I had a facial scheduled last Wednesday, but I was not planning on getting a chemical peel. However, my aesthetician recommended it because we are working on controlling my breakouts and acne scars, so YOLO! She warned me there would be some down time (AKA your face peeling off and feeling mortified being seen out in public!) but the timing was perfect. We were already planning on potty training Quinn this weekend and being homebound so I went for it!
Here is a good little read about what chemical peels are and how they work from the Skin Spirit website where I had my facial.
Here is what she did for my peel: “The peel was a couple layers of Lactic, TCA and retinioc acid. All which help to rejuvenate skin texture and help with post-inflammatory pigment”
Post Peel Tips
- The first thing I did when I got home was put on a clean pillow case. I typically wash my silk pillow case 1 x week, anyways, but I just went ahead and put a fresh one on
- I limited my super sweaty workouts for about 4-5 days post peel
- No touching my face or peeling off dead skin (this was SO hard!)
- I washed my face make-up brushes and sponges
AM + PM Routine
I followed this routine for 7 days before returning to my normal skin care regimen. Basically you don’t want to use any toners, serums, or other “treatment” like products on your skin for 1 week post peel. I followed this super simple regimen which was kind of refreshing and time saving! I avoided make in order to let my skin be clean and breath (and peel!) for the first 4 days. I only wore a little tinted moisturizer for SPF.
FYI the first night no cleaning! The next morning I started this routine:
- Cleanse (no toner)
- Moisturize
- Eye cream
- Intellishade – AM only
- Aquaphor or Hydrocortisone 1% if itcy
My Experience
I didn’t go into my facial knowing I was getting a chemical peel, but we decided to add it to the facial as she started working on my skin more. This means I didn’t completely know what I was getting myself in to! It didn’t burn/itch too bad while she was applying the layers and I held up a little face fan to help my skin feel cool and dry.
I didn’t start to really peel until day 3 and I’m glad we didn’t have plans all weekend because I looked pretty ridiculous. My husband got to make fun of me all weekend and Quinn kept pointing and saying “What’s wrong with your face mama?” So, my advice would be that if you have a chemical peel plan it around a time when days 3-5 you don’t have any big plans 😉
DAY 1
(right after the facial and chemical peel was applied)
DAY 2
(no peeling)
DAY 3
(mostly just the chin started to peel)
DAY 4
(the worst peeling day! cheeks, nose, forehead all peeling and flaking off)
DAY 5
(sides of face and nose still peeling off, but getting that glow)
DAY 6
(almost done peeling…just a little still on the nose and jaw line)
DAY 7
(all done peeling!! My skin feels SO soft and smooth!)
Results
Where have chemical peels been all my life?! My skin is SO soft and bright! It really helped clear up the acne on my chin and decreased some of the scaring. I would 100% recommend this to anyone interested and plan to continue to add the peel to my facials every 2-3 months.
Next up: microneedling 😉 Stay tuned…
xx,
Alix
