Bellinis Botox and Chemical Peels Oh My!
By Jennifer Ross
If you would've asked my teenage self if my "adult" self would attend an event called "Bellinis and Botox," I just don't know if I would have believed you. But seeing as how now I am a seasoned beauty industry vet, well why wouldn't I?
I showed up to Dr. Rowe's Upper East Side Plastic Surgery Office bright and early at 8:30 am on a Tuesday a few weeks back. I found many a beauty blogger and journalist with a greater need to find out more about how they can get their best skin through all types of procedures Dr. Rowe & Co. perform in his office on the daily.
Dr Rowe was incredibly kind, gracious, and informative. His approach is super honest with no frills. He left no stone unturned and no questions were off limits. I myself am a bit gun-shy of freezers and fillers so I was one of the few to opt for a chemical peel. I have suffered from mild to a sometimes severe case of acne on and off for the last fifteen years since I was in my mid-teens. A few years back I had a chemical peel in my then dermatologist's office. It was minimal pain and no downtime at all and my skin came out looking as good as ever. However in the last three years I have gotten back on the peel train with an occasional lunch time peel which in turn causes low sensitivity and no downtime.
The peel I did at Dr. Rowe's office was a bit more intensive. I have never peeled like this before. The VI Peel Purify was made specifically to treat acne related skin issues with a powerful blend of benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, vitamin c, and kojic acid. As one of Dr. Rowe's associates administered the formula to my skin my face began to feel the burn. Although I left the office that day feeling raw and red, I just looked like I had a tinge too much of self tanner spread all over my face, which was in fact the post peel solution. I was given a small kit of a gentle cleanser, post peel towelettes, post peel protectant, and SPF 50 to facilitate my days following my "procedure."
Of course you are not supposed to pick and peel at your skin after you have peeled and of course I did just that. DO NOT DO THAT. You can cause hyper pigmentation, scarring, and/or sensitivity. In the directions for the days to come it says this on EVERY SINGLE PAGE. You are supposed to let your skin naturally peel away to uncover something close to "baby skin." When you "coerce the peeling" you end up with unnecessary roughness and rawness like I did for a few extra days because I disrupted the natural process. As I result I had a lingering red spot on the side of my cheek that looked like a Pi Sign for a few days that would have never happened had I not picked, poked, and prodded in the first place.
The end game of my molting process was and is smoother, softer, newer skin. I would rec the VI Peel Purify to anybody twenty something plus looking to perk up their complexion who has or continues to suffer from acne and it's bag of tricks. But first of course take a trip to your derm or plastic surgeon and allow them to be the judge of that beforehand.