Final Results of Patch Test and Conclusions

I am fairly pleased with the results but a bit disappointed that with that instense burn, only a little of the color faded. The burn that I thought was going to be a scar just peeled off naturally much to my relief. The green color of the vines changed a bit and turned into a different hue of green. The flowers faded as well.

After this intial test, I am confident that after more sessions, the tattoo would indeed fade until the tattoo would not be too obvious anymore. But I have no idea how many more sessions I need to do--10,20? With the rate of fading my estimate would be-- a lot. I am going to wait 4 weeks, then I'll apply TCA to the entire area this time. In the meantime, I will be putting AHA bleaching cream to the area so the next peel would be even.

I am still considering laser in the future, but since my tattoo has all the colors that laser can't penetrate well, I will just try my luck with this first. To those of you who are considering this process, go ahead it's worth the shot. It's not that painful and the healing is pretty fast. Just don't use too strong a solution.

A little over a week later....

It's now starting to scab and some areas that didn't get so burnt are now starting to peel. I am just going to let this peel on it's own just to avoid any potential scarring. It doesn't hurt so much when I walk with shoes/slippers on anymore and it's starting to itch as well. After much thought regarding this whole process, I really think a low strength solution is the best perhaps not more than 30% and do this slowly but surely. I don't think this process really calls for the area to blister and such--I made a mistake with the mixture of the solution and left the TCA on the skin for way too long. I should've just left it for 5 mins but instead, I left it for 20. Idiot.

Anyway, I am now confident that this patch will heal well. I just have to be careful not to scrape and wound this area.

I'm getting a little freaked out...

It's been a few days since the peel and some parts of the patch test are more burnt than the rest. And I'm a little freaked out at how it looks right now. There is a slight depression forming a circular shape which is the flow of the TCA on my skin. Now I think that I placed the TCA too long and became more burnt than how it really should be. I'm scared that this will scar! Argh. I'm just crossing my fingers and making sure that this won't get infected. I researched the net on how to take care of 2nd degree burns and all of the sites say that it's best not to apply ointment to the burn and just let it dry but I don't want to take the chance. I am still applying Triple ointment and hopefully in a week, this will scab and won't hurt as much. I just hope that this depression on my skin won't turn into a horrible scar. The sites said too that 2nd degree burns don't cause scarring. So I hope they're right. I remember my aunt had burns on her feet because while she was cooking, she accidentally poured hot, scalding cooking oil on her feet. Now her feet looks ok but she has hypopigmentation--the parts where the oil landed have become totally albino white. AAAAAAHHHH! This procedure has become more stressful than I anticipated. Makes me wish I hadn't done this to myself.

Pictures of my TCA peel kit

Upper row L-R: Fan (totally cheap looking and unnecessary to me), Latex gloves (very important!)
Bottom row L-R: Cotton buds/cotton pad and alocohol prep pads (not seen), 100% TCA peel solution, pipette, mixing vial, AHA Glycolic Lotion and SPF 30 Lotion

If you are interested in trying this TCA peel for tattoo removal, just buy the TCA solution itself and not the kit. As you can see, the stuff that were included in the kit can easily be bought in your local pharmacy for a cheaper price. The pipette can be duped by a medicine dropper and you can use any empty container to mix the solution. And any SPF would work for this really. I paid so much for a so called "kit" but the only things I found necessary in this kit was the TCA itself.

4th Day--Pictures and observations

Now it even looks darker than yesterday and it even feels more sore than when I first applied the TCA. The tiny blisters that are on the flower aren't seen in this photo. I now walk with a slight limp because the strap of my sandals/shoes keeps on hitting the burn. I don't think there are shoes that won't hit this area so I guess I'll have to bear this until it heals. I still can't believe that I actually did this to myself on purpose lol...seems kind of masochistic in a way. But I think this seems like a better option than the salt and lemon (salabrasion) procedure that some people do. But it just pains me to think that to remove this tattoo, I'll have to go through numerous sessions of burning my own skin, enduring the pain, and the hassle of limping and not being able to wear shoes with ease. Sigh. Well I think I'll know after this heals if this process is worth going though or not. Like if there's significant fading after the patches heal and peel, then I'll know if all this fricking pain is worth it or not.

