My experience with an at-home 15% TCA peel (pictures before, during and after)

[baseball07]

Hey everyone, this is a great thread.  I have been doing alternating Salicylic Acid (20%) and Glycolac (25% glycolic, 35% Lactic) weekly for the past year with great results.  I recently bought a 12.5% TCA peel and I am looking to try it this weekend, however I am hoping that I am completely peeled and back to normal after 7 days because I have plans next weekend.  One question I have been looking for an answer to is if it is ok to swim in a chlorinated pool after waiting 3 days after the TCA application.  I know the instructions say to wait a couple weeks but this seems excessive, especially if the pH of the pool is well maintained.  I swim everyday, even mornings after all my current peels with absolutely no problems.  Any insight would be great.  I am a male in my mid 20's, and have built up my skin tolerance to these chemical peels so I am hoping everything goes ok.  Thanks so much. 

 

[Andi]

I don't have an answer to this. But I guess that you may be ok if you put a layer of vaseline (or anything occlusive like that that's not easily washed off) on your face and then rinse with tap water after you get out of the pool, to make sure that no chlorine stays on your skin.

 

[baseball07]

Hey thanks for the reply.  I think I am going to do the peel for less than 5 minutes since it is my first time and see how I feel after a couple days.  My last question is how long should I wait to continue my salicylic 20% treatment after the peel.  It has done wonders controlling my break outs and I would like to not be off it for too long for fear of returning acne.  I was also reading how some people have lots of break outs when doing TCAs, so I was wondering if doing the salicylic treatments during the peel can prevent this.  Thanks.

 

[Kansaseq]

The instruction packet that came with my 12.5% tca peel says  to wait 2-3 weeks before resuming glycolic or lactic acid treatments, or  any chemical product that could irritate your newly peeled skin. Nothing specific about salicylic acid, though.

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by Kansaseq /img/forum/go_quote.gif

The instruction packet that came with my 12.5% tca peel says  to wait 2-3 weeks before resuming glycolic or lactic acid treatments, or  any chemical product that could irritate your newly peeled skin. Nothing specific about salicylic acid, though.

I would agree with that, better be on the safe side rather than over-exfoliating!!

 

[baseball07]

I did the 12.5% peel last Thursday, but only for 2 minutes because I was curious to see how my skin reacts to it for the first time.  The first day it looked like I had a slight sunburn, then very mild peeling the second and third day.  The end of the third day I returned to the pool, and my skin didn't burn or anything, it was great.  I'm going to continue to do these short peels every 4 weeks or so, working my way up to 5 minutes each time.  I prefer to do multiple mild peels as opposed to jumping right in, there is no downtime, and I do see a slight difference in the texture of my skin, but obviously not the results I am looking for just yet.  I also cleansed lightly with Clear and Clear face wash and moisturized with Oil of Olay with spf 15 every morning and night. 

 

[vsgirlfidelity]

oh man...they let the general public buy peels....

if you do the research and are 100% COMPLETELY SURE YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING go for it.  You severly run the risk of damaging your skin though.

There are reasons why only licensed estheticians and dermatologists are allowed to perform these things.

I'm a peel junkie myself but i'm a licensed esthetician and I took extra training in peels :S

I don't condone the use of chemical exfoliants at ALL, just be careful.  Yes, your body works its own course but some people have other factors that contribute to the body not working at its best.  There is nothing wrong with getting rid of that pesky build up of dead cells that refuses to fall off on its own.

Before you make the plunge as well, you need to examine what your current skin regimen is and if you are doing everything you can to make your skin better and its still not working, then a more intense exfoliation could be beneficial.  I see a lot of people come in wanting peels and all they use is bar soap on their face /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />  You have to be extremely dedicated to an aftercare and continuing care of the face.  These types of procedures are NOT a substitute for lazy individuals who want a fast fix.

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by vsgirlfidelity /img/forum/go_quote.gif

oh man...they let the general public buy peels....

if you do the research and are 100% COMPLETELY SURE YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING go for it.  You severly run the risk of damaging your skin though.

There are reasons why only licensed estheticians and dermatologists are allowed to perform these things.

I'm a peel junkie myself but i'm a licensed esthetician and I took extra training in peels :S

I don't condone the use of chemical exfoliants at ALL, just be careful.  Yes, your body works its own course but some people have other factors that contribute to the body not working at its best.  There is nothing wrong with getting rid of that pesky build up of dead cells that refuses to fall off on its own.

