10 Most Asked Questions About Chemical Peels

Out with the old and in with the new, its time to restore damaged skin that has faced all types of weathering and damage over the years. If you’re looking for an effective way to bring back that natural glow and bright skin, look no further. Chemical peels are a great way to strip away years of dead skin and scarring and completely refresh your face. Here are the answers to your 10 most frequently asked questions about chemical peels.


How Do Chemical Peels Work

When choosing a chemical peel it is important to know which one works best for your skin and what is in it. Chemical peels work to raise the acidity of the skin to 3.8 pH level with the help of acids within the peel. On average your skin has a pH level of 5.5, therefore this process changes the pH level to loosen the cells that create a “glue” between the dead and healthy skin. Once you have that bond loosened, your skin can go through an exfoliation process and reveal the healthy skin underneath. This process promotes growth of new, healthy skin cells. The reaction of the peel depends on how light or deep it is and which one you select.

Chemical Peel Process

  • Day One: It starts out feeling like sunburn and you will have a slightly reddish face.
  • Day Two: The peeling will begin around parts of the face that have a lot of movement.
  • Day Three: Then peeling will move towards your cheeks and forehead area.
  • Day Four: It becomes itchiest around the eyes and your face will start to peel completely on this day.
  • Day Five: Lastly it will begin peeling on the sides of your face and anywhere else the chemical peel was applied.
  • Day Six: The peeling process should be coming to an end and you will simply continue moisturizing.

Why Choose a Chemical Peel?

Some skin conditions that lead people to choose a chemical peel include:

  • Acne
  • Acne Scars
  • Sun Damage
  • Wrinkles
  • Discoloration/Odd Pigmentation
  • Uneven Textures

They help treat sun damage, acne scars, wrinkles and uneven texture on your face. Therefore this is an efficient way to undo the damage your face has endured through periods of time. Plenty of people get a sunburn now and then, others have breakouts and scars and it is a great way to bring back clearer and healthier skin. The great thing about how chemical peels work is that there is a variety of depths that allows you to choose just how much work you want done. The recovery time can range anywhere from a week to a few months and the results leave you feeling refreshed and looking brighter.

How Much Do Chemical Peels Cost?

Chemical peels range from a light to deep peel and you have the chance of paying anywhere from $150 to $3000.The price of a chemical peel can range with factors such as location, the expertise of provider and the type of peel you want. This procedure is almost always considered cosmetic, meaning you will be paying out of pocket for your peel. The price is dependent upon how much you want removed and and what level of treatment you want to receive. When it comes to each peel you are ranging cost based on whether or not you will need to go under anesthesia or use a different facility, meaning cost is determined by how much is required to complete it.

Where To Get a Chemical Peel?

Chemical peels are offered by different places and people. You can go to a dermatologist, an esthetician, or a plastic surgeon. It is important to make sure you complete research on the place or person applying the chemical peel, making sure they are licensed and have good reviews. This will help you narrow down the most reliable and best chemical peels that will ensure great results and recovery. Our favorite place is CosmetiCare in Orange County, they offer a wide range of chemical peels and we had a great experience with them.

When To Get a Chemical Peel?

Now as you know acne is not just prone to teenagers, meaning chronic or recurring breakouts may be a good sign to schedule your appointment.

Chemical peels can help to reduce recurring acne and visible signs of it. You may also want to schedule an appointment to reduce and remove the scarring that acne has caused over a period of time. The more we age, the more we worry and with that more wrinkles and lines of distress appear too. This can happen as early as your 30’s and a chemical peel is a great way to refresh the skin, remove dead skin cells and promote new growth.

Another reason to get a peel is to reduce discoloration of the skin, having the chemical peel directly treat patches of odd pigmentation.

Lastly, the one thing we all face at the end of a long summer, sun damage. Whether we forgot the sunscreen or forgot to wear a hat outdoors, we will always find our faces have been overexposed to the sun. A chemical peel is a great way to correct that. It is an effective way to treat the weathered, leathery, and aged skin that has lost moisture and bring forth new healthy skin that hasn’t darkened.

