Today we’d like to introduce you to Nina Desai.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Nina. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I am a board-certified dermatologist and have been practicing medical and cosmetic dermatology for over ten years. I started in private practice in New York City in 2009, and in 2015 my family and I relocated to Southern California, where I then joined Manhattan Dermatology in Manhattan Beach, California. I absolutely love my patients and feel so fortunate to be excited about my work. The skin is the largest organ in the body, and how our skin looks and feels has the ability to impact every other aspect of our lives. My obsession with skin and how it heals started when I was teenager. After a car accident, I was left to deal with several bad burns on my legs and back. Over the years I sought treatment after treatment to improve the appearance of my scars. It was during my time as a patient that I became fascinated with the complexities of the skin, the way our body heals, and more specifically the way laser technology plays into this. I was enamored by the devices I saw but disheartened by how few treatments were available to me because I have darker skin. At that young age, I knew I had found my passion and my career.
I was fortunate to receive my medical degree from Brown University, working under some of the smartest minds in medicine. My passion to understand skin disease and how the skin heals led me to pursue research at both Harvard University, and Cornell University where I published numerous papers and book chapters on skin cancer and skin diseases, in particular in skin of color. I then trained at St Luke’s- Roosevelt and Beth Israel Hospitals in New York City where I was able to learn first hand how to treat skin issues in all skin types and tones. I continued my education by seeking out the best laser and cosmetic specialists in New York and Miami, to train in cutting edge techniques, including the treatment of burn and traumatic scars with resurfacing lasers. While I had found my calling early, the road to success was long and not without its bumps, and now I had come full circle. It is so fulfilling to offer treatments that, years ago I was told were not possible. I really believe in life you must use your negative experiences and turn them into positive ones. This has by far been my proudest accomplishment.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Pursuing your dream is not always a smooth road. For me, it took eight years of school, four years of training, and countless hours of additional courses, preceptorships and studying. Through all of that, I moved from Rhode Island to Boston, to New York and finally to LA. In addition to pursuing my professional dreams, I had to juggle to make time for my personal goals as well. 13 years of marriage and three children later I can honestly say that the hard work and sleepless nights were all worth it, and I look forward to the new challenges ahead.
Manhattan Dermatology – what should we know about your practice? What do you do best? What sets you apart from others?
In our practice we focus on medical and cosmetic dermatology, treating women, men, and children. Over the years I have continued to build both my medical and cosmetic practice, offering the newest and most effective treatments, focusing on treating all concerns of my patients and all skin types. While women of color, such as myself, have been led to believe that they were not candidates for certain cosmetic treatments, I work to make these treatments possible. I pride myself in offering fillers, botox, microneedling, laser resurfacing and chemical peels, to name a few, all tailored to my patient’s specific skin concern and skin type. I also believe that what we do to care for our skin at home is just as important as the treatments I perform in the office, so I love making each of my patients a very individualized, comprehensive skin care routine and plan. Aesthetic medicine and skin care now go hand in hand, and I love arming my patients with all the tools they need to put their best self forward.
Contact Info:
- Address: Nina Desai, MD
Manhattan Dermatology
400 S Sepulveda Blvd, Suite 205
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266 - Website: manhattan-dermatology.com
- Phone: 310-546-1188
- Instagram: @drninadesai
Image Credit:
Monika O’Deegan
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