When microdermabrasion goes wrong: "It looked like I'd been in a fight with a cat."

*Names have been changed.

There are certain words you don’t want to here after getting a skin treatment that promises glowing skin, tighter pores and reduced fine lines and wrinkles, but for Sarah*, 36, her regular microdermabrasion and peel treatment, left her with less than desirable results.

“The lady who did my treatment wouldn’t look at my face….dead giveaway that I looked hideous. When I was finishing up I looked at my face on my phone and I was bright red,” said Sarah, literally red faced.

“She didn’t say anything,” Sarah told Mamamia. “I could tell something was up because she went outside to check my file to see if I’d had the treatment done before,

“I didn’t notice the scratches on my face until bedtime, and then I realised that my face looked like I’d been in a fight with a cat,” she said.

Despite the procedure  known for being painless, with minimal redness, Sarah's microdermabrasion didn't quite go to plan, with her therapist attributing the red marks to the fact that "the blades were new and too sharp", something she didn't know she had to worry about.

"I've had it before and never had anything like this happen so I wasn't expecting there to be a problem but as soon as she started it was definitely a little 'stronger' than I was used to," she said.

"She asked me if it was ok but what was I supposed to say? I don't know exactly how it's supposed to feel and I'm also the type of person who thinks 'if it feels stronger it must be doing something!' It wasn't hurting at that stage I just noticed it felt a bit 'harsher,'" said Sarah.

However it wasn't until the chemical peel had been applied that she "really noticed the difference," instead the harsher-than-normal microdermabrasion ended up stripping the top layers of the skin, making the acids in the peel a lot more harsh on the newly resurfaced skin, resulting in a "really stinging sensation."

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Now left with "crusty skin," light bruising and reddened marks resembling cat scratches, while Sarah's post-procedure experience is in the minority, it does happen.

Because microdermabrasion works with a crystal or abrasive discs exfoliating the skin, with a micro-suction vacuum removing the dead skin cells simultaneously, according to Skinstitut's National Trainer, Roxanne Cavalieri, if the vacuum level is set too high this can result in what looks like 'cat scratch marks'.

"While this can happen if the tip is new, it's more likely that the skin is being sucked into the tip," says Roxanne. "The acid from the peel would then grab onto the skin that's been exposed."

While Sarah herself admitted to having a "high-pain tolerance," she  said that during the procedure "it wasn't hurting at that stage and I just noticed it felt a bit 'harsher'," thinking like most people do, that unless you can feel it, it isn't doing anything.

Despite this, microdermabrasion when performed correctedly, shouldn't be painful at all.

"If the vacuum is right and the correct tip is being used, it should be pleasant." says Roxanne, dispelling the myth of 'no pain, no gain.'

"You'll feel it 'doing something', but if you're laying there with your fingernails clenched into the bed, then you need to tell the operator."

*Names have been changed, and Sarah is not her real name.

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