Firmer, smoother skin below the neck
Morpheus8 Body is radiofrequency microneedling for loose, crepey skin on the abdomen, upper arms, knees, and thighs, and for stretch marks. We offer it for anyone whose skin has changed after pregnancy, after weight loss, or after 50. It treats skin quality. It isn’t a weight-loss or fat-removal treatment.
$500
scars, per session
At a glance
Morpheus8 Body- Appointment
- 45 to 60 minutes of numbing, then treatment sized to the area
- Downtime
- Red and tender for 2 days, fine scabs through day 7
- First results
- A few weeks
- Full results
- About 3 months after the last session
- Sessions
- Usually 3, spaced 4 to 6 weeks apart
- Cost
- From $500. About $125 per payment across 4
What to expect
What the appointment is like
Most of the appointment is numbing time, the cream needs 45 to 60 minutes on a body area, and for deeper settings we sometimes add injected lidocaine. The stamping itself feels like deep pressure and heat, stronger than the face version because we go deeper. An abdomen takes longer than a pair of knees.
Consult
We’ll look at the area in daylight, pinch the skin to see how much is laxity and how much is volume, and tell you whether Morpheus8 Body is likely to make a visible difference. You’ll leave with a written plan.
Numbing
We apply numbing cream to the whole area for 45 to 60 minutes. Wear loose clothing you don’t mind getting balm on.
Treatment
The 40-pin tip stamps a grid across the area in overlapping passes. You’ll feel deep pressure and heat. We adjust depth and energy by zone, going shallower over bone and thin skin.
Before you leave
We’ll apply a soothing balm and give you written aftercare, and you’ll slip loose clothing over the area. You can drive yourself home.
Results
A predictable timeline
You’ll see the first change in a few weeks, as swelling resolves and the tissue that contracted on the day settles. The lasting result comes from collagen, which takes about three months after the final session to mature. On stretch marks and scars, most people need the full series before the difference is clear.
Days 0 to 2
Red and tender
Red, swollen, and tender with grid marks. Wear loose clothing and stay out of the sun.
Days 3 to 7
Scabs slough off
Scabs slough off, with some itching and dryness. The grid fades.
Weeks 4 to 12
Texture refines
Sessions two and three. Early smoothing on arms and knees, then noticeably finer texture.
Month 3 to Year 1
Assess, then maintain
Stretch marks blended and crepe softened at month three. One maintenance session a year holds the result.
What it costs
Clear pricing, planned by the visit
A few things shape your cost: the size and count of areas (a pair of knees is a smaller job than an abdomen and flanks), the number of sessions, Burst versus standard passes, the numbing method, and whether you buy a series or a single session. Single sessions suit mild crepe on a small area; most body work is a series of three.
- The size and count of areas
- The number of sessions
- Burst versus standard passes
- The numbing method
InMode 40-pin tip
Morpheus8 Body
$500
scars, per session
- Recommended series
- 3 sessions, 4 to 6 weeks apart
- Season
- Start in fall or winter
- Consultation
- $50
- Financing
- Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna
Treats skin quality, not fat. Treated skin needs to stay out of the sun, so a series started in October is finished by late spring.
Book your Morpheus8 Body appointmentSimilar purpose, different options
Morpheus8 Body or something else?
Two other treatments on our menu overlap with Morpheus8 Body, and for significant loose skin, surgery is more effective than any of them.
| Morpheus8 Body | Forma | Microneedling with PRP | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Needles plus deep radiofrequency heat | Surface radiofrequency, no needles | Needles plus your own platelets, no heat |
| Best for | Crepe, laxity, stretch marks, body scars | Mild laxity, no-downtime maintenance | Stretch-mark texture and scars, no laxity |
| Downtime | About a week of marks | None | 1 to 2 days |
| Sessions | About 3 | A series, often 4 to 6 | 3 to 4 |
| Cost tier | Highest per session | Lowest | Middle |
What it is
- Morpheus8 Body
- Needles plus deep radiofrequency heat
- Forma
- Surface radiofrequency, no needles
- Microneedling with PRP
- Needles plus your own platelets, no heat
Best for
- Morpheus8 Body
- Crepe, laxity, stretch marks, body scars
- Forma
- Mild laxity, no-downtime maintenance
- Microneedling with PRP
- Stretch-mark texture and scars, no laxity
Downtime
- Morpheus8 Body
- About a week of marks
- Forma
- None
- Microneedling with PRP
- 1 to 2 days
Sessions
- Morpheus8 Body
- About 3
- Forma
- A series, often 4 to 6
- Microneedling with PRP
- 3 to 4
Cost tier
- Morpheus8 Body
- Highest per session
- Forma
- Lowest
- Microneedling with PRP
- Middle
Forma, and its body handpiece Forma Plus, heats the skin from the surface without needles. There’s no downtime, the effect is gentle, and it’s done as a series. It suits mild laxity and anyone who can’t take a week of marks, though it won’t do what Morpheus8 Body does for stretch marks.
