A procedure known as chemical peel can sometimes be used to helped get rid of deep stretch marks that have made their way into your skin.

What is a chemical peel?

It is essentially a controlled laceration of the part of your skin that has stretch marks in it. Doctors will apply corrosive substances, such as glycolic acid, to the skin around the stretch marks. Parts of the skin will burn away, including, hopefully the parts with the stretch mark. The skin burnt-away will naturally recover, and, ideally, the stretch marks will no longer be there when it does.

Chemical peels have the advantage of being fairly customizable. You and your doctor can decide which substance to use, and how much of it, depending on the particular stretch marks you are trying to get rid of. Surprisingly enough, given the sometimes-dangerous substances that are involved in chemical peels, the after-effects of chemical peel treatment are rather mild.

Most likely, after a chemical peel treatment, you will feel like you have a sunburn. Indeed, the “peeling” in question will feel and look like sunburn. Your skin will become red and, after a few days, a little itchy. Dead skin will flake off in layers, a process that will last between 3 days and a week.

What if the stretch mark is still there?

You can wait another few weeks and do another  chemical peel treatment of the same area. The stretch mark will have been at least partially corroded away. You can keep applying chemical peels to the same area over time until the entire stretch mark is gone.

The disadvantages of chemical peels?

It can be slow and expensive. Plus, peels that are designed to slough off a lot of skin at one time can be painful. The affected skin may swell or blister. In the worst circumstances, affected skin may become discolored, negating the ostensible purpose of the procedure in the first place.