gave myself a mandelic/salicylic peel, skin feels rough
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free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 12:28 pm

Hello there:) I used a Mandelic/Salicylic Peel i ordered from MUA, applied it four days ago. Everything went great, face was red for a couple days, tight, still feels a little tight and like it might after a sunburn, but it's all good I think. Took almost all my blackheads away with one peel, VERY pleased, wish I had done this sooner, I'm 48, first peel, and never been so blackheadless.

My face is really super flaky, like a fine dust almost. Small bumpy bits also flaking off. Around my mouth and lower face, where I have the most crepey skin and wrinkles (that I am really self conscious about), it feels like dead skin just sitting on top, this is normal right? I am wondering if it's okay to use something to gently exfoliate. But what? Need to be gentle.

Also I ordered hyaluronic acid serum to moisturize, any other recommendations for moisturizer to use after peels- I plan on doing more of these.

allie grace

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 12:40 pm

I think salicylic acid is supposed to be used on oily skin. What percentage did you use? Salicylic acid is strong even at low percentages. I think 20% is the same strength as high percentage glycolic acid.

Maybe you could use salicylic acid to spot treat your blackheads and use lactic acid (which is less drying than glycolic acid) on the rest of your face. I myself find that my skin is drier post-glycolic acid peel and I get flakiness around my mouth.

I personally use squalane oil post-treatment, and sometimes mix in a pump of Antioxidant Booster from SkinActives.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 1:18 pm

Hi! I have combo skin, very oily BUT also dry in places, and clogged, and sensitive.

I was actually looking at the lactic acid peel, I think I'll try that next time. I used a Mandelic (15%) Acid, Salicylic (15%) Acid Peel.

"squalane oil"...thank you.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 1:21 pm

So pleased you had good results from your first peel and sounds normal to me! It is best to avoid exfoliation because that dead skin is protecting the new baby skin underneath as it heals. Sometimes the dead skin will just roll off in little balls when you massage in your cleansing lotion or are in the shower, that is fine. Don't deliberately soak the skin in water to get the dead stuff off, this can draw the natural moisturising factors our of the skin and dehydrate it further.

Hyaluronic acid is a humectant, it may well sit on the skin and draw water out if used alone. You will need to layer under an emollient or occlusive (oil, wax or skin softener). I second Onmyboat's suggestion to try lactic acid once you are happy with the blackhead situation: it hydrates as it exfoliates, there is silky soft skin right away no dry skin peeling off at all. You can then return to salicylic acid as and when required.

Post-peel I usually apply a mixture of aloe vera gel (healing, anti-ageing) and EITHER a light oil OR Weleda baby calendula face cream. The Weleda contains lanolin which is a source of cholesterol and saturated fatty acids, which can help repair the skin barrier. As we get older our production of these lipids naturally drops so it can be beneficial to replace them. This mix is really hydrating and particularly plumps out my elevens. Very Happy

Sounds unlikely but oiliness, clogging, dryness AND sensitivity can all be closely related, often either to a cleanser or exfoliator that is too harsh. This is because skin can pump out extra sebum or sacrifice layers of healthy tissue to protect itself. Alternatively it can be worth reviewing the diet and lifestyle. My skin was combination and sensitive until I quit using sulphate surfactants, almost overnight it became more 'normal' in oiliness/ dehydration and less reactive.

HTH!

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 2:02 pm

Firefox, so put the hyaluronic on first, and then over that an oil? Weleda baby calendula face...on my list of things to try.

okay, I will take it easy and not push the exfoliation, Thanks:) sitting on hands.

Agreed to Onmyboat's suggestion. I'm ordering a lactic acid peel kit, cant wait to try it. I really hope this helps my skin, I could really use a boost.

Is a drugstore aloe vera okay to use?

I'm not sure if its related, but I quit using shampoo, and started using only a sulfate paraben free conditioner, and noticed a difference in my facial skin, how funny is that. May just be a coincidence. In any case my hair LOVES the new routine, so healthy looking. On my face I use Philosophy purity cleanser, when i stray from it I get really oily and flaky. Also Thayers toner likes me. The one thing I noticed in my diet that affects dramatically, is when we order pizza, I have excema that acts up every time...may be the yeast.

Thanks so much for sharing your experience!

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 4:50 pm

Allie Grace wrote:

Is a drugstore aloe vera okay to use?

