Scrolling through Instagram and YouTube, you might think there is nothing skin-related that you can't do at home. Dermaplaning, microneedling, chemical peels, removal of perceived skin imperfections of all kinds: ...... You name it, there are YouTube tutorials and "professional grade" tools. But just because we can do it, should we?

I have a little story: a few months ago, after watching a video of a dermatologist extracting a shocking dark spot from a patient's face, I decided to tackle the little bump on the side of my cheek with a safety pin. Friends, it did not work. It bled. I cried. The scar I created took weeks to heal and I still have the scar to this day. As a beauty writer and founder of スキンケアショップ@goodskinday.co (opens in new tab), I should have known better. But these days, no one is immune to the siren song of DIY dermatology.

Southern California dermatologist Sandra Lee, whose hugely popular YouTube channel "Dr. Pimple Popper" and Instagram feed may be partly responsible for the rise in skilled aestheticians, says, "I've seen a lot more of them.

Here are some dermatologist-approved treatments that can be tried at home and are best left to the professionals.

The online skin care community went bananas for microneedling, a treatment in which tiny needles are pressed into the skin to stimulate collagen production. Fans claim that it can plump up the skin, smooth acne scars, and reduce lines. Also, the skin care products applied afterward penetrate more deeply into the skin because they are just tiny holes all over the face. Once the domain of medi-spas and dermatologists' offices, this procedure has made its way into American bathrooms thanks to the availability of home microneedling tools such as dermarollers (hand-held rollers covered with tiny needles).

After watching several bloggers' tutorials, Sandhya Raghavan, 32, ordered a 1mm dermaroller online. She used it once a month and was doing well until the third use, when "everything got worse." The redness and burning sensation soon became a nightmare, she says. By that evening, "my skin was a pus-filled boil." An emergency visit to a dermatologist helped her figure out why: an emergency visit to a dermatologist helped her figure out why.

Mary Schuck, a New York aesthetician who has been performing microneedling treatments since 2003, is not shocked by the story. She says that one-millimeter needles are too long. She explains, "Under professional guidance, the longest needle a consumer should use at home is .25 millimeters." Any longer than that and it could penetrate the dermis (the second layer of skin under the epidermis) and cause infection." One Into the Gloss commenter shared a story of a 1.5-millimeter needle rolling a latent cold sore and then spreading a "minuscule amount of herpes" all over her face.

Even sterilized tools with short (0.25 mm or less) titanium needles still require caution. Disinfect the needle with isopropyl alcohol for 10 minutes after treatment and use it up to five times (or according to the manufacturer's instructions).

Doctors have long relied on the skin-smoothing power of acids, which act as exfoliants when applied topically; since dermatologist Dennis Gross pioneered home peels in 2002, they have become better and safer. But that hasn't stopped people from secretly purchasing more powerful peeling products online. 'We're seeing more and more cases of serious skin damage because of YouTube how-to videos and the access consumers have to professional products through vendors like Amazon,' says Dr. Dennis Gross, a professor of cosmetology at the University of California, Berkeley, and a member of the American Academy of Cosmetology. However, higher concentrations of acids must be administered by a licensed professional."

The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel recommends that companies use alpha-hydroxy acids of glycolic acid and lactic acid in concentrations of 10% or less in solutions of pH 3.5 or higher when formulating consumer products, although many products feature higher doses The FDA's recommendation is not a recommendation for the use of lactic acid in a solution of 10% or less. (The FDA's recommendation is only a guide, and as long as a product is accurately labeled and does not contain any of the 11 ingredients prohibited by the FDA, it is legally allowed for sale in the U.S.) Also, just because two products have the same acid concentration does not mean they will have the same effect on the complexion. The effects (and side effects) depend on other ingredients, whether the acid is buffered by ingredients that raise the pH level, and how long it remains on the skin. Therefore, it is important to carefully follow the instructions for OTC products, and solutions formulated for salons and spas should be left to the professionals.

One of the great advantages of hiring a professional is that if something goes wrong, someone will be there to take care of damage control. Emily Faris, 36, learned this unfortunate lesson when she had a disastrous experience with a home fruit enzyme peel. It was "like burning," she remembers, and as she wiped off the mask, "I was horrified as layers and layers of skin around my laugh lines peeled off together. And then it just kept coming off until there was no epidermis on either side of my mouth." She had no health insurance at the time, so a trip to the doctor was out of the question. Faris did her best to keep the area clean and covered, but it still took several weeks to get better. Then she saw a dermatologist. Says Faris, "I accepted the fact that I had permanently damaged part of my face with a DIY peel."

Simply put, dermaplaning is nothing more than shaving the face to remove the outer layer of dead skin and fine hair. As Schuk explains, "The professional applies a No. 10 sterile steel blade (the same type as a surgical scalpel) to dry skin at a 45-degree angle against the hairs for mechanical exfoliation."

Thankfully, the consensus on the Internet seems to be that using a scalpel on yourself is not a great idea, so dermaplaning tutorials generally use plastic guards to keep the blade at a certain angle and the blade from touching the skin at once It features tools designed for home use, with safety features like a ridge that keeps the whole thing in place. There's nothing complicated about using these tools at home," says Renée Rouleau, an esthetician in Austin, Texas. But if the instructions say to change the blades after each use, be sure to do so."

Armed with the above advice, you will be on your way to smoother skin at home. However, you are still left with blackheads and breakouts. If you are not sure what is causing it, see a dermatologist. But if it's a white pimple, Rouleau gives the green light to pop it, since pustules are a sign that your body is trying to cleanse the infection (she suggests wrapping your fingers in a tissue and squeezing gently, then applying a spot-drying treatment): "Work with Mother Nature We are working with Mother Nature," she says. I am working with Mother Nature," she says. Even blackheads are sometimes safe to deal with on their own, as long as they don't rely on my safety pin technique. Instead, try gently rocking the comedo extractor on the bump to draw out the oxidized sebum plug.

However, Lee warns, "Never remove the cyst at home. That kind of extraction requires surgical instruments and local anesthesia, and if you're buying them online, you're in bigger trouble than acne.

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