Chemical Peel: Stories

There are so many different types of peels that it's hard to say 'good' or 'bad' overall. It really depends on the type of skin one has, the type of peel, medical history, and so forth. But I've just done the new beta peel b-liftx and I have two very important tips: 1) If you have the cold sore virus -- herpes simplex -- you MUST take an anti-viral before, during, after. I broke out in two places after the peel, even with two anti-viral pills. I didn't quite realize how quickly the acid treatment could activate the virus. 2) Do NOT pick at the flaking skin. I should have known this. I did know this. Of course, everyone knows this. But I didn't quite realize that scarring would almost certainly result from picking at the flaking skin. Indeed, I have scarring now where I lifted off skin that wasn't quite dead. That's not so pleasant to contemplate but it must be said as a cautionary warning. On the whole, I am going to stick with retinoids. I think they are more effective in the long term and do not result in anything like the same trauma to the skin.