Years ago, I would spend significant time out of my day, hours out of my week, using various skin regimens to treat blemished skin and remove unwanted hair. As a busy woman with a career and other interests, I found that this routine of dealing with my skin was not only a time-vacuum but I was beginning to have complaints about my results.

The daily face wash that I was using at the time was not only drying out my face, but was causing occasional redness. The redness eventually became more permanent around my forehead. My daily shaving routine was becoming a hassle and the razor that I used gave me nasty razor bumps. Even my make-up was not covering up the blood vessels that became more prominent around my nose. Eventually I got tired of listening to myself complain about my skin problems and I decided to do something to alleviate my issues.

As a nurse practitioner, I had been familiar with noninvasive treatments and how they can treat skin problems without dealing with downtime or going under the knife. Some of my friends also had complaints about their skin and had tried noninvasive options with excellent results. I figured that I needed to do some research and see what treatment would work best for my problems.

Upon my initial research, I found that laser hair removal and skin rejuvenation were both good options to greatly reduce my own complaints and improve the look and health of my skin. Laser hair removal was a perfect fit to eventually save me time and money on shaving and skin rejuvenation helped me to feel better about my facial redness and broken capillaries.

For laser hair removal, the only way to permanently reduce the amount of unwanted hair is to damage the hair follicle to a point where it is unable to produce hairs. The hairs that are destroyed with each treatment are destroyed permanently. While patient protocol is determined on a case-by-case basis, on average a minimum of six treatments spread about two months apart per treatment is recommended.

The most effective laser hair removal process combines pulsed, high-intensity light with precisely controlled radiofrequency waves to damage follicles. The result of permanent hair reduction can often mean: no more shaving, waxing or bleaching of the treated areas.

Laser hair removal has become so popular that the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reports that almost a million and a half procedures were performed in 2007 alone. According to the society's report, the number of laser hair removal treatments in the U.S. has increased 100 percent from 2002 to 2006. As laser hair removal remains one of the most popular nonsurgical treatments, clearly more and more people are permanently ridding themselves of body hair.

Skin rejuvenation treatments such as FotoFacials target darker, pigmented lesions and stimulates new collagen production and eliminates older, outer skin layers through microdermabrasion to reveal newly-toned and revitalized skin.

Skin rejuvenation uses advanced combined-source technology, which combines the beneficial effects of pulsed laser light with the extra safety and fine-tuned control of radio frequency (RF) energy. The number of skin rejuvenation sessions required for a complete course of treatment varies based on the type of skin conditions being treated and individual characteristics of the patient.

To enhance the effectiveness of skin rejuvenation treatments, gentle exfoliation using microdermabrasion takes place between the skin rejuvenation treatments. Microdermabrasion uses fine crystals that are blown over the skin and then immediately collected using the instrument's vacuum head, removing old skin and allowing the more youthful and radiant skin cells from the skin rejuvenation therapy to come to the surface of the skin more quickly.

It is important to note that every patient responds a bit differently to noninvasive laser treatments, but clinics with noninvasive laser specialists spend time identifying your individual needs and any concerns that may exist prior to the treatment. The goal is to ensure your safety and comfort throughout the process, and the treatments are virtually painless.

Going through laser hair removal and skin rejuvenation treatments was the best remedy for my complaints. I now have that significant time back out my day that I used to spend treating and worrying about my skin. My results aren't just because I am a nurse practitioner but are because I am a real patient with real results. Imagine never having to shave or stare at the blood vessel on your nose in the mirror again. Imagine no more complaints!