a more serious process and will require a longer recovery time, but still generally only a few days for most patients. Microdermabrasion is less intense and recovery time is faster. Generally microdermabrasion is closer to the light chemical peels such as those using alpha hydroxy acid. The results for most people are good, the recovery time is brief and patients can probably return to work the next day. The sun however should still be avoided if at all possible to promote rapid healing and avoid complications.

Collagen treatments and other facial fillers and injectables as well as the popular Botox have very short recovery times. Many patients return to work the same day, and most return no later than the next day. Recovery time and when someone can return to work will always vary from patient to patient and person to person, but with non-invasive cosmetic treatments t usually is a very short wait.