What To Do After A Chemical Peel – Your Skin-Saving Survival Guide

What to do after a chemical peel should probably come with a warning label: “Caution – Not Following Instructions May Result in Looking Like a Sunburnt Lizard for Longer Than Necessary.”

Jokes aside, if you’ve just undergone a chemical peel, congratulations on investing in your skin’s future. But also, brace yourself. The days immediately after a chemical peel can bring confusion, anxiety, and a serious temptation to peel, scratch, or apply every serum you own. Resist. Your results depend on it.

Let’s be clear on exactly what you came for: what to do after a chemical peel to ensure optimal healing, avoid complications, and get that glowy, fresh skin you paid for. Here’s the simple, precise answer:

What To Do After a Chemical Peel

Here’s the truth: your skin barrier is temporarily compromised, and you need to baby it. Think of it like having a sunburn but you paid for it. The first 7–10 days after a peel are critical, and what you do (or don’t do) will determine whether you emerge as a glowing goddess… or need a dermatologist on speed dial.

1. Keep your hands off. No picking, peeling, or touching. This delays healing and risks scarring.
2. Moisturize diligently. Stick to gentle, hydrating moisturizers your dermatologist recommends.
3. Wear SPF religiously (SPF 30+). Your skin is vulnerable; sun exposure now can cause lasting pigmentation.
4. Cleanse with care. Only use the mildest cleansers, no actives, acids, or exfoliants until fully healed.
5. Avoid makeup for at least 5-7 days. Let your skin breathe and repair undisturbed.
6. Hydrate from the inside out. Drink more water than you think you need.
7. Consult your provider if symptoms seem unusual. Severe redness, swelling, or pain requires attention.

These are your non-negotiables.

Best Moisturizer After Chemical Peel

Choosing the best moisturizer after a chemical peel is key to healing. You want something simple, gentle, hydrating, and barrier-repair focused — nothing with fragrance, alcohol, acids, or actives.

Recommended Ingredients

• Ceramides
• Hyaluronic Acid
• Panthenol (Vitamin B5)
• Squalane
• Glycerin
• Colloidal Oatmeal

Top Choices Experts Love

1. CeraVe Moisturizing Cream — Barrier-repairing with ceramides and hyaluronic acid.
2. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Ultra — Lightweight, soothing, non-irritating.
3. Avene Cicalfate+ — Great for healing compromised skin.
4. Vanicream Moisturizing Cream — Simple, non-comedogenic, free from irritants.

Apply generously and often. Hydrated skin heals faster and flakes less dramatically.

Immediate Aftercare (First 72 Hours)

The first 72 hours after a chemical peel are sacred. This is when people panic most. The redness, the tightness, the shiny, glazed donut look, all normal. Here’s exactly what to do:

• Gentle cleanse only. Use lukewarm water, no hot showers on your face.
• Moisturize often. Think petrolatum-based creams if recommended.
• No exfoliants, no acids, no actives.
• No picking, pulling, or rubbing. Yes, even if the skin looks like it’s begging to come off.
• Avoid workouts. Sweat is your enemy right now.
• Absolutely no sun exposure. None. Zero.

Chemical peel healing time varies, but this stage is about protecting the barrier your skin is desperately trying to rebuild.

Understanding the Peeling Stages (And Why You Look Worse Before Better)

Day 1-3: Redness, tightness, shiny skin. You’ll look sunburned.

Day 4-7: The great shedding begins. Flakes, patches, peeling. Do not pick!

Day 7-14: Most flaking subsides, fresh skin emerges. Still sensitive.

Day 14+: Radiance returns. You’re allowed to smile at yourself again.

Throughout this process, hydration and sun protection are non-negotiable. This timeline can stretch longer for deeper peels.

What Products Are Safe (and Unsafe) After a Peel

The Safe Zone

• Hydrating cleansers (fragrance-free)
• Barrier-repair moisturizers
• SPF 50+ (physical, not chemical sunscreen)

The Danger Zone

• Retinoids
• Vitamin C (until cleared by your provider)
• AHAs/BHAs (glycolic, salicylic)
• Exfoliating scrubs
• Clarifying masks
• Anything labeled “brightening,” “resurfacing,” or “anti-aging”

Post-peel skin is fragile. Stick to hydration and protection. Chemical peel treatment results rely on patience, not product overload.

How to Relieve Itching, Redness, and Peeling

If you’re asking “do chemical peels hurt?” the answer is: during, maybe a little. After, more uncomfortable than painful.

Here’s how to soothe discomfort:

• Cold compresses for itching or heat
• Hydrocortisone (if cleared by your provider)
• Heavy-duty moisturizers to reduce tightness

Remember: don’t scratch, rub, or pick.

Can You Wear Makeup After a Chemical Peel?

Hold off for at least 5-7 days. Makeup can trap bacteria, clog pores, and interfere with the healing process. When you do return, prioritize mineral-based products over heavy foundations.

Pimples After Chemical Peel: Normal or Not?

It can happen. Purging post-peel is real, especially if underlying congestion was present. This is temporary. Do not treat these pimples aggressively. Avoid picking. Use gentle hydration, not acne treatments yet.

Do chemical peels help with acne? Yes, over time. But healing comes first.

Do chemical peels help with acne scars? Also yes, particularly with deeper or multiple sessions.

Chemical Peel Healing Time: What to Expect

• Light peels: 3-7 days
• Medium peels: 7-14 days
• Deep peels: Up to 21+ days

Healing isn’t just about the peeling ending. Sensitivity can linger weeks longer. Follow your provider’s timeline religiously.

