I Tried It: Clear + Brilliant Laser Facial

You'll first need a consultation to ensure you're a candidate for Clear + Brilliant. Some facilities do this in-person a few days before or the day-of, or even via phone call if you're an existing patient.

For the actual treatment, you'll want to carve out about 90 minutes from your day. The treatment itself doesn't take that long, but your practitioner will apply a topical numbing cream that needs to permeate for a good 30 minutes before wielding the laser. If you haven't experienced a numbing cream before, it essentially just makes your entire face feel numb for a couple hours (similar to how novocaine feels before you get a tooth filling, only zero shots involved).

Once the numbing cream has set in, it's time to laser. The feeling is a similar to the prickly sensation you experience when your hand falls asleep, only the sensation passes quickly as the laser glides across your face. I personally wouldn't say it hurts, and others have reported that Clear + Brilliant wasn't painful for them, either. I'd call it mildly uncomfortable.

Image courtesy Wendy Gould