I've had acne since I hit puberty, when I was 12 or 13. Now I'm 19 and the acne has calmed down but it has left red and dark marks on pretty much my entire face, specially on the cheeks and chin. So I looked up online anything that could get rid of the acne marks: creams, vitamins, laser peel, chemical peel, home peel, etc.
I finally decided for either the Green Peel or the microdermabrasion. My esthetician told me that Green Peel would be a lot more efficient if I wanted to speed up results, BUT that I would need at least 3 sessions to see any difference. I did the math and 3 green peels would be lighter on my wallet then 10 sessions of microdermabrasion, so I settled for the Green Peel.
From the reviews I read, I was expecting some kind of excruciating pain from the scrubbing, but it was nothing that I (or anyone else, me thinks) can't handle. She asked me if it was hurting too much, and I said no and that she could keep going. Now I'm not sure if it was a good thing that it didn't hurt? Maybe she should have put more pressure, because I felt like my skin should have peeled more. The peeling wasn't bad, it's like peeling from sunburn. So again, I don't see what all the fuss about the pain and the 'heavy' peeling is all about.
Finally, yesterday I went back for my post treatment and had the remaining dead skin removed.
Now my skin does feel smoother, clearer and glowing. I didn't see any difference on my acne marks, but then again, she did say that I would need at least 3 treatmentes to see any visible results. She took before and after pictures of my face, but didn't show them to me and I didn't ask her to either. I am going in for a second green peel, but I'll wait for the winter.
My advice would be: don't have it done on summer or very hot seasons, unless you have the time and patience to stay indoors all week! The only reason I had it done this week (very hot week) is because I'm on summer vacation. I only left the house on the 5th day for post treatment. Now, I'm not sure if this treatment is worth it or not but I want a blemish free skin so bad that I'm willing to spend my time and money on it to find out.
Summarizing:
Pros - skin feels instantly smoother and clearer after treatment.
Cons - You will probably need more than 2 sessions to see any results, depending on your skin. You will also need the 5 days off, although the peeling isn't that bad. From my personal experience, I don't think I would need time off work.
P.S.: I payed US$350 for the peeling ALONE. There are ''special'' products that you have to buy. They are: lotion, sunscreen, moisturizer and blemish balm for your skin type. I didn't buy the blemish balm as I found it unnecessary and she also applied on my face on day 1 and on day 5 and I didn't like it. I spent about US$261 on these products (ouch!). She says I have to keep using these, apparently, forever (yeah, right..). But I will use my regular products instead and save these very expensive ones for my 2nd and 3rd Green Peel. What she doesn't know won't kill her.
