The Kaya Experience

It was Sampaguita Pride who informed us about Kaya Skin Clinic. If you notice in some websites you visit in the Internet, even Facebook, Kaya Skin Cilinic has advertisements in their sidebars.  Kaya Clinic is the largest international skin care clinic chain in the Middle East with branches in UAE, Oman, and KSA. They have three here in Riyadh. Their website looks professional and photos of their clinics show clean and sophisticated receptions and rooms. I needed an appointment pronto!

The clinics are uniform in their interiors and design. (Photo from kayaskinclinic.me)

Now, I'm not vain or anything near that but I throw a fit (hindi raw vain) when I see pimples in my face. But please understand that when I was younger, I had acne of the rather worst kind, of the traumatic kind that trumped my confidence during my high school and college years (if I had confidence in the first place). Thankfully, I got over it when I graduated college through several visits to a dermatologist in Makati. The pimples rarely appear in my face now but there's nothing I can do about the scars. I still get mild breakouts from time to time and I panic because I get the huge, red, ugly (and papansin) kind of pimples. So yeah, my face is miles away from being perfect.

Last month, I decided to change my facial wash and toner... what a mistake! I had four huge pimples popping out in my cheeks and jaw overnight. (Wow, sensitive ang skin! Lol!) Since I haven't been to a derma in a long time, I clicked one of the Kaya advertisements when I encountered it in one website and signed up for a free consultation. After a few days, I received a call from one of their agents in Jeddah. I told her I'm in Riyadh. She told me to wait for a call from their Riyadh branch. I received a text message two days after. It says that I will only have to show the text message to their receptionist in their clinic in Oruba Road to get my free consultation. I didn't took a chance of showing up in their doorstep without an appointment so I called the branch in Oruba Road and booked.

It was a Thursday afternoon when I visited the Kaya clinic. Their reception is a little bit small but it's directly in front of the door. The two receptionists didn't seem to know what they'll do with me at first. Lol. One gave me an information sheet which I answered in their female waiting area. The interiors of the clinic is clean, bright, and sleek. After a while, I gave back the sheet and I waited in the lounge again. Someone offered me drinks but I declined. After a few minutes, they called me and I entered the office of their resident dermatologist, Dr. Wael Abou Diab. He's known as one of the best dermatologists in the Middle East.

The consultation lasted 10 minutes. He looked at me, asked what my skin problem was, and took out his prescription pad. He asked me to buy a new facial wash and toner. And I should come back after a month. He also told me that I can book for a facial if I wanted but that it wasn't that necessary. When I was out the door, I'm relieved that there's no major thing to be done but I kept on thinking "That was it?!" I didn't come to Oruba alone on a Thursday afternoon without some thing done to my face pronto! (I lack EQ!) I signed up for their Kaya Advance Facial just because. Ayun, dahil sa lack of EQ ko, I paid SR300 for it! Expensive! 

Mataray ang kagandahan n'ya! (One of the models in a Kaya ad.)

The Kaya Advanced Facial includes microdermabrasion to give your skin a radiant look that regular facials cannot achieve. Microdermabrasion exfoliates away the dead skin cells. Next, a Viennese facial massage is performed, to both relax and rejuvenate the skin. Blackheads and/or whiteheads are then removed with the aid of a comedone extractor. Finally, a lightening face mask is applied to brighten your skin.

I didn't wait long. A Filipino nurse ushered me in a well-lit room with a few machines around a medical bed. The process was straightforward, nothing too fancy. The Filipino (hello Louis if you're reading this!) told me that Kaya actually started in India. The biggest branch is in Mumbai. The services are rather expensive because they use the latest in skin technology and they use imported skin products (made in France and USA). They only get nurses as skin practitioners and they were trained for three months in Mumbai, India. O diba, bongga! (Hindi daw nila nakita ang Taj Mahal kasi malayo ang Agra sa Mumbai, hehe. Talagang tinanong ko daw!) The comedone extraction was a little bit painful but I already expected that. (Nateary-eyed ako habang inaalis ang mga blackheads and whiteheads! Ugh!) After the 1-hour procedure, I had a rosy glow (sabi ko nga baka dahil namamaga lang ang mukha ko, haha!). I didn't expect much from my first facial but my face feels cleaner and brighter. This is good if you want a radiant face for an event happening asap. 

To really see the long-term effect of a facial, it should be done on a monthly (or twice) basis. But with the price, hindi ko carry ang maging habit ang facial. Lol. But I might be back to try their painless hair removal laser. Kaya is known for that service and they have a lot of customers. They have a wide array of anti-aging, acne and hair loss treatments. The clinics are also open for men. Even princes and princesses visit Kaya for their result-oriented skincare. 

So, you don't have something better to do on a Thursday? Here's a suggestion:

If you've visited Kaya, share your experience in our comment box.