OUCH!   I don’t care what anyone tells you, photo rejuvenation (IPL) is NOT painless.  This was the third session in a series of four aimed at getting rid of my freckles, wrinkles and tightening my skin.  The sequence included a Vi peel and dermaplaning,  (both of which I loved) but I must say that photo rejuvenation, definitely hurt the most. The technology is described as “intense pulsed light” which zaps unwanted pigmentation, and let me tell you; “intense” is the operative word.

Once again, I relaxed horizontally onto a bed, but the relaxation only lasted for a few brief moments.  The doctor covered my eyes with glasses and preceded to blow soothing cool air on my face while she simultaneously shot high plasma, energy filled laser beams through my epidermis. The bright light made me jump and the stinging sensation made me glad that I had the doctor apply numbing cream before subjecting my face to this. The treatment is apparently able to target the deeper layers of the skin without disturbing the surface, in order to remove age spots, acne and freckles as well as promote new cell growth. Sounds good, right??  We shall see.

The session left my face a little lumpy and swollen.  Where the laser hit, dark spots rose to the surface and some of them actually stayed there for ten days.  They looked worse than the freckles I had eliminated with the Vi peel. Finally, however, they disappeared and while I admit there is very little pigment left on my face, I must say that when I think about my next photo rejuvenation session, which is the fourth and final in the series, my mind screams, "OUCH!"