Before you make the plunge as well, you need to examine what your current skin regimen is and if you are doing everything you can to make your skin better and its still not working, then a more intense exfoliation could be beneficial.  I see a lot of people come in wanting peels and all they use is bar soap on their face /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />  You have to be extremely dedicated to an aftercare and continuing care of the face.  These types of procedures are NOT a substitute for lazy individuals who want a fast fix.

I agree with you. You always carry the risk yourself if you do these things at home. And while the in-office use of chemical peeling agents is regulated in the US and in my home country in Europe, I`m not sure how it is in other parts of the world. 

There will always be people who want to do these things at home (for whatever reasons), so I wanted to post the pictures to show what your skin looks like during the peel. If that turns some people off of doing them at home then that may be good for them!

I would have loved to get the peels done professionally, but in my entire state (in my home country) I could only find one dermatologist who specialized in aesthetic dermatology & peels, and he had a 4month wait list! Aestheticians in my area only do very low strength glycolic peels, which would have not given me the results I wanted. I successfully treated the areas on my face that bothered me with a series of lower strength TCA peels, but I would never tell other people to do TCA peels at home! But like I said, people will do it anyway so it's better to be as informed as possible.

 

[lulillan]

What peel would you suggest for first time use and to see results in hyperpigmentation/melasma as well as old acne scars? I would like to start with something mild and gentle which doesn't make the skin peel off like this.... I am using my everyday skincare regimen with acids (MD formulations) and I have also tried Exuviance peel AP25. Perhaps I need the skin to peel off to see great results?

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by lulillan /img/forum/go_quote.gif

What peel would you suggest for first time use and to see results in hyperpigmentation/melasma as well as old acne scars? I would like to start with something mild and gentle which doesn't make the skin peel off like this.... I am using my everyday skincare regimen with acids (MD formulations) and I have also tried Exuviance peel AP25. Perhaps I need the skin to peel off to see great results?

For hyperpigmentation, I would rather try an over the counter 2% hydroquinone product. If you´re already using chemical exfoliants, that should help the hydroquinone work even better. Sunscreen with good UVA-protection is a must of course, every single day, or the pigmentation can come right back.

If this doesn´t give you enough improvement I would get a prescription for 4% hydroquinone or something like Tri-Luma that contains tretinoin & 4% hydroquinone. I feel like the treatment of melasma is really something that should be done under a dermatologist´s care because chemical peeling agets can sometimes make the pigmentation worse if you´re prone to hyperpigmentation and/or have a deeper skintone.

In terms of actual acne scars (boxcar, rolling or icepick) there is not much that you can do at home that will give you great results. Of course the appearance of acne scars can improve a bit over time, but if you`ve had them for a few years then more than likely they won´t improve on their own. Chemical peeling agents & Retin-A boost collagen production, but the effect is not enough to fill in actual depressed acne scars. And leveling out raised scars is just not possible with any kind of at-home treatment. It all depends on what kind of scars you have and how severe they are, but you may wanna see an aesthetic dermatologist about that.

 

[lulillan]

I believe that hydroquinone is forbidden here in Sweden. I am not sure what they use instead for the melasma or hyperpigmentation (other than more drastic treatments with several weeks of recovering from it).

My acne scars are mostly just uneven skintone. It's red on the areas where I used to have a lot of acne before. Mostly on my cheeks.

Together with the melasma my skintone is very uneven but with make up on it looks OK because it's not pitted...

Perhaps in the future I can afford a treatment of some kind. I also have terrible stretch marks all over my body.
 

Originally Posted by Andi /img/forum/go_quote.gif



For hyperpigmentation, I would rather try an over the counter 2% hydroquinone product. If you´re already using chemical exfoliants, that should help the hydroquinone work even better. Sunscreen with good UVA-protection is a must of course, every single day, or the pigmentation can come right back.

If this doesn´t give you enough improvement I would get a prescription for 4% hydroquinone or something like Tri-Luma that contains tretinoin & 4% hydroquinone. I feel like the treatment of melasma is really something that should be done under a dermatologist´s care because chemical peeling agets can sometimes make the pigmentation worse if you´re prone to hyperpigmentation and/or have a deeper skintone.