Third Day--Results and how it looks so far

AM--The treated area now looks a darker brownish pink. It is much more sensitive n0w much like how a nasty sunburn would feel while rubbing against clothing. I am finding it considerably harder to wear slippers and shoes because the area is much more sensitive now. I apply ointment every 3-4 hours just to keep it moist and soothed a little bit. I was planning to treat the rest of the tattoo with another TCA peel but I'm now hesitant because the pain might be too much for me to bear since it is too sensitive as it is. And the TCA might spread to the burnt areas (since it's very hard to control) and make it even worse. I think it would be best to just wait until the burnt areas are completely healed before I apply another peel to the entire tattoo or do this procedure in sections. I think it will also be easier for me to treat the burn if it's smaller even if my tattoo is small.

Well I'm still optimistic that this process will achieve the results I want. So far things are going as planned. I think the solution strength is just right. If it was any stronger, I feel that it would be too much for the skin and would burn badly.

I also bought a 30% TCA solution from a local supplier and will do another patch test on that soon.

PM--Upon close inspection I noticed that some parts of the treated area have tiny blisters in them (so it's now officially a 2nd-degree burn) and much care needs to be taken in caring for this like ointments and less friction from clothing, etc. The blisters shouldn't be burst prematurely because it might get infected. It's really just best to leave this to heal and wait for another 4-6 weaks for the complete procedure. I really don't want to risk any TCA going to the blistered area-ouch.

Pictures of TCA Reactions and Results

This was taken the next day when I woke up. The pinkish brown parts aren't seen so much on my camera but in real life it's darker than this. I wonder if it will still get darker as it heals.

This was taken a an hour after I did the patch test. As you can see, there are white parts on the upper right which are the remnants of the 'frost' of the TCA. This will completely disappear later on. It's a bit shiny because of the ointment.

Results and Review of TCA Patch Test

It's now the next day and the areas where I did the patch test are now pinkish brown as what the insert of the TCA peel kit stated. It also feels like a nasty sunburn and it feels a bit rough and dry to the touch. There are some parts of it that are swollen but it's manageable. I will drink another anti-inflammatory later.

So far, the TCA is working as how it should work based on the instructions given and what I've researched on the net. It burned my skin just right--just enough for it to peel a few layers of my skin. I've seen some pictures of other people's TCA peel on their tattoo and they look like really nasty burns that might even scar. I think that they didn't dilute the solution and used the full 100%-ouch! When it comes to TCA, I believe using a weaker solution like I did (around 40-45%) is the way to go. Some people are just too impatient with this process and want quick results. But they should know that a stronger solution doesn't mean the tattoo will disappear faster too. They don't realize that this acid in very potent solutions can cause 3rd degree burns (higher risk for infection) and scarring. I've read this post of a guy who did a TCA peel on his toe and had an infection. And when he went to a doctor to treat his infected burn, the doctor even considered amputating his toe if the infection wasn't controlled. Lucky for him it didn't turn out that way. So in other words, this procedure isn't a joke and should be done in the utmost care.

Another important thing to take not of too is the ratio of TCA and water put in the vial. It's easy to get carried away with the amount of water and TCA to put in the container but it's best to take note of the amount placed just to have a consistent formula for future peels. If a solution works on your tattoo then it's good to know how you came up with it instead of just relying on guesswork all the time.

The only hassle for me with this procedure is that it's placed on my foot (upper right side) and the after pain would make it uncomfortable for me to wear shoes. Though I think the friction/rubbing of my shoes on the burn wouldn't be too bad for the burn--just uncomfortable. I think it would still be okay for me to wear socks and my gym shoes and workout. But I guess no kickboxing for now.

