Just below the top five layers of your skin lies a brighter, smoother complexion waiting to be revealed. The fastest way to get to the new skin is through a classic skin treatment, a chemical peel. Peels tends to be popular with clients in the fall and winter months because this is the time of year when people aren’t typically exposed to the sun.
Chemical peels are a SkinSpirit aesthetician’s secret to better skin because they help remove sun damage with low risk, can be customized, have minimal downtime and yield maximum results in a short amount of time.
Benefits of a Chemical Peel
A chemical peel can improve the overall look and feel of the skin in just one treatment. Peels can also do a number of other wonderful things for the skin like:
- Improve the skin’s color, clarity, tone and texture
- Stimulate new collagen and healthy skin cell growth, resulting in a radiant complexion. Reduce discoloration caused by skin damage
- Help clear up breakouts
- Smooth away the look of fine lines and wrinkles
- Increase hydration of the skin
- Address visible imperfections and superficial scars
- Make your skin and the products you use on your skin work better
A peel consists of a chemical solution (acid) and is applied to a client’s skin under the watchful eye of a trained SkinSpirit licensed aesthetician. The controlled burn to the skin removes the top layers of the skin through the “peeling” process over the next few days after initial treatment, depending on the type of peel used.
Some say the hardest part of having a chemical peel is not the initial application of the treatment, but the actual peeling process.
Chemical Post-Care Recommendations
To see the best results possible, our experts have a few key recommendations on how to properly take care of the skin after having a peel:
Hands Off
Avoid touching, picking or scratching the skin during the peeling process. Allow the skin to shed off naturally. Using fingers to remove the dead skin or premature peeling the skin can lead to possible scarring. This also means all facial scrubs, acids and Clarisonic Cleansing Brushes are off limits until the skin stops shedding, usually up to a week after treatment.
Moisturize
Use a neutral moisturizer such as Aquaphor for the first couple of days after treatment and then switch to a moisturizer like SkinMedica’s TNS Ceramide Treatment Cream for the rest of the peeling process. When applying the moisturizer to the skin, be careful not to rub or scrub it in. Gently apply a thick layer of moisturizer all over the skin multiple times throughout the day, if needed.
Protect With SPF
The new skin revealed after a chemical peel will be temporarily more sensitive to the sun. This is why daily use of sunscreen is essential during the peeling process. Avoid damaging the vulnerable skin by protecting it with a layer of sunscreen anytime exposure to the sun is possible. Be sure to choose a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher. We recommend SkinMedica’s Essential Defense Mineral Shield SPF 32. Colorescience’s Sunforgettable Mineral Sunscreen Brush SPF 50 is also an easy, gentle and effective way to apply sunscreen protection to overly sensitized skin.
Pull It Back
Help avoid touching the face and prevent breakouts by pulling the hair back off the face with a hair band or hair tie. Allow the skin to go through its natural peeling process. Touching the skin with dirty fingers and hands will only aggregate the new skin and may lead to breakouts. If breakouts do occur, don’t treat them yourself. Have your aesthetician treat them for you or leave them alone.
A series of chemical peel treatments can remove several layers of dead skin build-up, leaving behind a brighter, smoother and a more refined complexion. For best results, a series of three or more chemical peels are recommended, depending on the type of results a client wants to see.
Book a Free Consult
Want to see if you’re a perfect candidate for a chemical peel? We recommend visiting one of our experts for a complimentary consultation to discover if a chemical peel would be the right treatment for you.
Click here to request your consultation at any one of our locations: Burlingame, Los Gatos, Mill Valley, Oakland, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Walnut Creek, Bellevue, Redmond, Seattle, and more. At SkinSpirit, consultations for any service are always complimentary.
Disclaimer: Information and content within this blog is provided for informational purposes only. This blog is not intended to provide medical advice, and anything read here should not be construed as such. Reading this blog or communicating with our staff does not create a physician-patient relationship. If you have questions about any health issue, including something you may have read here, please consult a licensed, trained physician or health professional immediately.
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