I Tried The Miria Laser To See If It Could Put My Botox To Shame

I’m not against aging. However, I’d like to continue accruing wisdom and advancing in my career with as smooth and tight a face as humanly possible.

Since I’m what the youth would call middle-aged in my mid-30s and gravity is starting to really do a number on me, I’ve been looking into more drastic measures beyond my current routine of Botox, filler, and collagen-stimulating creams.

When I got an email introducing the Miria laser, it felt like one of those instances where your algorithm delivers exactly what you were just thinking about straight to your screen. A new non-ablative treatment (ablative lasers remove the top layer of the skin, while non-ablative lasers do not), this non-invasive (read: it doesn’t break the skin or require incisions) laser penetrates deep beneath the skin’s surface to tighten, diminish fine lines, and help reduce acne scars and sun damage — all with only four to seven days of downtime.

As someone who’s never tried a “serious” laser treatment before — besides Clear & Brilliant, an entry-level laser that doesn’t penetrate as deeply as Miria (and because it doesn’t go as deep, you need multiple sessions to see results) — I was intrigued. Since I’ve tried so many products and treatments in the name of more youthful skin, I figured it was time to give something more serious a go — something that really gets to the source of collagen production to get it stimulated. Read on for everything you need to know about the Miria laser, including what it’s done for my complexion almost two months later.

What Is The Miria Laser?

The Miria is a new FDA-approved non-ablative laser that goes deeper than any other laser to treat both the superficial and deep layers of the skin. The end result? Improved skin tone, texture, and tightness.

Lasers, if you’re not familiar, are resurfacing treatments that use light beams to penetrate the dermis to stimulate collagen, resulting in all sorts of benefits to your complexion. What really sets Miria apart from other lasers is its proprietary focal point technology and AI tech-backed imaging that allows for precision — so you can avoid active acne, for example, as I did, and choose which layer of skin (superficial, mid-depth, or deep) to treat. Unlike traditional ablative resurfacing procedures, it can be performed with topical anesthesia and requires little downtime.

Most people have heard of Fraxel, which is a similar non-ablative laser treatment that targets sun damage and dark spots while improving fine lines and wrinkles. But Fraxel can be problematic for darker skin tones; sometimes it can actually lead to hypo or hyperpigmentation. Miria is exciting because it’s proven to be safe for all skin tones — and that’s because of its cone-style delivery system.

“When it’s penetrating the top layer of skin, it spreads out that energy and focuses it deeper, and the pigment is at the top layer,” says Dr. Paul Jarrod Frank, M.D., celebrity cosmetic dermatologist. “By spreading out that energy, there’s less at the top and more at the bottom.” This way, it does not affect pigment on the top layer.

You can get the Miria treatment on your face, neck, or body — anywhere you want to address tightness and texture. It’s ideal for anyone looking for a non-invasive option to enhance and smooth their complexion.

The Benefits

Miria improves your skin’s overall appearance since it stimulates collagen at such a deep level. Specifically, it can diminish the appearance of fine lines, crepiness, and wrinkles, combat acne scars and dark spots, boost laxity, even skin tone, and decrease pore size.

“It’s so good for skin tightening, scarring, fine lines — anything where you want to build up collagen to correct something,” says Frank.

While the traditional Fraxel offers similar benefits, Frank says the Miria gives you a more dramatic improvement in your skin since it goes deeper. Also a perk? It’s not as painful as Fraxel and other non-ablative lasers — and it has minimal downtime.

“The Miria laser goes a bit deeper [than Fraxel] and gives people skin tightening,” he says. “People don’t just want the glowing skin and to remove sun damage — they want to tighten crepey skin. Due to the data, the ease of use, and the predictability we’re seeing from the Miria, it’s really that mid to deep durable, non-ablative treatment we’ve been searching for.”

How To Prepare For The Treatment

A week before you get the treatment, you’re advised to stop using all active skin care products (think anything with retinol or chemical exfoliants). You should also tell your provider if you have specific concerns you’re looking to treat.

“Like any laser, you should not get it if you have active acne, psoriasis, or eczema in the area you’re getting the treatment, or if you’re taking medications like Accutane,” says Frank. That said, Miria plays well with injectables, so you can get it at the same time or in conjunction with Botox and filler.

What To Expect During A Miria Laser Treatment

When I arrived at Dr. Frank’s West Village practice, I was escorted to the treatment room where my provider took photos of my skin and chatted with me about my biggest concerns. As a (very tired) new mom, I noted I was in dire need of tightening and some help for the fine lines and wrinkles that have taken residence on my face since giving birth.

Before anything touched my skin, a thick layer of numbing cream was applied to my face. This takes 45 minutes to activate, during which I relaxed and envisioned my glowier future self.

Then, my provider came back in, turned on the Miria machine, and went to work. She guided the tip slowly across sections of my face as the blue-colored light touched my skin. I felt a little bit of spiciness and heat in some sensitive areas (like near my eyes and lips), but overall, it was tolerable.

My provider went over my face twice, and the entire treatment was done in about 10 or 15 minutes. She applied a sheet mask to cool my skin immediately afterwards, but then I was free to go about my day.

Note it’s not the kind of treatment you’ll have an instant improvement after. Upon looking in the mirror, I noticed my face was red — I looked as if I got a sunburn while skiing. But this is completely normal. “Patients may experience some redness and mild swelling immediately after the procedure, but these effects usually subside within a few hours to a few days,” says Frank.

The Results & Aftercare

As is the case with any fractional resurfacing device, it takes about a week for your skin to feel like itself again. Instead of the peeling you’d experience after other lasers (like Fraxel), Miria leads to puffiness and redness — two side effects I noticed, both right after the procedure and for the next few days. My face didn’t hurt though. Compared to Clear & Brilliant, this definitely had more downtime (the former made my skin just slightly red for a day), but it wasn’t unmanageable.

For aftercare, it’s recommended to use a gentle cleanser and just a plain non-comedogenic moisturizer twice a day, and to avoid sunlight. If you do go outside, you should wear SPF and a hat. Basically, treat your skin with the utmost TLC and let it heal. You can resume your regular skin care routine after one week, and you can wear makeup after 48 hours.

Collagen takes a while to build, so it takes six to eight weeks to really see results, says Frank. “And you’ll continue to see results even months later,” he notes.

After patiently waiting for the redness to fade, which took about a week, my skin definitely looked more even and bright. But the more impressive results have come two months since I got the treatment: the wrinkles underneath my eyes have become less visible, the lines around my mouth have noticeably diminished, and my face looks overall tighter — almost like it’s been pulled back into its rightful place, before gravity took hold of it.

While I’ve gotten Botox since I got the Miria treatment, the results from the laser are different. Botox temporarily erased my forehead lines and crow’s feet, sure, but Miria is like the wizard that worked behind the scenes to boost my skin’s overall appearance and laxity.

The Cost

Of course, such a rejuvenating laser treatment doesn’t come cheap. One Miria laser session in New York City will run you about $3,500, though that price will vary depending on where you’re located and which practitioner you see.

On the plus side, you can choose to do a one-and-done session — depending on your overall skin goal. “If your goal is just rejuvenation, you could get it once a year,” says Frank. “For something like acne scars, you’re probably going to need a series of treatments where we ‘stack’ them to really correct things.”

The Final Takeaway

If you’re looking for an in-office treatment that gives you a noticeable, long-lasting improvement in your skin, Miria is a great option. It’s safer and more tightening than Fraxel, and the downtime is minimal. Since I got it for more anti-aging results, I can’t speak on how effectively it improves sun damage and acne scars, but I can say I’m impressed by what it’s done for my complexion’s overall tightness and tone.