I am also going to do a full on TCA peel a few days from now (while avoiding the patch test area). The reason why I'm not doing this now is that I have a lot of errands to do and I need the full use of my 2 feet lol. It would be such a hassle for me to walk around town while nursing a burn on my foot--the area hurts the most when the TCA is newly applied, but on the next day it doesn't so much anymore.

NOTE

I am really excited to see the results of the first peel. I believe in this process so much because I know that it works in one way or another. My basis for this was from my friend's experience with a nasty sunburn (as in from the sun) on his tattoo. The next day, some parts of his tattoo got blisters. I didn't see him again until a few months later and when I saw his tattoos again the parts where the blisters were didn't have any ink at all! Like it was never tattooed to begin with. The other areas of his tattoo became faded too. Actually, I was really hoping for that kind of results (blisters-2nd degree burn) on my patch test but considering that it's on my foot, I was glad because then it'll be impossible for me to wear shoes. If the tattoo was on my arm or any other part that wouldn't be pressed on by clothing or what not, then I'd be fine with blisters.

I'm expecting that the intial peel would fade my tattoo a bit but I'm not expecting magic to happen. Once again, the key to this is patience, patience, patience. Sigh.

Starting TCA today with a patch test...

I just received my TCA Peel Kit that I ordered from Ebay (from Yavonae) and couldn't wait to use it and get rid of this screwed up tattoo that I got 2 months ago on my foot. My reasons for removing this tattoo are purely for aesthetic reasons--the artist's workmanship was amateur and sloppy. He did a sketch on my foot first with a ballpoint pen and it looked really pretty. But the outcome from a tattoo needle made it look like scribbles of a 5-year old ugh. So now, I am hoping that this TCA peeling solution will at least fade my tattoo enough for me to put something over it since I know the skin won't go back to how it was pre-tattoo.

The instructions for using the TCA peel wasn't so detailed as I was hoping for from the package--they didn't give tattoo-specific instructions. Instead, they just gave instructions on how to use TCA in general. But anyway, here's a step by step guide on what I did:

1. Using the pipette, I measured half a pipette of 100% TCA with equal amount of purified water (this makes 50% TCA solution). But since I wasn't ready to try this strength, I added a little more water to dilute it to perhaps 40%. I have researched in some websites that it's best to try a weaker solution first to avoid severe burns and scarring. I still would rather have this tattoo than a scar definitely.

2. Next I cleaned the area with an alcohol swab they provided (although damping a cotton pad with alcohol is the same).

3. Then I dipped a cotton bud into the diluted TCA and wiped it on the area for a few moments. At first I thought I diluted the TCA too much because I didn't feel any tingling or pain, but after perhaps 30 seconds, it felt like burning hell. But don't be scared, the pain subsides rather quickly. In the instructions they tell you to fan the area to relieve the pain but I found that the cool air made the pain even worse. I let the solution stay on my skin around 20 minutes just to be sure and I noticed the TCA turning white or frosting which is supposed to be a good thing. The solution bleeds a little because even the areas I didn't wipe with the cotton bud turned white.

4. Then I rinsed the area with cool running water for a few seconds. Then wet a few cotton pads with purified water and wiped the area gently just to remove as much of the solution as possible. Then I pat the area with a dry tissue.

5. I applied Triple Antibiotic Ointment on the area (you can also use Neosporin-they have the same ingredrients.

Now a few precautions to take while doing this: always wear latex gloves or any protective gloves while handling the solution. I accidentally touched the solution with my middle finger and some parts of it went a bit numb. Stupid me. Always wash your hands after doing this just to avoid any product going to other parts of your body (eyes, etc).

I have taken photos of my tattoo pre and post peel and so far I have noticed the area with the solution to be much more faded than the other areas. The areas where the solution was also looks a bit pink (but not the pink/brown that the seller mentioned). It also feels a bit rough and numb to the touch and slightly swollen. I took an anti-inflammatory just to be sure.

I will post the photos soon and I'm crossing my fingers that this works!! Well with the pain, it better work! Can't wait for it to peel and see if the colors really have faded.

Keep you guys posted!