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Had a client freak out during a peel at my studio in Austin last Thursday
Tbh I've been doing chemical peels for about 4 years now and I thought I had the whole consultation thing down. But this lady came in for a medium depth peel and about 5 minutes after application she started saying her face was burning way worse than I warned her. I checked the timer and it was only 2 minutes in, so I neutralized it right away. She was red and blotchy for like 2 days and kept texting me panicked messages. Honestly it made me rethink how I explain the stinging sensation during peels. I used to say "it feels warm" but now I say "it might feel like a bad sunburn for a few minutes" so people know what to expect. Has anyone else had a client react badly during a peel and changed how you prep them?
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gavinlopez2mo ago
Hold up, medium depth peels don't get neutralized, right? Pretty sure those are self limiting, they stop working on their own after a certain time. If you neutralized it at 2 minutes you basically just interrupted the process, could be why she was blotchy for two days. You might want to check the type of peel you're using, because if it's something like a TCA peel you're not supposed to wipe it off like that.
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karen_west592mo ago
Actually TCA peels absolutely can and should be neutralized if you know what you're doing. I've been doing peels for years and the whole "self limiting" thing is way overblown. You leave TCA on too long and it'll keep penetrating deeper than intended, that's why some people end up with chemical burns or weird patchy results. The 2 minute mark might be quick but depending on the percentage and the person's skin condition that could be exactly when it's done its job. I've neutralized medium depth peels at 3-4 minutes with great results, no blotchiness at all. The real issue is not understanding how to read the skin during the process and thinking you can just let it sit there without checking frost patterns.
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