"I Tried At-Home Microneedling And My Skin Has Never Felt So Smooth"

‘Leave your skin alone.’ This plea has formed the main body of advice I’ve been given about my skin since it first erupted in spots as a teenager, and it’s come from everyone from my mum to facialists to cosmetic surgeons. And they’re right - spots if left to their own devices leave far fewer marks on the skin than those that have been poked and prodded, but who on earth has the willpower to not touch that huge, mountainous spot that’s threatening to take over their face? Certainly not me.

You name the skin sin and I’ve done it - I have squeezed, picked and essentially damaged my skin time and again. And I have the scars to prove it. Flat thougt they may be, my face under bright light reveals red dots and uneven patches that betray its volatile past.

To some extent, good skincare works wonders. I exfoliate and use serums diligently to keep the surface happy, but during a conversation with facialist supremo Teresa Tarmey around half a year ago, I was told about micro needling. The idea is that by puncturing the skin with microneedles, it will go into reparative mode, ramping up collagen and elastin production and thereby making skin behave more youthfully. It also provides a channel for whatever serum follows to penetrate more deeply, making it more effective.

Despite it sounding like the golden ticket to better skin, I had misgivings, with the prospect of rolling my face with needles making me very nervous indeed. What if I drew blood? What if I did it wrong? What if it made my skin worse, not better?

I pushed my fears aside and forged ahead with my GloPro, being gentle and fastidious about not rolling over the same patch of skin more than twice and avoiding patches of active acne at Teresa’s advice. The big question, then: Does microneedling hurt? The sensation isn’t painful per se - but I could definitely feel something happening (this is a bonus in my view - I equate feeling something to efficacy when it comes to devices). After, my skin was slightly red, but not markedly so, and the next morning everything was smooth and clear.

Two months into dermarolling every other day or so, and my skin is definitely happier, with me even eschewing foundation on a recent holiday in favour of tinted moisturiser with strategic concealer.

Madeleine Spencer

If you want to give it a whirl, here’s everything you need to know about at-home microneedling before starting:

What does microneedling do?

We asked Teresa Tarmey - who is a huge advocate of microneedling - to explain. ‘Essentially, it causes very slight trauma to the skin in order for it to go through a repair process and produce collagen.’ The result? ‘It’ll reduce scars and is a fantastic anti-ageing treatment - that also cleverly helps to create tiny channels in order to deliver your choice of product.’

Can anyone try microneedling?

Essentially, yes - mironeedling mimics something all skin types and hues will do when damaged. That said, dermatologists caution against rolling over active acne and/or angry skin. It works on scars and wrinkles alike, so you can use it to address skin concerns provided they're not too inflamed.

Are microneedling results permanent?

This is where things get tricky. Yes, the results happen on a cellular level and will therefore impact the health of cells, meaning that scars and wrinkles that are reduced will remain reduced - until they occur again. I.e. you may reduce a scar's thickness, but if you sustain further damage on top of that scar, you'll need to undergo another course.

So how do I do microneedling at home?

This bit’s easy - but you have to follow the rules. It’s best to use it at night so that your skin can recover for the morning and the steps we’d advise following are:

1. Cleanse thoroughly.

2. Take your micro needling device and sterilise it - you have to be fastidious about that bit (try getting your steriliser in a piercing shop).

3. Roll it over skin, building up to the number of rolls prescribed on the packaging or by your dermatologist/facialist.

(As a rule of thumb, skin should tingle and redden slightly, but it shouldn’t be painful or red the following morning - and blood is a big no-no: ‘it’s an extremely effective treatment, even with small needle length,’ says Tarmey, adding that ‘it really doesn’t need to be bloody and painful in order for it to work.’)

4. Once you’ve rolled, follow with a serum and moisturiser.

5. Repeat every other night - depending on how your skin responds.

Can I go and have it with a professional, instead?

Absolutely - especially if you’d like big results more quickly. Teresa uses a Fractional laser on clients who need more resurfacing as it combines micro needling with radiotherapy, or you could simply opt for a treatment with longer needles (often referred to as Dermapen or Rejuvapen) that would offer deeper results. Ask for numbing cream if you’re worried about the pain element - though a good practitioner should offer this as par for the course. If you're diligent and buy a good device, you can get great results at home, so opt for that if you're happy to wait a bit longer and/or want to save some cash.

Can I try microneedling anywhere on my body, even my neck?

Absolutely - there’s no reason that you shouldn’t use your roller anywhere where skin texture and scarring are an issue, though you may need longer needles to tackle thicker skin. Equally, if approaching the eyes, you must absolutely use a needling device designed for the delicate area. Some brands make different heads for different areas to make life easier - which leads us to…

So which dermaroller should I buy?

Swiss Clinic make reasonably-priced rollers and offer guidance on which one you should go for based on concerns you wish to tackle.

GloPRO have tripled the treatment by adding a collagen-boosting LED red light to the end of theirs as well as having the device vibrate slightly to enhance the benefits. They also make different head options for the body and eye area.

Radara’s novel approach is to provide a month’s supply of micro-channeling patches for around eyes that really tackle crow’s feet and loss of elasticity.