10 Most Asked Questions About Chemical Peels

Chemical Peels Before and After

Here are some before and after photos of a chemical peel that will be a good reference for better understanding of what you will get out of this treatment.

What To Expect After a Chemical Peel

The process of a chemical peel continues for days, weeks or even months after having it applied. Depending on your choice of peel you can expect to have a longer or shorter recovery time. The one thing to make note of is that you should not expect any pain, the only feelings you may experience are tightness, dryness and mild itching. The process of your skin peeling off will begin around the mouth as it is a part of the face that moves around a lot. Most peels peak around the third day spreading around the entire face and will calm down as time goes on.

Again chemical peels have a variety of recovery time due to the lightness and depth of what you’ve chosen. One thing to keep in mind is that as much as you will want to, do not pull skin off or try to remove peeling skin. This can end up causing scarring, something that you are trying to prevent when getting this treatment in the first place. Overall, this is such a great way to refresh and restore skin that has faced weathering, sun damage, and visible signs of aging.

Chemical Peel vs Microdermabrasion

A chemical peel is a type of chemical exfoliation whereas microdermabrasion is a form of physical exfoliation. The chemical peel tends to be a longer process when it comes to downtime and you get visible results from one treatment. This is a very effective method for treating age spots or wrinkles that you want to target immediately.

Microdermabrasion on the other hand is when you get dead surface skin cells removed with a handheld device the doctor uses. It tends to take roughly 40 minutes for the face and 20 minutes for the neck, having little to no downtime after the procedure. This treatment will cause swelling or red face afterward during recovery, meaning you will moisturize and protect from the sun, and tends to take multiple sessions to gain visible results. So if you’re looking to target specific spots, damage, or scars, a chemical peel might be the way to go.

Our Chemical Peel Experience

Our editor, Elena, had a chance to experience a chemical peel first hand with Cosmeticare and here is what she has to say about her experience:

“I am not a person who spends a lot of time on beauty procedures or focuses on skin imperfections, so a peel isn’t something I would regularly opt for. However, after 1 month of horseback riding in Montana without sunscreen (bad move!), I was left with a dark, discolored patchy face, melasma, and my freckles prominent and covering my whole face. Freckles are cute when you’re young, but when they turn to sun damage, it’s no longer something to cherish. And off I went to Cosmeticare. I was greeted and checked in with a VERY detailed health questionnaire. My aesthetician and I discussed my history, my skin problems, what I can do to improve my skin and avoid more sun damage, and which peel would bring me the best results. After deciding on a strong peel with short recovery time, since I had a photoshoot coming up in a few days, she prepped my face and started the work. Applying the peel stung/burned a little. As the day progressed the burning increased until I washed the peel off after a few hours. It helped to have air-conditioning blowing at my face to cool down the burning sensation.”

“Over the next few days, my face was starting to get tight and itchy and continued to burn, soon peeling and cracking from the tightness which was the most uncomfortable part of the process and lasted about two days. Within a week, I was feeling normal and could see my beautiful bright skin being revealed. The good news is that even though I was peeling during my photoshoot, it was not noticeable in the photos. I was able to wear makeup and foundation while my skin was peeling. Washing it off was probably the most challenging thing, but it is doable.”

I am in love with how my skin looks now: melasma gone, sunspots gone, my skin is whiter and pinker and more even. A chemical peel is definitely something I will do in the future. This time I am going to be very consistent with the use of sunblock and whitening creams in my routine.”

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Overall this is an experience worth having and does tend to produce the results you’re looking for when it comes to refreshing your face. There is no better way to wipe away the old dead skin and replace it with new cells that promote healthy growth. You can’t go wrong with self-care and this is one of the best ways to do it.

10 Most Asked Questions About Chemical Peels

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Daily Mom
Daily Momhttps://dailymom.com
Daily Mom is a parent portal for women who are looking for information and education. It's a combination of your favorite blogs, Pinterest boards, parenting websites, how-to posts, product features and the best fashion magazines all packaged neatly into short easy to read posts with gorgeous photographs. We are a team of passionate writers and editors on a mission to educate, inspire and help women all over the world by providing informational articles on all aspects of womanhood.

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