Day 1 of Using Glycolic Acid : My Experience

It has been a while since I treated my skin good. Over the last few months, my skin has been ignored; it has been tortured by sunlight and dust. Honestly, it is at its worst now! (Being extremely photosensitive, even a minute of light exposure causes redness and sunburn on my skin) As much as I love a healthy chocolate-tan, I dislike my skin to be unevenly toned or rough.

I don’t believe in bleaching or whitening my skin tone but I believe the uneven permatan can be reduced to achieve a smooth, even look all over the body! More than the looks, I want to make my skin healthier and less sun sensitive!

So that is when I decided to give Glycolic acid, a try. It is one of the AHAs and is naturally derived from sugar cane. Glycolic acid has been proven to flake off the dead skin cells effectively, while not causing any damage to your skin. It took me days to read about it and finally convince my mind to try it! Now that I’m ready, I have got this 6% Glycolic acid cream with me!

Why did I choose Glycolic Acid? : I’ve always wanted try exfoliation. I knew it would make my skin look and feel a LOT better but I was very much worried about making my skin more sensitive. Trust me, living with photosensitivity is painful and I didn’t believe it was worth exfoliating my skin to make it more sensitive to sunlight. I was SCARED that it would make my skin THINNER. Most acids, exfoliating and skin lighteners do. But when I read about glycolic acid, I was surprised to know that it actually increases epidermal thickness by stimulating collagen production. Instant love! (Increased skin thickness translates to less damage, slow aging, and LESS photosensitivity, which will be a boon for me!)

Secondly, glycolic acid is mild, compared to many other exfoliators available. It removes the dead skin layer to reveal the new, undamaged skin and at the same time, it acts as a humectant and prevents skin from drying out. So that’s another thing I liked about it. After checking these two, I got to read many user experiences, reviews over the internet and fixed my mind on glycolic acid!

Day 1 of Using Glycolic Acid: My Experience

At first, I wanted to try a milder version of this acid before going for something strong – like a peel. Hence, I grabbed this Glyco 6 glycolic acid cream (6%) from the pharmacy. It is priced dirt cheap at Rs.155 ($3) I thought to go for 10% but I am too concerned when it comes to my sensitive skin and the last thing I wanted on the earth is to get it burned, so I settled for the 6% concentration.

It comes in a simple tube; nothing fancy. The cream has a thick consistency but it spreads smoothly and disappears into my skin. Within the next two minutes, my skin started to feel this tingle. I was nervous that I’m going to turn red but thankfully, no, the tingling sensation subsided in the next ten minutes and I went to my bed to have a good night sleep! (Did I tell you I’m sleeping at night for the last one week?! It feels awesome!) So yes, I use this cream at night and I strictly want to use it only at night for now. Plus, I’m going to avoid the sun as much as possible!

The usage instructions pamphlet says I can start using it twice a day after two weeks of night usage, i.e the skin should be gradually accustomed to glycolic acid to withstand more concentrated versions of it. I might use it twice seeing how it actually works on my skin and I might increase the concentration after a month or two!

Curren routine: I use my Lakme Blush and Glow Peach Creme face wash before using Glyco 6 at night. After leaving it overnight on my skin, I wash my face in the morning and I put on Johnson’s baby lotion or Nivea soft cream. I really need to get another moisturizer soon. I ran out of all the tubs of moisturizers I had been using so I’m using a baby lotion temporarily. It has been only one day and so far, no dryness encountered. My skin looks less-dry and little bit smoother. Too early to show pics but I’ll definitely follow up.

I’ll have to use this product for a week or more before I give another proper update. Meanwhile, if you plan to use Glycolic acid on your skin, you can start it along with me and share your updates, write on the comment section and be in touch. BUT, do all this only after consulting your dermatologist as everyone’s skin is different. I’d be glad if someone could join with me though.

If your skin has already experienced glycolic acid, in any form, be it a peel or a lotion, do share your experience on the comment section below. It’d be much helpful!