The peel, part 1

Last night was my first VI peel. I was more than a little nervous driving over there, wondering what in the heck I'd gotten myself into.

When I arrived at Phases, I didn't have much time to sit and fret. Elissa was ready for me as soon as I walked in the door. Before we got started, I had to sign some paperwork indicating that I was aware of all the potential risks involved...redness, stinging, swelling. Most of which Elissa assured me that I would probably not experience for long, if at all.

Soon enough, I was flat on my back on the table, being treated to that yummy orange face cleanser and the warm towels again. Seriously, I think I'd drive over there just for that.

Then Elissa scrubbed my face with nail polish remover. Ok, it wasn't REALLY nail polish remover. But it was an acetone scrub that smelled just like nail polish remover and she did tell me to try not to breathe while she was wiping it over my face. I think she said it was to strip away any grease so that the VI peel could be more readily absorbed into my skin.

Once that was done, Elissa turned on a fan that blew gently on my face. She explained exactly how she going to go about applying the peel. And with that, she got started. Much to my happiness, it didn't hurt. It did sting a little, in a hot/cool way. The sensation reminded me of when I was a teenager and I would cleanse my face with Sea Breeze (anyone remember that stuff), only 2-3 times more intense. But it wasn't enough to make me tear up.

We chatted as she was applying the peel and while we waited a few minutes between each layer. I learned that she is not originally from Indianapolis. That she's got a great husband. That they go to every Colts home game. AND that's she's 32 years old.

Are you kidding me? I would have guessed mid to late 20s. I told her that alone was enough to sell me on all this skincare stuff she'd been telling me!

Once layers two and three of the peel were on, I was finished. Elissa went over the "afterpeel" regimen with me. I have to admit that I was a little lost, but she assured me all the instructions -- post-peel towlette, moisturize, hydrocortisone, etc. -- were in the small bag of aftercare products she was sending home with me.

I could immediately sense that my skin felt tight. Not like bad-Botox-job tight. But just-had-a-mud-mask tight. I had a little bit of redness, but nothing too dire. This is me just after I got home:

Do I look more youthful and radiant yet?

Annie came up to me, looked closely at my face, sniffed and said "So you're what smells like paint!" Nice kid, huh?

Knock on wood, my face hasn't hurt at all. It does feel a little something akin to windburn, like I've been at the soccer field on a windy day all day. And it's been a bit itchy. I've been using a moisturizer that Elissa gave me mixed with a bit of hydrocortisone cream. I hope that's what she said to do. I probably should have written down what she said.

The "peel" part of this process should start sometime on Day 3. So I'm planning to hole up in the house for most of the weekend. Annie has requested that I have a brown paper bag ready. She's such a sensitive kid, isn't she?

But don't worry. Before I don a paper bag, I'll snap a few pics to share here.

Oh, and to answer the question (mine and yours) about how all of this fits into the Go Red for Women Heart Healthy Makeover, my friend Stephanie on Facebook hit the nail on the head. She said "If you feel better about yourself, you might take better care of yourself."

I love having smart friends and I love having this opportunity.