My Radiance Peel experience at House of Obagi

A few weeks back, I had my first- ever chemical peel courtesy of House of Obagi, Greenbelt.

I was welcomed to the clinic by their cheerful receptionist. She asked if I'm familiar with their treatments, and I shyly replied 'No.' But I said I know one of their peels, which is Blue Peel, a cult favorite among beauty bloggers. Honestly, I wasn't so sure if Blue Peel was the right peel for me, but asked for it anyway. I was ushered to the waiting area and asked to wait for a while for I had to consult with their in-house doctor before proceeding with the peel. This is a good thing for me, because you get to save yourself from getting peels that you don't need or much worse, harmful for your skin. House of Obagi is not your usual buffet- type of derm clinic, where you avail of a particular treatment depending on your preference.

I met with Dr. Stephen, one of HOO's in- house doctors. He throughly checked my skin, and advised that I don't really need Blue Peel, as I have good skin. He recommended Radiance Peel, a mild chemical treatment that uses Salicyic Acid. It helps exfoliate stubborn dead cells and remove impurities to reveal new skin. He was also patient enough to accommodate all the queries of a facial noob like me, so thank you Dr. Stephen. :))))

House of Obagi's exclusive products. I love their face sunblock!

In this comfy, clean, and little room is where I had my procedure. The Greenbelt clinic can only accommodate a few customers, as their rooms are very limited. FYI, they're always booked, and I'm very thankful to the HOO team and Sophie for accommodating me that day.

Cleanliness comes first!

House of Obagi only uses exclusive doctor- formulated products in all of their facial treatments.

Before the peel. Goodbye makeup!

Here's how the Radiance Peel went:

The aesthetician cleared my skin of makeup using HOO's makeup remover.

Next, an in- house cleansing foam was used to lift impurities.

Lastly, a cotton pad soaked with HOO's exclusive toner was applied on my face to get rid of stubborn dirt that may prevent the peel solution from clearing up my pores.

Chemical Peels are only administered by House of Obagi's doctors to ensure flawless application and right chemical dosage. Prior the actual peel, Dr. Stephen pulled out a syringe and I'm like "WHOA. DON'T TELL ME YOU'LL INSERT THAT THING ON MY FACE." He replied "It won't hurt. It'll just sting for a bit.' I was ready to run outside the door until he replied "Joke lang." Oh doctor, you got my heart pumping for a while! :))))

Perhaps you're wondering why a mini fan is held in front of my face. I was actually wondering about it too, and found out that it speeds up the drying time of the Salicylic Acid. I asked the aesthetician to take it out, and asked her to bring it back again after a few seconds because the peel STINGS. On a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, I give the stinging feeling a 6. Makes sense because the doctor's using acid. But the mini fan did help me get through the peel. If you can tolerate waxing, then you can tolerate their Radiance Peel.

Didn't know that Salicylic Acid's color is white, until I saw this pic.

After 30 minutes, the aesthetician removed the peel using a wet sponge. She also applied an eye serum on me to moisturize the skin around my eyes.

Post- peel.

My skin felt pretty smooth right after the peel. But after a few hours, it started feeling tight and rough. The doctor told me that the Salicylic Acid is still on my skin, and it will peel off completely in 2- 3 days along with the impurities and persistent dead skin cells.

THE NEXT DAY....

My skin developed tiny rashes. Was this a negative reaction against the Radiance Peel? I hope not. I hope you could see the tiny bumps on my face. But thank God, they disappeared after three days.

AFTER 3 DAYS:

My skin felt somewhere between rough and smooth. The peeling parts were rough, and the surfaces that had peeled off completely were already soft and smooth to touch.

I was a shade lighter than my normal skin tone for 3 days 'cos of the Salicylic Acid.

I was so tempted to peel these chipping parts, but it's a no-no. It could lead to redness and skin sensitivity! For gals out there who are into the habit of manually peeling off chemical peel residues, please, don't do it!

My skin became smooth and refined, but I had a problem: Breakouts. I'm suspecting that my skin reacted violently to the peel, as it was the first peel I've had in my entire existence. My left cheek was the casualty, and I'm battling with a couple of zits and post- acne marks up to this day. I talked to Sophie about it, and she said that the zits are not allergic reactions but IMPACTED IMPURITIES, or spewed- out dirt buried deep inside my pores.

Thank goodness they're about to heal now with the help of my current skin soldiers. Sophie was offering me another free session, but I'm thinking twice about it 'cos I'm not really used to seeing zits (aka Impacted Impurities, or should I say Impaktang Impurities. Ba dum tss!) on my face, and I doubt if I can continue with the treatment.

I have no doubt that the Radiance Peel is effective and great, but in all skin treatments, consistency is key. The aesthetician even said that I will see the real difference after 3- 4 treatments. You will not see great results overnight. In my case, the first result isn't good, but if I continue, I guess my skin will show the results I'm looking for. (or maybe not. It really depends!)

If there's one valuable lesson I've learned in this experience, it's that clear skin doesn't necessarily mean healthy skin-Because there could be a lot of dirt hiding inside your pores! I'm also a bit thankful to the peel because it brought out all of these disgusting impurities from my skin! In time, I know that my skin will be back to its clear and beautiful condition.

The Radiance Peel is at P3,000.00+. If your skin is dull and you have a few zits to dry up, I recommend this peel since it's Salicylic Acid- based. But if you're experiencing a major breakout, maybe you could do the Blue Peel.

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