Questions about a skin treatment?

What skin treatments include

Skin treatments is a broad label. At most med spas it covers four kinds of service: facials, chemical peels, microneedling, and light-based skin treatments. Each one works on the skin's surface or just below it, and each comes in many versions.

A facial usually means cleansing, exfoliation, a mask and sometimes extraction. A chemical peel is a solution applied to the skin for a set time, in strengths that run from light to deeper. Microneedling uses a device with very fine needles to make tiny punctures in the outer layer. Light-based treatments use devices that send light energy into the skin.

Which of these, if any, suits you is a decision for a licensed provider at a consultation.

Things to mention even if nobody asks

Some details are easy to forget at a consultation but matter for skin treatments. Mention them to the provider:

• a history of cold sores, since some treatments can trigger them
• raised or thick scars from past injuries
• any recent waxing, threading or hair removal cream on the area
• a peel, laser or microneedling session elsewhere in recent months
• new skin care products, especially strong acids or vitamin A creams
• a planned vacation in the sun soon after

A licensed provider uses these to decide what is suitable and when.

The week before a skin consultation

A consultation on its own usually involves no treatment, though some providers can treat at the same visit if you both agree. If that is possible, a few things are worth asking about ahead of time:

• whether to pause strong exfoliants or vitamin A creams beforehand
• whether to avoid tanning, sunburn and self-tanner
• whether to skip waxing or threading on the area
• whether to arrive without makeup

Ask the provider or their office rather than guessing. Never stop a prescribed medicine without checking with whoever prescribed it.

Questions about skin treatments

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