Everyone on TikTok is talking about the HydraFacial – I got one and here are my thoughts

The HydraFacial treatment promises to give you The Best Skin of Your Life

If you spend much time on SkinTok, you will probably have come across a treatment called HydraFacial.

The treatment, designed by the aesthetics skin brand of the same name, promises to give you The Best Skin of Your Life, which is no small promise. But, does it deliver?

What is the HydraFacial?

The HydraFacial is completed by a trained technician with a machine which uses patented vortex-fusion technology. It’s a medical grade treatment that cleanses, exfoliates and extracts (bye bye spots!) before infusing your skin with antioxidants in serum form.

How long does it take?

As little as 30 minutes, though there are add-on's which will increase the time. I popped into Thérapie Clinic on Molesworth Street for my treatment which was the signature treatment with LED light therapy added on, and I was in and out the door in under 45 minutes.

Who is it for?

The HydraFacial is all over our TikTok - but does it live up to the hype?

Everyone and anyone. The treatment can be tailored to your needs, so it can do whatever you want it to do, really. Some examples of what can be addressed include fine lines and wrinkles, skin texture, brown spots, oily and congested skin, and enlarged pores.

What happens during the treatment?

It’s a three-step process which starts off with a deep clean and peel. The is done with a patented spiral tip which, during the deep clean, felt a bit like a cool (temperature-wise) pen being dragged over your skin. Not a particularly pleasant feeling, but not painful or uncomfortable either. For the peel, it was a light-tingly sensation.

Next came the extraction phase of the treatment. This step removes debris from deep in the pores – basically, it’s like a vacuum suctioning out the dirt in your skin. Thankfully, it doesn’t feel like that’s what's happening during the process, but afterwards, you feel squeaky clean. 

This was one of the most satisfying parts of the treatment for me and while I didn’t ask, I’ve heard from others that if you want to have a look at just how much gunk the therapist has pulled from beneath the surface... you can. 

Nicole tried out the HydraFacial at Thérapie Clinic on Molesworth Street

In addition to focusing on the T-Zone and nose area where I had some blackheads, my therapist, Christina, manually extracted two lovely whiteheads that had appeared on my face this week. She advised the HydraFacial tip shouldn’t be used to extract “active” spots.

After all that deep cleaning, it’s time to quench thirsty skin, so a moisturiser followed by an infusion of antioxidants and peptides comes next. This ends the original HydraFacial treatment, but my therapist decided to add on a quick LED light therapy step as she felt the blue light would help calm my sensitive skin after all the deep cleaning, and she advised the bacteria-killing blue light would also help prevent future breakouts.

After this, and a slob of SPF, you’re good to go.

Final thoughts 

I was really happy with my treatment. I left the salon feeling like my skin had gotten a well-needed deep clean, but it didn’t feel dried out or stripped, like it sometimes can when using products designed to give a deep clean. 

My skin was clear and glowing in most places, and where I did have a few spots, it looked a lot calmer than pre-treatment – despite the fact I’d spots popped!

As someone who is struggling with skin breakouts at the moment, I was also curious to know whether this treatment might be particularly effective as an add-on to my currrent anti-acne skincare routine.

My therapist Cristina advised that it would, as the HydraFacial treatment works to prevent the build-up of excess oils and clear the skin of congestion. With regular HydraFacials, you should also expect to see a reduction in your skins production of sebum and an improvement in the appearance of scarring.

Would I do it again?

Yes, I would. I am interested to see if going once every few weeks could improve my skin long-term – stay tuned.

• Nicole received a HydraFacial treatment compliments of Thérapie Clinic who have 65 clinics across Ireland and the UK. The signature treatment costs €129.95, with express (€99) and platinum (€149.99) versions also available. See therapieclinic.ie.