Microneedling with PRP is shallower and has no heat. It’s the better first choice for stretch marks that are still red or purple, and for body acne scars, because it works on texture without the radiofrequency risks. It doesn’t help with laxity, though.
Surgery. When there’s a lot of loose skin, an abdominoplasty with a surgeon is more effective than any device, and we’ll refer you if that’s what we see. The face and neck version of Morpheus8 has its own page, with its own downtime and timing.
Is it right for me?
Who it’s for, and who it isn’t
Morpheus8 Body is a good fit for adults with mild to moderate skin laxity or stretch marks who understand they’re investing in skin quality, not a smaller waist. The best candidates have skin that’s crepey or loose but still has some snap when you pinch it. Because radiofrequency doesn’t target pigment, darker skin can be treated more conservatively.
A good fit for
- Crepey or mildly loose skin on the abdomen, arms, knees, or thighs
- Old, silver stretch marks (improvement, not erasure)
- Skin changed after pregnancy, weight loss, or after 50
- All skin tones, treated conservatively on darker skin
Not recommended
- Fat volume or a “tummy-tuck result” (it doesn’t remove fat)
- A hanging apron of skin or separated muscles (surgery fits better)
- Red or purple stretch marks (microneedling with PRP first)
- An infection, a keloid history, or during pregnancy
The FDA’s 2025 safety communication cites reports of burns, scarring, and fat loss, naming the abdomen among the most-treated sites. We keep settings conservative over thin-fat zones and treat the abdomen in more passes at moderate depth.
In detail
What it treats
We don’t offer body-contouring devices here: no Emsculpt, no CoolSculpting, and no fat-freezing or fat-melting of any kind. Morpheus8 Body isn’t one of those treatments. It treats skin. For weight itself, we do offer medically supervised weight loss under our nurse practitioner, as a separate program. If a pocket of fat is your main concern, Morpheus8 Body isn’t the right fit.
Abdomen and flanks. This is the most common request, often from women whose skin has changed after pregnancy. Crepey skin, fine wrinkling, and stretch marks below the navel respond. A hanging apron of skin or a separated abdominal wall doesn’t, and in that case a surgical consult is the better next step.
Upper arms. Crepey skin on the inner arm is a common concern. This is a good area for Morpheus8 Body because the laxity is usually mild and the skin is thin enough to change.
Knees and thighs. Loose skin above the kneecap and on the inner thigh, which tends to develop with age. Knees are one of the areas in the manufacturer’s before-and-after set, and one of the areas where we see the most consistent change.
Buttocks, lower back, and chest. Crepe on the lower back and the crinkled skin of the upper chest both respond. Chest skin is thin, so we treat it at a shallow depth.
Stretch marks and body acne scars. Old, silver stretch marks soften and blend. Expect improvement rather than erasure. If your marks are still red or purple, microneedling with PRP is usually the better first step.
How it works
Morpheus8 Body is a 40-pin applicator on the same InMode platform as the face version. The needles stamp to a programmed depth of up to 7 mm and release radiofrequency heat from their tips, with about a millimeter of extra thermal spread beyond the needle, which InMode describes as an 8 mm thermal profile, per its August 2020 launch announcement. A mode called Burst fires the energy at three depths in one cycle, which helps us cover a large area like the abdomen in a reasonable time.
The heat contracts tissue on the day and triggers collagen remodeling over months, which is why body results build slowly.
Body data come from case series and expert reviews, not randomized trials. A plastic-surgery review of non-invasive abdominal treatments warns of “conflicting anecdotal reports” and “marketing hyperbole” around these devices, per Hurwitz and Wright. What is well documented is safety on stretch marks and scars: a review of 58 microneedling studies covering 1,845 patients found improvement in striae and scars with “no serious adverse events,” per Juhasz and Cohen. That’s why we describe body results as skin-quality changes, not fat loss.
The 40-pin tip is FDA-cleared for coagulation and contraction of soft tissue, with a condition that the highest energy settings are limited to skin types I through IV, per the FDA’s 2020 clearance letter. “Fat remodeling” and “cellulite” appear nowhere in that clearance. They’re marketing terms, and we don’t use them.
