Clear and Brilliant pt. ii

Here’s Part 1 if you haven’t read already šŸ™‚

What to Expect at your Clear and Brilliant Treatment

You will discuss with your provider on which handpiece to use depending on your skin goals and priorities. Permea and Original are both amazing, so thereā€™s really no bad decision!

After your consult with your provider, along with a set of photos and signed consents expect:

  • + 30 mins topical numbing time
  • + 30 mins for treatment

Immediately afterwards, your face feels like a sunburn, tight & red. I apply a soothing vitamin C serum for hydration and healing, as well as sunscreen. The heat quickly subsides in about 30 mins-1hr and is very manageable.

These are my go-to's immediately after treatment

Obagi C-clarifying serum: Contains 4% hydroquinone to reduce hyperpigmentation (sun spots, melasma). Also contains 10% Vit C (antioxidant) to help defend against free radicals that cause aging skin. You can only get this in office, but I will link a similar one here

I love this oil-free EltaMD UV Clear Tinted spf. It helps calm and protect sensitive skins, especially those that are prone to acne and rosacea. This also contains niacinamide (Vit B3), hyaluronic acid, + lactic acid which all promote appearance of healthy looking skin. I also love how it is absolutely lightweight and silky, and oftentimes canĀ  substitute as light tinted coverup/foundation.

PRE-CARE instructions

  • Make sure to be diligent with being sun-avoidant and wear sunscreen daily.
  • Avoid retinols, salicylic acid, and any other active ingredients for at least 3 days prior to treatment.
  • You cannot put on numbing cream if you are pregnant or breastfeeding,Ā however you can do the Clear and Brilliant treatment itself …Ā (I’ve only done 2 patients out of many many 100s who didn’t want to have the topical numbing)
  • Try to arrive for treatment with a clean slate of a face šŸ™‚

POST-CARE instructions

  • In time you may notice little ā€œscabā€ like texture on your darker spots. We call it microcrusting. Absolutely do not pick nor exfoliate it off! Just moisturize and it will flake off in its due time.
  • For the next 3-5 days or so, your face will feel like rough sandpaper and appear dry. Keep moisturizing your face with gentle moisturizer
  • *Common sense note: if your moisturizer is feeling extra fiery and burning, please wipe and use something more gentle and simple. Aquaphor, vaseline, cetaphil, cerave suffice.
  • You can wear your makeup 12 hrs later, but personally I recommend to let your skin breathe.
  • DO wear sunscreen diligently and cover your vulnerable baby skin from the sun

After about a week you will see your beautiful glowy new skin.

It may still feel slightly rough but you can come into the office and get a gentle exfoliating + moisturizing dermalinfusion called DiamondGlow (I wholly love this so much too!) – your skin will be even more soft and supple and glowy!!

How many C&B treatments do you need?

Well depends on your overall goals for your skin. Most start out with a series of 3. However, C&B is easily a staple in the optimal skin care regimen. It eventually becomes part of a maintenance routine, similar to facials and massages. For instance, are you ever going to be done with 3 massages? No I donā€™t believe so, youā€™ll be doing it as a maintenance because we want massages for life right lol.

How long do results last and how to best maintain your results?: So the results are immediate and progressive. I say the results build upon the previous. Of course keep on top of your moisturizing and applying sunscreen to prolong your skin health and glow. For best maintenance and regimen, have a healthy lifestyle with a balanced diet, adequate water intake, exercise, as well as sleep and skincare applications. Protect the investment you make on your face so that your skin is more even, bright, and younger-looking. 

How far apart do you do the treatments?: Typically we space out the treatments every 4 wks or so, to allow the regenerative process of your skin to complete itself. However, if patients want to target their acne scars ASAP, then the soonest you can do the treatment is at 2 wks. I also tell patients to do C&B at about 1-1.5 weeks before their big event to have the best glowy, dewy skin!!

 Let me know if you have any questions :)!
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Quick GRWM: Aesthetic Nurse ASMR

What kind of morning person are you? I usually roll out of bed 30 minutes before heading out the door. Sometimes it might even be 15 minutes, depending on how sleepy I am šŸ˜›

ā­Remember to rinse your face beforehand to have a clean canvas.

ā­ SK-II facial treatment essence: to hydrate my face before wearing a mask for the rest of the day

ā­ Burtā€™s Bees Coconut & Pear: this one has coconut oil, pear extract, and shea butter. I love how it truly moisturizes my lips

ā­ Naked smoky palette: I am by far from a makeup guru, and am not very good at blending haha. I like bronze colors and a little smoky to add some quick ā€œallureā€

ā­ Tarte colored clay precision cream liner palette: itā€™s nice to not have to be too defined. Super easy to extend winged eyeliner

ā­ HERA sun mate leports spf 50 sunscreen: never leave without sunscreen. Protect your skin from the sun as well as blue light from all our screen time. *Tip: Also spread the leftover onto the tops of your hands to protect them while driving

ā­ Bath & Body Works Aromatherapy Eucalyptus Spearmint: just a little dollop goes a long way. Really helps uplift your mood to start off the day!

ā­ And of course Wear Figs scrubs because they are absolutely comfortable, wrinkle-free, and also fade-free!

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Clear and Brilliant pt i.