In terms of actual acne scars (boxcar, rolling or icepick) there is not much that you can do at home that will give you great results. Of course the appearance of acne scars can improve a bit over time, but if you`ve had them for a few years then more than likely they won´t improve on their own. Chemical peeling agents & Retin-A boost collagen production, but the effect is not enough to fill in actual depressed acne scars. And leveling out raised scars is just not possible with any kind of at-home treatment. It all depends on what kind of scars you have and how severe they are, but you may wanna see an aesthetic dermatologist about that.

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by lulillan /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I believe that hydroquinone is forbidden here in Sweden. I am not sure what they use instead for the melasma or hyperpigmentation (other than more drastic treatments with several weeks of recovering from it).

My acne scars are mostly just uneven skintone. It's red on the areas where I used to have a lot of acne before. Mostly on my cheeks.

Together with the melasma my skintone is very uneven but with make up on it looks OK because it's not pitted...

Perhaps in the future I can afford a treatment of some kind. I also have terrible stretch marks all over my body.

ah yes, hydroquinone is restricted in some European countries (which I don´t agree with, but that´s another story). As far as I know, in my home country Austria it´s still available by prescription, my mom got a prescription for hydroquinone+tretinoin (from the Louis Widmer presciption-only line) for her melasma a while ago, but she applied it very infrequently & didn´t use sun protection, so her skin never improved.

It sounds like you´d be best off in the hands of an aesthetic dermatologist. When you´re prone to hyperpigmentation you probably shouldn´t mess with at-home peels!

 

[javer1a]

Hi

could you please tell me how to prepare skin for lactic acid treatment . which pretreatment cream i should use ?

I have dark area around my mouth .

 

[Andi]

I don`t think you need any specific pre-treatment before a lactic acid peel, if it's relatively low strength.

I'm not a dermatologist, but keep in mind that if you have a darker skintone, chemical peels can lead to more hyperpigmentation. Protecting the skin everyday with a broad spectrum SPF of at least 30 is crucial after a peel, especially if you tend to hyperpigment!

Getting an over the counter cream with 2% hydroquinone would be another mild alternative to treat dark patches.

 

[LisaRJ]

Andi,

I do peel of salicylic acid and lactic acid once a week. I will start making 15% TCA peel and wondered how long should I leave the TCA in the face in this first application.

Cheers!

 

[cosmelan]

Hi all

I got my deep peel done very first time last week and still have hundred of pieces left on my face which are not coming off, how can I make them come off my skin! I cant even cover them with my makeup /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> help

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by LisaRJ /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Andi,

I do peel of salicylic acid and lactic acid once a week. I will start making 15% TCA peel and wondered how long should I leave the TCA in the face in this first application.

Cheers!

I would leave in on for 5min. That`s what the instructions for my TCA peel said, and that`s what I`ve always gone by. If for some reason it feels really really uncomfortable (a bit of heat & stinging is normal and is to be expected), you should remove it sooner of course

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by cosmelan /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Hi all

I got my deep peel done very first time last week and still have hundred of pieces left on my face which are not coming off, how can I make them come off my skin! I cant even cover them with my makeup /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> help

I know how annoying that is! Every source says to NOT pick them off or scrub them off as you could risk scarring. I have used a gentle scrub on the flaky areas after several days of peeling (not on the first few days of peeling of course) and I was fine, but depending on your skin that could still cause injury & inflammation and lead to hyperpigmentation. You just never know I guess, be as careful as possible.

I have used eyebrow hair scissors before to careful cut off larger chunks of dead skin that were just hanging off.

I know it´s unsightly, but your best bet is really just to leave them alone. Applying foundation over peeling skin often makes it look worse.

 

[Salil]

hiya

I have hyperpigmentation on my forehead, i have had it for 3 yrs since having my lil one. I am currently trying IPL treatment. 1 per mth. I am not seeing any result at all, if anything it it now worse. Can you please advise what i can do for this please?

hoping you can help

Kind regards Sarah

 

[Andi]

Originally Posted by Salil /img/forum/go_quote.gif

hiya

I have hyperpigmentation on my forehead, i have had it for 3 yrs since having my lil one. I am currently trying IPL treatment. 1 per mth. I am not seeing any result at all, if anything it it now worse. Can you please advise what i can do for this please?

hoping you can help

Kind regards Sarah

How many IPL sessions have you had so far? I don´t kow much about IPL at all, so I wouldn´t know how good it is for melasma and how many sessions it takes to see improvement.

Have you tried hydroquinone combined with Retin-A (Tri-Luma etc)? As far as I know, this is the winning combination for hyperpigmentation.