amy2705

I don't have anything against facials ... but my derm told me not to get them. I used to have acne (which thankfully cleared up years ago). I still see the derm every 6 months just to make sure things are in check. He warned my against facials, even now that my skin has been clear for years, for two reasons: (1) the extractions, and (2) the steam.

He said the extractions are okay provided the person doing them is a trained esthetitican. If the person isn't trained properly, they can cause problems - like permanent scaring.

His main issue was with the steam. He said steam actually just makes your skin swell and that contrary to popular belief, the swelling closes your pores really really tight - it does not open them (which makes sense when you think about it). So when your skin looks all smooth after a facial it's just because of the swelling of the pores and top layer of the skin. He says because the swelling plumps everything up, your skin looks smooth but all the junk is trapped in the pores that are swollen shut. This can cause acne and can make existing acne much worse. This is why you break out after a facial. It's not that the facial cleared it out, it's because it was trapped in. And then a layer of cream was put on top.

Basically, he strongly recommended against them but said if I insisted on getting them to make sure that they absolutely do not use steam, only use non-comedogenic products and extractions are only done by a trained, qualified esthetician.