Clear & Brilliant
This one is definitely one of my absolute favorite treatment to provide as well as receive, especially if you are seeking smoother, tighter, and radiant glowy skin. An added plus is that there is very little social downtime and the treatment is noninvasive

 


Why consider Clear and Brilliant?

  • Diminish the look of fine line
  • Reduce appearance of pores
  • Improve skin tone and texture

This means improving our skin’s overall appearance by Clearing the fine lines and pores, Getting brilliant tone and texture!

Patients notice quite quickly that their pores appear smoother & smaller, as the oil and dirt buildup has been essentially cleaned up by the treatment. This in turn also leads to aiding in acne and blackhead prevention, thus truly helping you get your optimal glowy, glass skin!

After the healing process, you will notice that the skin feels more supple, smooth, and definitely rejuvenated. You feel so fresh & young.Ā *Warning: itā€™s addicting šŸ˜›

Noninvasive, gentle with little downtime:

C&B is known as a non-ablative laser resurfacing treatment aka baby fractional laser. But don’t let that fool you, as it is still a very effective treatment to prevent early signs of aging skin.

How does C&B work:

  • The procedure creates millions of microscopic treatment zones in the upper layers of skin. This triggers a ā€œwound healingā€ response from our skin to replace damaged skin with healthy tissue = Younger looking skin, soft baby skin.
  • It also helps shed off the dead, dull skin and instead replace with new refreshed, healthier looking skin.
  • Furthermore, our skin is stimulated to produce more collagen

There are 2 different handpieces that target different levels of the superficial dermis:

1. PERMEA 

  • 1927 nm, depth of 170 um (level at which melanin resides)
  • Creates broad, more superficial microthermal zones to increase skin permeability and enhance efficacy of your topical brightening serums and skincare
  • Perfect for treating sun spots, sun damage, and melasma (targeting tone and hyperpigmentation)

2. ORIGINAL

  • 1440 nm, depth of 200-300 um
  • Causes deeper injury and targets fine lines and texture, as well as reducing pore size
  • Perfect for mild acne scarring
  • Helps kill off that pesky little pimple that just wonā€™t go away
Next post I’ll talk about What to expect for your treatment, The Pre & Post care instructions, and How to best maintain your results šŸ™‚
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Moisturizing Skincare ASMR

I’ve been obsessed with skincare routines for a long while. It’s silly right, watching other people put on products on their face. It made me wonder why, why does this innately just spark joy for me.

Essentially, I think self care and pampering is delightful. I would absolutely love if someone else massaged my face, but who else can cherish you (and your skin) the most other than yourself?

I then delved further, and came to a realization that listening to the clinks of skincare & makeup takes me back to when my mom would get ready in the mornings. Especially on Sunday mornings when you wake up and sleepwalk towards your parents’ bed and just cat nap there again. Waking up to the relaxing sounds of nostalgia is so much better than from the uproar of a vacuum lol.

All in all, these skincare rituals are a form of meditation I suppose. It is a commitment to yourself, even if for 5 minutes. If only workouts were shorter, maybe I can commit to that too heh..

Products used:

These tend to constantly be in my usual rotations!

ā­ Obagi Nu-derm foaming gel: love this nice foamy lather for my skin. This cleanser removes impurities and pollutants from your pores with a gentle complex of oats amino acids. It also contains alfalfa extract which detoxes the skin to prevent breakouts, as well as aloe vera gel to sooth inflammation and cools redness. It is perfect for normal to oily skin; to note I have combination oily/dry skin. I feel like it is very gentle and does not leave my skin feeling stripped at all. My skin feels smooth and pure afterwards – perfect canvas for applying products on right afterwards

ā­ Mario Badescu facial spray with aloe, herbs, and rosewater: This spray is definitely refreshing and hydrating. I absolutely love the smell of rosewater which is not pungent at all. It really is a pick me up boost when I feel like my skin is dry and wants some dewy radiance. It’s a great way to wake up when you spritz it on in the morning to signal your brain to wake up beautifully, let’s refresh for a new day

ā­ Origins ginzing eye cream: This energizing eye cream has ginseng and caffeine that helps diminish dark circles and depuff undereyes, as well as brighten and restore glow to tired looking eyes. This has a subtle shimmer-tint that adds sort of like a very very light concealer that easily blends into skin. I think this shine helps reflect light so that we look more energized & bright

ā­ Ole henriksen truth serum: Contains vit C serum that helps brighten and firm the skin with its antioxidant properties as well as promoting collagen. It does have a silky as well as sticky texture, along with a citrus aroma.

ā­ Caudalie polyphenol antiwrinkle defense serum: Ok I did not realize that this product is discontinued. This is a testament to when I had a phase of buying too many skin products at once and I am still working on depleting them loll. Don’t be like me and don’t go gung-ho on skincare products like a junkie. Anyways, I love that this claims to protect your skin from harmful environmental factors, and the antioxidants help correct wrinkles.

Another tip: You can use your products pretty liberally by also addressing your neck & chest and even back of hands, areas that are often neglected and forgotten. However, these areas DO show our age with time.

ā­ Herbivore orchid facial oil: This is one of my favorite oils. The jasmine scent itself is so divine and I feel exquisite while using this golden hued oil in such beautiful packaging. Definitely needed in skincare toolkit for the dewy glow

Project Inner & Outer Beauty, Diana

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