“Safe tca peel at home”
TCA peel: Worth it
Pain: Painfree
As a 48 year old with many years of sun damage and those pesky newly appearing age spots, I decided to uncover some new skin without the high price of a spa or dermatologist. You CAN do it safely if you are very careful.
Start with only a 12.5% solution (a small bottle of this can be found online for about $25). Begin with only a one layer peel the first time. Complete instructions are usually included....always follow them! If you do okay with a 1 and 2 layer peel, you can add layers each subsequent treatment, spaced 3 weeks apart. You will eventually know how much your particular skin can tolerate. I have not done more than a 3 layer peel.
Never buy a strong solution. There are horror stories out there of people using 50 and 100% TCA, with terrible consequences, including permanent scarring.
Just as a guideline, I only dip my Q-tip into the the solution once for a single layer on my whole face. Always wait 5 minutes between layers. I have also done 3-layer spot treatments on age spots -- it takes a few treatments for them to completely disappear. A small bottle of the solution should give you many muti-layer treatments, saving you $100's over going to a specialist.
Oct 2, 2008Comments and replies (12)
1408 posts
2 Oct 2008
Thanks a lot for posting this, Jiminy Cricket! Much appreciated. Personally, I'd be afraid to do it myself, but then I don't think I'd trust a "professional" either. :)
1 post
22 Jan 2009
Hi J! Curious about how much it burned and what store you bought your peel from? (I'm 25 with moderately sundamaged skin and want to try a peel but not spend a lo)t.
12 posts
23 Jan 2009
Vonns-- You can find TCA online very easily. I bought a small bottle for $25 and have done at least 3 peels with it. The one thing I stress is that you start out at a low strength, like 12.5% and see how your skin does. I had very little burning.
5 posts
3 Jun 2009
Are you gonna tell us where you bought it? -there are alot of scams out there!
2 posts
4 Jun 2009
We'll appreciate that you can tell us the exact website you bought from.
12 posts
4 Jun 2009
{edited} I am including the website where I bought my TCA. Hopefully this is allowed on the site.
Edited by Sharon: We've added your provider info to the top of the review. Thanks! We don't allow links in comments unless it is educational in nature, but a Google search of the company will bring up their website.
12 posts
5 Jun 2009
Just FYI. I actually DO recommend my TCA peel provider, the website where I purchased it. I may have checked "DO NOT" because I did it myself.
11 posts
30 Jun 2009
Search under "Yavonae" on the internet for purchasing TCA. They offer TCA and Clycolic acids at different strengths. Also, you can make a weaker solution with a stronger by adding water. Both TCA and Glycolic are water based. Instructions tell you how to mix, apply, and aftercare. Check it out.
24 posts
18 Aug 2009
About how long have your peels lasted? Also, have you increased the strength, yet? I have tried some vitalize peels (3)but they have basically done nothing for my skin. I'm thinking of trying something a little stronger. I'm talking more like 20% TCA combined with a jessner's peel. Are these peels safe under your eyes? That's where most of my wrinkles are. Thanks!
2 posts
20 Aug 2009
Great advice, Jiminy Cricket! Peels CAN be done at home safely, but you MUST work your way up from lower concentrations. Note that the majority the people on the board who have complained of burning or scarring or lesions from a home TCA peel jumped in and did a 30-50%+ peel without working up to it. Be an educated consumer and read up before trying out peels; start with something very light, like a 10% glycolic peel - *get to know your skin and how it reacts* to the chemicals and use it for a while to get your skin accustomed to peeling. Different peels have different strengths and a TCA peel is a stronger peel, so if you're just starting out, consider a more superficial peel at first. Remember that peels don't always visibly peel, but they are still working under the surface (even a light peel is still stimulating collagen production!) and that even when they do, it can sometimes take as much as a week or more for the actual peeling to start. Take your time and progress slowly - peels are cumulative, as you can get just as good a result doing a series of 10% peels as you can one 25% peel, so there's no reason to push it for instant results. Let your skin build up its own natural protective barriers as you progress and you'll be so much happier with your results!