I'd say you will have trouble finding aloe vera in a drugstore that's actually aloe vera. I got a gel in a Canadian drug store this summer when I got a bad sunburn on my shoulders Sad

and checked the ingredients a while later, and it was full of dyes, alcohols, all kinds of crap.

Even so called natural brands's (Jason, Lily of the Desert) aloe vera gels contain all sorts of fillers. The only one that I've come across that's most or less good is Aubrey Organics Pure Aloe Vera.

Ingredients: Aloe barbadensis (aloe) leaf juice*, citrus grandis (grapefruit) extract, cyamopsis tetragonoloba (guar) gum*, tocopherol (vitamin E).
*Organic

It's inexpensive to boot.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 5:37 pm

onmyboat wrote:

Allie Grace wrote:

Is a drugstore aloe vera okay to use?

I'd say you will have trouble finding aloe vera in a drugstore that's actually aloe vera. I got a gel in a Canadian drug store this summer when I got a bad sunburn on my shoulders Sad

and checked the ingredients a while later, and it was full of dyes, alcohols, all kinds of crap.

Even so called natural brands's (Jason, Lily of the Desert) aloe vera gels contain all sorts of fillers. The only one that I've come across that's most or less good is Aubrey Organics Pure Aloe Vera.

Ingredients: Aloe barbadensis (aloe) leaf juice*, citrus grandis (grapefruit) extract, cyamopsis tetragonoloba (guar) gum*, tocopherol (vitamin E).
*Organic

It's inexpensive to boot.

I am on my way now to see if I can find something at walgreens or riteaid maybe. I'll post what I find.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 5:58 pm

Allie Grace wrote:

Firefox, so put the hyaluronic on first, and then over that an oil? Weleda baby calendula face...on my list of things to try.

okay, I will take it easy and not push the exfoliation, Thanks:) sitting on hands.

Agreed to Onmyboat's suggestion. I'm ordering a lactic acid peel kit, cant wait to try it. I really hope this helps my skin, I could really use a boost.

Is a drugstore aloe vera okay to use?

I'm not sure if its related, but I quit using shampoo, and started using only a sulfate paraben free conditioner, and noticed a difference in my facial skin, how funny is that. May just be a coincidence. In any case my hair LOVES the new routine, so healthy looking. On my face I use Philosophy purity cleanser, when i stray from it I get really oily and flaky. Also Thayers toner likes me. The one thing I noticed in my diet that affects dramatically, is when we order pizza, I have excema that acts up every time...may be the yeast.

Thanks so much for sharing your experience!

Yes HA first then oil OR you can emulsify the two together in your hand before applying. Just don't use AV or HA on their own because your skin will feel tight and weird! You can use a drugstore aloe vera if you can find a 95%+ product without parabens, fragrance or pretty colours because these are all irritants. I use Aloe Pura brand which is sensibly priced and decent quality but it's not widely available in the US.

Yey another CO-washer, there are a few of us on here!

Definitely not a coincidence IMO: sulphates are well known irritants, summary of a very recent study below. Most shampoos are ~20% sulphates, shower gels and face washes are usually less. My hair went sulphate-free first, then face and body and all are very happy with the change. My main eczema patch was on my arm so only meeting shampoo bubbles running down, water washed otherwise! Shock

My mother just switched over and her eczema started clearing in a couple of days. http://www.eczema.org/aqueous_cream.html

There is a sulphate in your Philosophy, albeit a slightly gentler one. Oily and flaky together *might* suggest you have mild seborrhoeic dermatitis on your face - a yeast infection which feed on your sebum, excretes stuff that causes irritation, leading to more sebum production ... SD often co-exists with atopic eczema and is actually the most common cause of dandruff. Harsh surfactants and alkaline products can keep the yeast under control but add to the skin irritation and oil production themselves. Acid peeling damages the skin barrier (in a controlled fashion) which lets the sulphates get better contact with living skin so it's not a great combination. BUT it definitely is not all bad news because the AHAs can help keep the skin at the right pH to keep the yeast at bay! A good pharmacist can 'diagnose' and recommend a treatment for SD; the solution for SD is usually a pharmacy anti-fungal plus diet modification. Be sure to tell them you have noticed an improvement by cutting back on sulphates so they can recommend a sulphate-free anti-fungal.

