I hot off birth control and my face exploded with acne. I had experienced this same thing about two years ago in which treating with topicles wasn't working so I decided to have a series of 6 peels done over the course of about a year . I must say, it wasn't until the last peel that I noticed a significant decrease in the dark spots left behind by acne that had come and gone. This time around I've been doing a topicle regimen of Alcanya Gel in the morning and Retin A at night. The active acne has slowed way down and the new ones clear up faster. But I'm still left with marks old acne left behind. I am Hispanic with an olive completion with yellow under tones. These "spots" look like acne but the skin over them is smooth (not a bump like a pimple). My new dermatologist (due to ins) recommended that I try a VI Acne Peel. I had never heard of that type of peel before, so I searched online and found a lot of information about the peel. I must say, in my opinion, the good reviews well over shadow the bad ones. I couldn't wait til my appointment, I had become obsessed with reading reviews and watching people's journey to clear skin on YouTube . The day of my peel finally had come, I was so excited to get it started. Now I read more than one review that said the peel didn't really burn/sting. This was not my experience , maybe because my skin was already sensitive because of the Retin A, all I know it that it burned going on just like any other peel I had before. When the skin did feel less irritated, he would do a new pass over my face and the burn/sting returned. On top of doing numerous passes, he rubbed vigorously in some of my problem areas which just added to the sting. I read, rubbing vigorously on the skin helps it to absorb deeper for better results. Unlike previous peel, this peel was not neutralized and I walked out the office with a very red irritated face with some frosting on my cheeks. I was instructed to keep the peel on for a minimum of 4 hrs. I wasnted to get good results so I left mine on til bed time( I had a 9:15) appointment. At that point, I was to wash my face and pat dry completely. Then I was instructed to take a towelette from the take home kit they gave me and rub it on my face vigorously just as the dr had done. Yeah, let me just say, it was not painless. My skin felt raw, and then the towelette had more chemicals on it and then to have to rub it in good.., not fun. I went to bed and washed my face in the morning. I put on the post peel protectant they provided along with the sunblock in the kit. After eating dinner my mouth felt like I had food on it. When I went to touch it, it turns out it was my skin peeling around my mouth. This was surprising because everything and everyone says you peel on the 3rd day and here iveas peeling on the 2nd. I wouldn't have cared so much if I didn't have to apply the second towelette tonight. I was scared I would accidentally rub off my peeling skin. I was just careful around my mouth and rubbed the rest of my face. Day 3, I'm peeling all over. Not small flakes but big sheets of skin. Today is day 4 and I feel let down. I know this wasn't meant to be a magic wand but I just thought after reading all the review I would see some improvement. I'm not done peeling but the parts of my face that have peeled, the areas with my acne marks are still visible :(. The skin that hasn't peeled and I can see the new skin underneath isn't any better either. I guess like my other peels, I'm gonna have to have more than one peel to get results I want. Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Hi everyone! I am working on uploading pics so hopefully they can be added to my review soon. Today is day 7, I must say, the redness/pinkness is still very visible on my cheeks. I broke out with two small pimples which doesn't necessarily bother me as much as the red acne marks do. I spoke with the dermatologist today and expressed my dissapointment. He reassured me that everything I'm experiencing is normal, that it is a pretty deep peel and the recovery time for the skin ( once done peeling) is a few weeks to a month. He did apologize that i was disappointed with my results so far and went on to say, everyone's skin is different and what may work for one in one treatment may not be the same with someone else. With that said, I will still book another treatment, I just now know to expect results after a few instead of just one. Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Updated on 10 Sep 2013: . Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Updated on 10 Sep 2013: Updated on 15 Sep 2013: Hi everyone, It's been almost 2 weeks since my VI Peel and I think it's safe to say there has been NO improvement in my skin at all. It doesn't look any better but it doesn't look any worse either. The 2 pimples I got post peel have already gone. I'm deffinately going to continue to get peels, but I think I'll stick with what I know gave me results... The Jessners paired with the TCA to remove my red acne marks. My doctor told me to wait 2 months between peels so I plan to have my next peel in November. I'll be sure to check in with my results! Updated on 22 Sep 2013: Hi everyone! I wanted to update you guys so you will know how my face is doing. Well it's been 3 weeks since my VI Acne peel. I started using my acne regimen of Acanya Gel in the morning and Tretinoin at night again last week. My skin is having to get use to the medicines all over again :(. Which means its super dry, red, sensitive, and flakey. Good news though, no active acne!!! My face has NO bumps, it's so smooth. Now, if I can get rid of these red acne marks, I'd be the happiest girl on Earth! Updated on 29 Oct 2013: Well, I don't think the VI Peel delivered all it promised... At least for me that is. My acne marks are still very apparent and not faded as I thought they would be. I'm still on my topicals and have been referred to another dermatology place for a consult regarding laser treatment, pulsed dye laser in particular. After meeting with the esthetician, she recommended against laser treatment of any kind because of my skin tone and the nature of the red marks. So it's back to good ol' chemical peels. This time it was recommended that i do a rejuvenize (sp?) peel. It's cost is $225 so we shall see. I'm scheduled for the first week of November and I'll def let you all know how it went.
