38 Years Old, First IPL

I have natural freckling on my chest, not so much on my face, but in the last year have noticed some brown spots popping up on my cheeks that I would rather not have. And knowing that sun damage shows up a decade or more after it's actually received, I want to get a jump on keeping the brown spots and sun damage at bay. I religiously use sunscreen but grew up on an island, currently run marathons, and have to accept that a certain amount of sun damage is to be expected.

I got my first IPL as a standalone procedure but my subsequent reviews in this thread will be for the 3 series of IPL/1540 Laser combination called "3 for Me" that my clinic is now doing.

The procedure didn't hurt really. It's stingy on the cheeks but I don't mind at all. The chest was zapped at a higher intensity since, well, just look at it. It needs a lot of work. That left the sunburn feeling for a few hours but nothing major. You are instructed not to allow heat to touch your face or chest for 24 hours, including working out, hot showers, sun, etc.

All my spots have turned extra dark, as to be expected, and will start to flake away over 2 weeks. I woke up this morning, day 2, looked in the mirror, and literally went WOW. Because not only does IPL remove spots but also redness, and my skin just looks so.......something I can't put my finger on, but better than before. Even though my face has minimal damage compared to my chest I will continue to laser it along with the chest, because IPL removes damage that you can't even see yet. And of course, once we begin the IPL/1540 combo that will be very exciting.

Hello its 8 days later and the most noticable change has been how much less pink I am. Rosacea or redness has never been an issue and it was not anything I noticed in photos....until it was gone. So a big difference there.

My chest took 5 days to start flaking and is still doing so in some areas. My face still has a few spots but Im fully aware that IPL results are modest after juat 1 treatment and my expectations are realistic. It also can take 2 weeks to see full results. Overall my skin is so clear now, despite some spots that will need subsequent treatment.

I noticed a tightening effect from the IPL too, which was nice. Some other people here on Real Self report this as well so along with the removal of my pink skin cast this was another unexpected bonus.

I will post again at the 2 week mark.