I'd heard a lot about the famous "Halo Glow" so was excited to try this innovative treatment with the renowned Dr Sajjad Rajpar at his clinic Midland Skin.
With so many different laser treatments promising this or that; it can be hard to know which ones will work for you. But where Halo™ stands out in a crowded market is it is the world’s first hybrid fractional laser - this means it's a two-in-one treatment, that not only provides surface renewal of the skin, but also offers deep dermal restoration. Added to this, it uses motion-tracking technology which measure your face to scan imperfections deep within the epidermis, even those not be visible to the naked eye. Because of this, it is effective for all ages and skin types, as well as medium and darker complexions.
How does Halo™ work?
By combining two wavelengths - ablative and non-ablative - a strong, synergistic effect is achieved but without the downtime of traditional laser procedures.
Ablative: This targets the outermost layers of damaged and dead skin, resurfacing visible imperfections such as sun damage, pigmentation and texture.
Non-ablative: This passes through the skin’s upper layers to heat the underlying dermal tissues. It encourages collagen growth to subtly firm the skin.
Combining BBL & Halo™
This is a customised treatment offered by Dr Sajjid - BBL (Broad Band Light therapy) targets tone, while Halo™ is aimed at deeper hyperpigmentation, acne scarring and, in my case, melasma.
Before the session, my face was cleansed and an anaesthetic cream was liberally applied that was left for about 30 minutes.
The treatment starts with BBL's photothermal energy penetrating the superficial layer of the skin to destroy pigmentation. During this, a number of high-intensity light flashes are delivered - it's painless and was over very quickly.
This was followed with the Halo™ Laser to further improve skin for long-lasting rejuvenation. Because your face is scanned, it can be individually tailored to target your specific issues. The specially-designed handpiece is then worked in a criss-cross pattern to deliver a bespoke amount of energy.
While you can feel the heat and tingle from the laser, and it does feel more intense as the procedure continues, cooling air is applied at the same time so it's not uncomfortable. Throughout the session my eyes were protected with goggles.
What are the benefits of Halo™
It can treat a wide variety of skin issues including acne, eczema, melasma, and rosacea, and offers impressive long-term results. There is minimal downtime, but it's best not to have big social plans for a day or two afterwards. For the first few hours my face felt feel hot and looked red; over the weekend that followed my skin felt quite rough, a bit like stubble, but it didn't feel itchy. If you do experience itchiness, you have to be careful not to pick any flaky skin as this can scar.
Results really start to show within a week, improving over the next couple of months. By day seven, my skin looked really healthy and I noticed the melasma was a lot less noticeable. I look forward to seeing how this manifests over time.
Probably the most important benefit - and one I would recommend to my clients - is Dr Sajjid pointed out the treatment can eliminate some of the most common precancer, actinic keratoses, that can turn into non-melanoma skin cancer. So if you're a sun worshipper, it's certainly something to consider.
Midland Skin is the only clinic in the region to offer Halo™. You can find out more here. You can watch the treatment in action below.
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