So I entered the Big 4.

Did things immediately go downhill as people have warned me?

I do feel my metabolism slowing down a fair bit since last year and my observations are that if I lack sleep (which I really do), it really shows from my dark undereye circles and if I am not treating my body right with exercise and a balanced diet, my pores do break out in some gunk for a few days.

And for some reason, the peels on my lips are back with a vengeance even though I moisturise copiously. Ugh, no thanks to the mask-wearing.

IDS reckons it may be time to get laser treatment started. If you remember, a while ago I was recommended a Pep.Blue Deep Treatment which helped my face glow for a couple of weeks and showed very satisfactory results for a non-invasive treatment.

During my consultation, IDS noticed my skin drying out a lot more than when she last saw me and decided to order the BroadBand Light™️ (BBL) treatment to target the hydration issue and the pigmentation and dark spots near the undereye area. I was informed that there may be obvious dark patches and scabbing for a few days post-treatment before I can see brighter and firmer skin, to which I was completely OK with.

I was more concerned about the pain level — after all, I had to apply numbing cream and wait out its effect for about an hour — but I was relieved to hear that the BBL treatment works like a very advanced form of IPL and would not go beyond that for the discomfort level.

So after the numbing cream was applied and waited out, IDS handled the treatment swiftly and efficiently – a special cooling gel was applied to my face prior to the BBL shots and I later learned that the BBL system features a chilled sapphire that is applied to the skin before light energy is discharged. It’s an added safety feature to prevent burns to the skin and decreases the discomfort of the procedure.

There was targeted emphasis on the skin tags surrounding my undereye and the pigmentation all around my upper face, plus a few more shots to treat the chapping on my lip area to increase the hydration, with almost no pain experienced at all. In no time, I was out and on my way home.

About 5 days later, with very minimal makeup (just S3 and a bit of blush) and no lip balm at all, I could head out with the pigmentation and skin tags largely gone and a more hydrated face.

Very happy with my #IDSJourney thus far, and really loving the treatments and products recommended to accompany me in navigating the forties.

Disclosure: Results from treatments differ and all opinions here are my own.

To me, turning 40 is a big deal.

Everyone tells me it’s downhill from here. Your weight goes up, your skin sags, and your metabolism will be non-existent. Cellulite will pile and your fine lines will increase. So until I come to 50, which is a bigger deal, I’ll do everything and anything to de-auntify myself.

I recently tried Pep.Blue Deep Treatment at IDS Aesthetics because I really need to see my face lift and my collagen stimulated. A while back I thoroughly enjoyed (and still am enjoying!) trying the IDS Skincare range recommended to me by Dr Michelle Wong from IDS and I couldn’t be happier to be back at her clinic again to let her know that the RC and IM really worked for my dry, constantly-masked skin and to hear her recommendation for a facial treatment I should try

And so a Pep.Blue Deep Treatment was what Dr Michelle recommended – and in a jiffy I was shown to a calm, quiet and nice-smelling treatment room to await my therapist.

Her nimble hands gave me a good deep cleanse before she applied IDS’ proprietary Pep.Blu Serum and then starting me on a micro-current-like deep massage of the serum in my face, which I later learned is called ‘Non Invasive DEEP Electropration Technology’.

What it really means is that there’s intense prickling for a while, somewhat like a lot of needles just vibrating through to your skin, delivering the serum deep into where they should go.

For sure, it’s not the typical relax-and-close your-eyes kind of facial but hey, the results made me want to bear with the microcurrents running from that machine:

After the electropration, I did have a close-your-eyes-and-sleep kind of facial when the Pep.Blue mask was applied under LED light. Caught 40 winks, which was not too bad. I thought the light would affect me but no, I was totally relaxed.

I would definitely recommend this treatment if you have dull skin, need a lift for sagging areas and desperately want some help with fine lines. I walked out feeling fresh and ready to conquer the world – till my next treatment, at least!

Loving my #IDSjourney so far and always feeling #IDServe it with their pampering.

Disclosure: All opinions here are my own, including all the apprehension about turning 40. Your experiences may be different but if they are similar, IDS is a great place to turn to!

2021 is the year I’ll have to click a different range of age category, and I’ll be writing the number ‘4’ for the first digit of my age.

While it’s quite evident that my metabolism is slowing down a fair bit, makeup and concealer are still helping me hide a couple of things. Skin tags. Fine lines. Eye bags. Flaking lips. In addition to all these, ever since the mandatory face-mask wearing started, I also started developing red patches around the area below my nose.

Just last Christmas alone, I received many skincare and wellness gifts well-meaning friends thought I ought to have: lip balm (I received MANY kinds), eye cream, hair tonic, eye masks and moisturisers. I think everyone was seeing these two things on my face: red and dry, and clearly wishing for my sake that I should do something about it.

Thankful for friends who care, for sure. But I was even more thankful to be invited by Innovative Dermatological Solutions (IDS) to embark on a skincare journey with them. I’ve read a little of this homegrown brand while flipping magazine pages, and I’ve always been curious on what they really offer.

And so I paid a visit to the IDS flagship at International Building earlier this year to acquaint myself with their offerings and services, and to see Dr Michelle Wong from IDS Clinic for my skin issues.

Dr Michelle was empathetic in listening to my skin woes and without hesitation, ordered a range of skincare products for me to try – all to address the issues of enlarged pores on my T-zone, my fine lines around my eyes, my eye bags and eye rings, and the flaking around my lips.

What happened subsequently was a rattling of a whole bunch of letters of the alphabet and numbers — T2, C2, IM, RC, etc… which was a little baffling at first but I soon realised IDS adopted a really simple way to name their products by using the first letters of the product and a number code for each skin type – oily, normal, dry. How easy to understand!

It’s been close to two months now, at this point of writing, of using C2, T2, PF, C+, RC, IM and S3 in my daily skincare ritual and I’m really happy to report that I am blown away by the efficacy of this Made in Singapore line. The dry skin around my lips and the peeling lips have completely disappeared within a week of using RC and IM religiously twice a day, and I see visibly shrunk pores and fewer fine lines. The dark eye rings are still a battle (pretty much also genetic as I have always believed), but other than that, I have very moisture-ful, supple skin from the beginning to the end of the day and needing very little makeup and concealer after using the prescribed range from IDS every day.

In fact, I hang on to this for dear life now before I head out and rarely use any other kinds of makeup:

And this is the before and after of how my skin is looking – with zero filters used.

Can’t be happier with this result and loving the local brand that is IDS. And more stoked that this is only the beginning of my IDS journey!

Disclosure: All opinions here are my own. I only do honest reviews – including reviewing how much HELP I need for my own skin.