Pizza culprit is probably the finely ground white flour - it basically behaves the same as sugar in your body! For general health and for skincare aim for a low glycaemic index diet, that means choosing carbohydrates that are slowly digested, absorbed and converted to energy. You can lower the glycaemic index of a meal/ help stabilise blood sugar by eating little and often, always having protein, fat and/ or fibre with your carbs, having some lemon juice, vinegar or grapefruit juice before or with the meal. Not saying quit eating pizza, just get clever with how you eat it: be sure that the meal before is mainly protein fat and veggies, because these will still be in your system for many hours. Pick your toppings carefully, maybe have a thin crust and leave the doughy parts, think about what drinks and sides you order, if any. The link between sugar or white/ refined carbs and all forms of dermatitis is a combination of blood sugar peaks messing with your immune system plus sugar triggering inflammation. Also with SD the sugars can be excreted onto your skin and feed the yeast.

Sorry for the lecture, healthcare is what I do for a living so I get over-excited. Embarassed

Feel free to say whenever you want me to stop, I don't take offence to that at all!!

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 6:01 pm

Firefox7275 wrote:

So pleased you had good results from your first peel and sounds normal to me! It is best to avoid exfoliation because that dead skin is protecting the new baby skin underneath as it heals. Sometimes the dead skin will just roll off in little balls when you massage in your cleansing lotion or are in the shower, that is fine. Don't deliberately soak the skin in water to get the dead stuff off, this can draw the natural moisturising factors our of the skin and dehydrate it further.

Am I misreading something here? But exfoliation is very good for the skin. Lots of people's skin cannot exfoliate naturally by itself, so it needs to be stimulated by something topical, such as a scrub of an acid peel, and if serious enough, with a retinoid. In fact, the inability to exfoliate properly is one of the main factors leading to problematic skin.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 7:15 pm

you are right onmyboat, i found nothing! I know where to go though.

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 7:34 pm

Firefox, I really and truly appreciate the info!

So...if I do the lactic acid peels,(assuming they work for me which I do believe they will) I should add an AHA to my skincare routine ? Am I understanding this correctly? And can you recommend an inexpensive one lol. Also a facial soap other than Philosophy?

I am suddenly craving pizza

Allie Grace

free skin care · Sun Feb 19, 2012 8:27 pm

oasisjc wrote:

Am I misreading something here? But exfoliation is very good for the skin. Lots of people's skin cannot exfoliate naturally by itself, so it needs to be stimulated by something topical, such as a scrub of an acid peel, and if serious enough, with a retinoid. In fact, the inability to exfoliate properly is one of the main factors leading to problematic skin.

Most people's skin exfoliates itself fine a health and function point of view, actually most exfoliation is done largely for aesthetic purposes. A small percentage of people have medical conditions where their skin fails to exfoliate, but we NEED the horny surface layer to protect us from the elements and bacteria. The stratus corneum has its own name because it is a key part of normal healthy skin, and even has it's own mini branches of science: corneobiology and corneotherapy.

Slowness to exfoliate is not a main factor leading to problematic skin, more often than not it is arguably symptom rather than cause. Many people across the world do not exfoliate routinely and they do not all have skin diseases as a direct result. Research shows a raft of things from specific aspects of the diet, individual variance in chemical composition of sebum, choice of topicals, exposure to external stressors such as UV light all affect the natural exfoliation process and comedone formation. Most of us seem to be using retinoids and acid peels for ageing, which is not classed as a disorder or disease.

As far as my advice goes I think you are confusing the day to day care for skin with post peel care for skin. When you have done a peel the top layers of living skin can be killed and the top layers of dead skin are loosened prematurely. The dead skin that remains in place is a form of scab, pick it off prematurely and you can end up with less than optimal healing. In the case of a scab you can get a scar, the body prioritises forming a barrier again bacteria over making high quality skin. With a light peel this may be occurring at the cellular level so may be invisible.

From a largely aesthetic perspective exfoliation in moderation can be beneficial, but this can very easily tip over into irritancy, inflammation and over-exfoliating, all of which can negatively impact normal functioning of healthy skin. Since much of this is invisible it is likely many of us are over-exfoliating. Retin-A for example exerts most of it's positive effects at the dermal level but in doing so often disrupts the structure of the stratus corneum which we see as 'mild'.

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