Afterwards
Downtime and aftercare
Days 0 to 2: the area is red and tender, a little swollen, with a visible grid of marks and pinpoint scabs. This is expected. On the abdomen, the area can feel tender when you bend or sit up, and loose clothing helps. Bruising is more likely at deeper settings, especially on thin-skinned areas like the inner arm.
Days 3 to 7: the scabs slough off, and the area may itch and feel dry. The grid on your abdomen may look darker for a few days before it fades.
Week 2: mostly settled. Some people still have a faint grid pattern into the second week, and it fades.
While you heal, use sunscreen and keep the area out of direct sun. Avoid pools and hot tubs until the surface has closed, skip scrubs, acids, and retinoid body lotions for about a week, and hold off on heavy workouts for the first day or two. Compression garments are a case-by-case call. The FDA’s list of common microneedling effects applies here too: dryness, tightness, redness, itching, peeling, bruising, and crusting, per its microneedling devices page.
Why here
Why Arlington Heights
Our Morpheus8 Body patients come from Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Palatine, and nearby suburbs. We’re open weekdays 10 to 6, and you can park in the free lot right outside the single-story brown brick building at 3375 N Arlington Heights Rd, Suite C, just south of Dundee Road. There’s no garage and no meters, which makes the trip home easier after a body session.
Because treated skin needs to stay out of the sun, we start most body series in October or January and finish them before summer. Summer is a good time for consults and planning, but not for starting a series. When you book a consult at our Arlington Heights office, our medical esthetician will assess the area and recommend whether treatment makes sense for you.
Questions
Common questions, answered
For crepey or mildly loose skin and for stretch marks, yes, with one thing to keep in mind: the evidence is case series and clinical experience, not randomized trials. The change is finer texture and softer marks over about three months after a series of three. It doesn’t remove fat or replace surgery when skin is very loose.
Morpheus8 Body stamps 40 insulated needles up to 7 mm into the skin and releases radiofrequency heat from the tips. The heat contracts tissue and triggers collagen remodeling over months, which softens crepe, stretch marks, and body scars on the abdomen, arms, knees, thighs, and chest. It is FDA-cleared for contraction of soft tissue, not for fat reduction.
Plan on about a week for the visible marks. Days 0 to 2 are red and tender, with a grid pattern and pinpoint scabs. On days 3 to 7, the scabs slough off and the area may itch. A faint grid can linger into week two, and that’s normal. Please keep the area out of the sun and out of pools and hot tubs until the surface has closed.
The first change shows in a few weeks as swelling resolves. The real result is collagen, which matures about three months after the final session. Stretch marks and scars usually need the full series of three before the difference is obvious. Individual results vary.
Usually three, spaced four to six weeks apart. Mild crepe on a small area like the knees sometimes does well with one. Stretch marks and scars almost always need the full three. After that, one maintenance session a year helps many people hold their result.
Yes, though expect improvement rather than erasure. Microneedling and fractional radiofrequency have published improvement in striae with no serious adverse events across dozens of studies. Old silver marks soften and blend after a series. Marks that are still red or purple often respond better to microneedling with PRP first.
No, it can’t. Morpheus8 Body is cleared for contraction of soft tissue, and fat loss is listed by the FDA as a reported complication of radiofrequency microneedling, not a benefit. We don’t offer body-contouring devices at Skinovatio Arlington Heights. If fat volume is your concern, Morpheus8 Body isn’t the right treatment. If overall weight is the issue, our nurse practitioner offers medically supervised weight loss.
It’s best to wait until the needle channels have closed, which usually means about a week, and to stay out of the sun for longer than that. Chlorine, hot water, and shared water can all cause problems for freshly needled skin. That’s why we schedule body series in fall and winter in Arlington Heights, so healing doesn’t overlap with summer sun and swimming.
Yes, when it’s treated conservatively. Radiofrequency doesn’t target pigment, so it’s safer than IPL or many lasers on skin of color. The FDA clearance limits the highest energy settings to skin types I through IV, so on darker skin we use lower energy and sometimes add a session. Sunscreen on the area matters even more.
It isn’t reversible, and results build gradually over months. Because we plan it as a series, you can stop after one session if you’d prefer not to continue.
Keep exploring
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Morpheus8
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Forma skin firming
$699 / sessionNeedle-free radiofrequency that warms and gently tightens mildly loose skin, with no downtime.
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Microneedling with PRP
$499 / sessionMicroneedling paired with your own platelet-rich plasma for acne scars, texture, pores, and tone.
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Start with a consult
Tell us what you’d like to work on. We’ll assess your skin and goals, walk you through your Morpheus8 Body options, and give you a clear plan and price before anything begins.
Afterpay and Klarna available at checkout for eligible treatments.