How to Maintain and Prolong Your Results

Once healed:

• Consistent SPF 50+ use, daily.
• Barrier-repair skincare focus.
• Mild, hydrating cleansers.
• Hydration-focused serums (hyaluronic acid).
• Retinoids reintroduced cautiously, if appropriate.

This helps extend the glow and prevent pigmentation.

Signs of Trouble: When to Call Your Provider

Seek medical advice if you notice:

• Blistering
• Oozing
• Extreme swelling
• Severe pain
• Unusual pigmentation changes
• Signs of infection (fever, pus)

Never try to self-diagnose post-peel complications.

What Not to Do After a Chemical Peel

What not to do after a chemical peel is just as important as knowing what you should do. Your skin is in a fragile, healing state like a fresh wound under the surface. Anything you do wrong can cause irritation, infection, scarring, or pigmentation.

Here’s what to avoid:

1. Picking, Peeling, or Scratching Your Skin

Never manually remove flaking skin. You could cause permanent scarring or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH). Let the dead skin fall off naturally.

2. Skincare Actives (Retinoids, Acids, Vitamin C, etc.)

No exfoliants. No retinol. No AHA/BHA. No acne treatments. These ingredients are too harsh post-peel.

3. Sun Exposure (Direct or Indirect)

Freshly peeled skin is ultra-sensitive to UV rays. Even a quick sun exposure can cause dark spots or burns.

4. Sweating or Heat (Workouts, Saunas, Hot Showers)

Heat increases blood flow, inflammation, and delays healing. Skip intense exercise, hot yoga, saunas, and long hot showers.

5. Makeup (For the First Few Days)

Your skin needs to breathe. Foundation or heavy concealers can clog vulnerable pores and cause breakouts or irritation.

Skin Looks Worse After Chemical Peel — Is This Normal?

Yes, skin can look worse before it looks better after a chemical peel. This is called the healing phase. Think of it as part of the process like how you don’t judge a house renovation halfway through demolition.

Here’s why your skin might look worse:

• Peeling, flaking, and redness are normal as the outer damaged layers shed.
• Temporary purging might happen, especially if the peel involved salicylic or glycolic acid.
• Texture might look uneven because half-peeled skin can create patchy, rough spots.
• Redness or pinkness is normal during healing and fades gradually.

When to worry:

If your skin is swollen, blistering, oozing, or severely painful — that’s not normal. Call your provider.

What to Do After a Chemical Peel for Acne

If you had a chemical peel specifically for acne, your post-care must focus on healing first, preventing post-peel breakouts, and not irritating already inflamed skin.

Post-Peel Acne Care Tips:

• Follow all standard post-peel rules (gentle cleanser, moisturizer, SPF).
• Expect potential purging — this is normal and can look like a mini breakout.
• No actives like benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid until your skin barrier recovers (usually after 7–10 days).
• Once healed, slowly reintroduce acne treatments.

Do chemical peels help with acne? Yes. Salicylic, glycolic, and TCA peels are often used for acne management, but results come over multiple sessions, not overnight.

When to Wash Face After Chemical Peel

Timing depends on the type of peel you had:

Light to Medium Peel

• Wait at least 12–24 hours before washing your face.
• Use lukewarm (never hot) water and a gentle, fragrance-free cleanser.
• Pat dry, don’t rub.

Deep Peel

• Follow your provider’s instructions strictly. Some recommend avoiding water entirely for the first 24–48 hours.
• Typically, you’ll be given a post-procedure cleanser and ointment.

Why this matters

Washing too soon or too harshly can strip away protective healing layers, delay recovery, and increase irritation.

I Picked My Skin After Chemical Peel — Now What?

First, do not panic — but stop touching it immediately.

Picking post-peel skin is one of the most common mistakes and can cause:

• Scarring
• Hyperpigmentation (especially on darker skin tones)
• Delayed healing
• Infection risk

What to do now

1. Apply a gentle healing ointment (like Avene Cicalfate, Aquaphor, or Vaseline) to soothe and protect the area.
2. Avoid further irritation — no acids, no scrubs, no makeup over the picked spots.
3. Keep using SPF diligently.
4. If scabbing forms, let it heal fully.
5. Watch for signs of infection (increased redness, pus, heat). If concerned, see a professional.

If pigmentation occurs, you may need targeted treatments later (niacinamide, azelaic acid, or a future professional peel once healed).

Psychology of the Healing Process (Why It Feels Like Forever)

Chemical peels are as much mental as they are physical. The days where you look flaky, patchy, or worse before better can make you doubt your choices. Social anxiety during this phase is real. But understand: everyone who’s had great results sat through this.

Focus on your skin’s future health, not the current weirdness. The benefits of peeling are on their way.

FAQs on What to do After a Chemical Peel

What does a facial consist of compared to a chemical peel?

Facials cleanse, exfoliate, and hydrate. Chemical peels actively resurface with acids. One is maintenance; the other is corrective.

Are breakouts normal after a peel?

Mildly, yes. Your skin purges trapped congestion. Be patient.

When can I exfoliate after a chemical peel?

Not until your provider says so. Usually not before two weeks post-peel.

Can I speed up the peeling process?

No. Attempting to do so risks scarring and uneven results.

The Bottom Line on What to do After a Chemical Peel

What to do after a chemical peel boils down to this: be patient, be gentle, and be protective. Hydrate, protect, and avoid temptation. Healing is temporary. Results are lasting.

Skin isn’t meant to glow overnight. But with careful aftercare, yours soon will.