My skin is very up and down. Sometimes it's as smooth and clear as a babies bottom, other time it's breaks out so badly that crawling under the duvet with the lights off is the only reasonable course of action.
Well I've decided I'm not going to suffer in silence anymore and have decided to embark on a course of IPL treatments for the skin. I'm going to be trying the Ellipse IPL laser for the next few months and will be giving you monthly reports on how the treatment is working, with all the gory photos as well!
The Ellipse laser uses light to combat acne, by turning it into heat energy which goes into the skin and produces a slight reaction with the sebaceous glands. This helps slow down the production of oil which leads to acne, thus clearing your skin because there's less sebum being produced.It uses a dual filtering system which means that the light directed at your skin ONLY contains relevant wavelengths, so it's much safer. The light targets porphyrins caused by the bacteria and helps to destroy them which reduces infection and slows down the oil production tat leads to acne. The heat also stimulates collagen which leads to faster healing times and softens the appearance of any acne scars.
First off I had to have a consultation with one of the registered therapist. She talked me through the treatment and explained it woudn't be painless and nor would it clear everything up, but that I'd still see a definite improvement. She then checked to make sure I'd stayed out of the sun for the last two months (imperative if you don't want to burn under the laser) and warned me I'd need to wear a strong SPF daily.
Next she took some shots of my skin for reference and then it was time for the test patch. She applied a cooling get to my cheek and then ran the laser over a small area for around a minute. It wasn't a pleasant sensation, and it felt roughly like someone snapping an elastic band cover your skin. It was bearable, but I may take an ibrubofen next time, as that was a small area and they're going to cover the whole face and chest area.
I was told that before we could start treatment I needed to get a prescription of adapalene form my doctor, an anti acne cream that dries out the skin and provides a good base for the laser work with. I needed to use that for three weeks prior to commencing treatment ,and combine it with a strong SPF as well. She mentioned that summer was not the ideal time to start, but I promised I'd be good and invested in some Clinique SPF 40 creams straight away.
My skin was slightly red afterwards in the area, so I was advised to cover it with aloe vera gel, but it faded within two hours.
My first visit is in two weeks now, and I'm very excited/nervous!
I'll keep you posted!
I'm trialling this treatment a the
Knightsbridge Laser Clinic, 1st Floor, Brompton Road, Knightsbridge, London SW3 1DE. A session costs £250 and you're expected to have four of them, three weeks apart of them for best results.
