Feeling the burn in pursuit of better skin

You'll never get lost again as the trail of skin you leave behind will lead you back to your start.

It makes you vacuum your carpets more regularly.

People no longer want to chat at bus stops.

The new layer of skin that is revealed is beautifully soft and gently pink and even the crow's feet are stopped in their march towards your ears.

Here are some not so good things:

Your children think you are either a walking science experiment or a snake.

Your husband begins to refer to you as The Singing Detective.

It is suggested you might want to put your face into the tank of water where the pedicure fish swim.

In the last six weeks I have been for two skin peels at a new clinic in Morningside. It is the most vain thing I have ever done - although, of course, I have good medical reasons.

I'm attending Dermalclinic for peels because a bad case of adult acne forced me into finding a solution which didn't involve knocking back antibiotics until . . . well, perhaps until I was through the other side of the menopause.

And it seems, so far, that the peeling process is working. The acid apparently burrows down into your pores, before birling back up again, bringing with it all the nasties it can find. It has resulted in a few extra spots, but not only do they not last as long, they are nowhere near as painful.

The first peel did rather sting, but my skin never looked healthier, until the peeling began, about a day and a half later.

It starts in areas of your face that move the most, so unsurprisingly it was around my mouth that the telltale signs began and within 24 hours my whole visage looked like it had come off worse after a fight with a Parmesan grater.

There are those who would hide in their house until it had all calmed down, but not me. I may have looked like a leper, but it didn't stop me from running in the Race for Life a few days later. By the time I'd got round Arthur's Seat I was more concerned about how red my face was than anything else.

However, the second time on the couch of Jackie Patridge, who runs the clinic, was a little different. The fact that my skin was only three weeks old meant that the peel was much more painful and incredibly hot.

And then the shedding process began all over again. Right now, my skin is looking great. There are a few blemishes, but Jackie believes that after all six treatments, my "confused" skin should return to normal.

Whether I'll be able to stop then is another matter.

• Dermalclinic, 13 Church Hill Place, Edinburgh. Some skin peels start at 80. Call 0844 800 7786 or visit www.dermalclinic.co.uk