Peel Season: Uncover Your Radiant Skin This Winter
Winter is coming and so, too, is the time of year to PEEL. When it comes to post-summer care, a good chemical peel is a wonderful treatment for skin rejuvenation and post-summer hyperpigmentation. A chemical peel is the application of an exfoliating chemical to the skin, resulting in the destruction to the top layers of the skin. The skin works to regenerate those damaged layers which aims to improve skin structure, appearance, and texture.
Chemical peels are an effective way to treat a myriad of skin concerns. These include: acne, melasma, wrinkles, texture, photodamage, photoaging, and acne scarring. Many folks coming into my clinic for botox are seeking to minimize their already-imprinted wrinkles. Unfortunately, botox will not remove wrinkles that are already there, but peels, and particularly a series of peels, can get us on our way to softening them.
Chemical peels are typically categorized based on the depth that they penetrate into the skin: superficial to medium to deep. I carry a range of superficial to medium-depth peels and recommend planning for a series for optimal results. It is not uncommon to incrementally increase the intensity of peel in the series based on your tolerance.
These are the chemical peels that I currently offer:
Glycolic 70% superficial peel with zero downtime
Level 1, or Clarify Peel, is a superficial peel containing salicylic and mandelic acid aimed to treat acne, acne scarring, and oily skin.
Level 2, or Refine Peel, is a superficial peel that contains salicylic, citric, and lactic acid. Treats fine lines and wrinkles, mild acne, and light pigmentation.
Level 3, or Transformation Peel, is a superficial to medium-depth peel containing lactic acid, salicylic acid, and resorcinol. Treats pigmentation, advanced sun damage, and overall skin rejuvenation.
VI PEEL systems are medium depth and include TCA, phenol, salicylic acid, retinoic acid, vitamin c, and with some formulations including hydroquinone and kojic acid. These are more aggressive and treat fine lines and wrinkles, loose skin, hyperpigmentation, acne, and more.
This is a lot of information and you are not expected to know which peel is for you. Prior to the procedure, or during a consultation, we discuss the options and decide together which one is for you. We consider your skin type, history, willingness for downtime, goals, etc; in other words, the treatment is individualized.
You can schedule any time for a chemical peel and treat yourself.If you have specific goals in mind, I do recommend beginning with a consultation (or we discuss when you're at the office), because we can optimize outcomes by taking time to prepare the skin with products like vitamin A and glycolic. To note, it’s important to discontinue use of vitamin A, or retinols, 1-3 days prior to a peel.
Thanks for reading, I hope to see you soon.
With love and gratitude,
Heather