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Modified Phenol or Croton Oil / Hetter Peel - Texas

I am 4 weeks post peel. It was paintful for the...

  • 13 Sep 2011

I am 4 weeks post peel. It was paintful for the first 11 days but with the pain medication (I took Percoset)and numbing meds (Lidocaine)I was ok. Slept pretty much the first 4-5 days. It is imperitive that you have someone with you (preferably a nurse) to administer your medications and apply the treatments.

The first 2 days you treat the face every 2 hours with sterile water and a bit of vinegar so remove the slothing skin. Then you apply a mixture of bacitracin and Lidocaine that is whipped up and kept in the fridge. This is applied like you would ice a cake with a tongue depressor. After the 2nd or 3rd day the facial washes are not so frequent but several times a day. Not only is this beneficial to healing and preventing scaring but it also feels really good. After about 10 or so days most of the "crap" has come off and you have red very tight skin. For me it has been hard to open my mouth real wide.

I will say this, I am 65 and had pretty deep wrinkles around my mouth and also deep lines between my eyebrows.........ALL GONE. It is amazing and I am willing to wait as long it takes to completely heal. I used a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon and my procedure was done in a hospital setting anthesia was administered by an Anethesiologist. I had to have a cardiac clearance prior to my procedure because of my age.

There is a lot of preparation for this peel including 6 weeks of hydryoquinone and retin A. There are certain vitamins you will stop a couple of weeks before and different healing vitamins you will start a couple of weeks before. You really need to be dedicated to this and plan on waiting at least 3 weeks to go out. I am still really red and probably will be for up to 6 months. I wear a heavy duty sunscreen but make-up seems to make me look pretty normal now to go out in public. My face is flawless. I would do it again although this will last me the rest of my life if I take care of my face.

Modified Phenol or Crtoton OIl Peel

  • 1 Jul 2014
It's been almost 3 years...............I am still very pleased. The healing took a long time..........the redness lasted almost 6 months. It was so worth it though. I am going to recommend this procedure to anyone that has lots of wrinkles......just remember that the recovery takes a while and you must be committed to it.
Dustin L. Reid, MD
Austin Plastic Surgeon

5 out of 5 stars Overall rating
5 out of 5 stars Doctor's bedside manner
5 out of 5 stars Answered my questions
5 out of 5 stars After care follow-up
5 out of 5 stars Time spent with me
5 out of 5 stars Phone or email responsiveness
5 out of 5 stars Staff professionalism & courtesy
5 out of 5 stars Payment process
5 out of 5 stars Wait times
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Comments (16)

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Grandmary, I have to say that you look amazing. Did the peel change the color of your skin? Is it true that you have to stay out of the sun for the rest of your life or can you just wear sunscreen?
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In addition; When I stated "This was very painful" I was referring to the Phenol Peel, not the lower face lift. That hurts also but mainly in and around the ears. Literally if you have the lower face/upper lip phenol peel you WILL look like Planet of the Apes for a few days and then the redness continues to resemble that of a monkey's mask, as they do this in sections and it is in a circular circumference. Do not think that you will be fine in 7-10 days. I'm at day 26 and do not want to go out in public. I know eventually this will look good but now I look like I have a badly burned face.
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Wow, you're pretty brave to go through all of that. I was told not to do a phenol peel in small areas because of discoloration of the skin. What did your doctor say?
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I had a Phenol Peel under eyes 12 years ago, when I turned 40. My eyes have NO wrinkles and they look to be that of a 35 year old, now at 52. I just had a phenol peel on my upper lip and lower face, along with a lower face and neck lift, 26 days ago. This peel is MUCH harder to hide and I can not go out in public, least everyone stares at me. It is really hard to wear make-up as it is summer time and the heat and humidity results in the make-up being sucked into your face. I fear this will take at least 3 months to fade. I am a teacher and am going to scar the kiddos, I am sure. The lower face life was the easy part. This was VERY painful and looked horrid, especially on days 2-7. It helped to rinse 4x a day with a mix of 1 tbsp white vinegar and 1 cup water. Took away the burn.
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Could you tell me if the peel tightened your skin or did you need a facelift? thank you.
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The peel did tighten my skin...............in fact I was worried at first because it was really tight but it's been almost 3 years now and my face is relaxed and soft/supple and NO lines. The healing takes a long time but so worth it. It did not lift my jowls or neck....that will have to come next but my face looks wonderful.
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Thank you so much Grandmary. Do you mind if I ask who your doctor was? I want to do this, but so nervous. I guess I am afraid the doctor will layer the peel too thick or not thick enough. Really want to get rid of the marks and lines after a terrible botched up laser procedure.
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Hi, I was wondering if your skin turned white or waxy looking and are you still happy with the results? Thank you.
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I have considered this for two years but the down time is enormous! I was told 7-10 days and then red for 3 months. But I guess everyone is different. You look amazing.
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If you have time could you take a pic of you a year later? You did have amazing results from that last photo!
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I had a peel 7 wks ago.what did you use for the redness and are you using retin a? My face is still very red and my doctors have me using retin a. It makes my face very dry and irritated. I know its normal to still have redness,I saw my doctor yesterday and he told me I need to have patience. Help me with my redness.What do you use for the redness and what makeup do you use. THANK YOU
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You look absolutely amazing, at least 15 years younger! Thank you for your post.
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You look AMAZING!

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Grandmary.....Thank you for posting your 4 paragraph very informative explanation of your peel. I am looking for encouraging comments on this entire procedure for I had it done just 1 week ago. As you said, it IS painful and so messy with the continuing ointment I have to paste on my face. The peel hasn't taken place yet, but keep looking for signs of it.
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I am not sure who all they do the cardio prep on, but I am sure they make everyone get some kind of medical clearance. They are just so ultra careful. I am going to be 66 next month so maybe because of my age plus I have a history of hypertension, otherwise I am pretty healthy. People really need to understand that this takes a long time to heal, you could see improvement up to a year afterward . I am 9 weeks out from my peel now, still red but noticing my face is making changes daily. I am really pleased and excited with my result. People tell me that my skin looks really good and that I look waaaaay younger than I actually am....woo hoo! That's what I was hoping for, smoother, unwrinkled skin.
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Hi Grandmary, 

Holly amazing pictures Batman! You look like a whole new person, this peel was awesome. Your review is great too because it provides so much info about after care and what not which is so important to the community. Do they do the cardio prep for everyone, every time? 

Happy Thursday, and thank you!

-Britt

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