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The truth of the matter is that it is very difficult to remove a tattoo entirely; however there are some methods that are pretty effective and in some cases will in fact totally remove the tattoo. Let’s discuss the various options of how to remove a tattoo so that you can decide which is the best option for you. Lets face it, not too many of us gave a lot of thought to getting rid of our tattoo when we got inked. 
In most cases people that are in need of removing tattoos thought it was trendy back in their younger years and now feel embarrassed showing off their tat that seems out of place now that they are older. Sometimes too, your skin can start to sag and a once beautiful tattoo now looks a distorted mess that no one but yourself can read or understand what it is. In other cases its not age and simply the need to remove a once romantic tattoo that was shared with a past loved one that now is no longer of need cause of a broken relationship etc.
Whatever your personal reasons are, this is where how to remove a tattoo comes in handy for us. Let’s move on to the various methods that all range differently in cost and effectiveness.
• Tattoo laser removal is a method by which a laser using a high concentration of light sends pulses into your skin. The main drawbacks are that it can be extremely painful and also very expensive. Generally you have to go for quite a few sessions with range between 200-$500 each. It can take up to twenty sessions depending on the size etc of your tattoo, but if you do the math the overall procedure can exceed $10,000 – and keep in mind that your insurance wont pay as well as the treatment on many occasions can cause scarring, blisters and scabs.
• Tattoo dermabrasion or salabrasion are two methods that both involve sanding off your upper skin layers. Both methods are obviously very painful. Tattoo dermabrasion makes use of a numbing solution that tries to aid the pain to some extent while sanding off the layers of skin. Tattoo salabrasion is a method using a salt water solution that once again abrades the skin. Outside of the pain factor, the other problem with both of these methods is that many types of tattoos wont respond to this treatment as well as they both very often leave scars. They will also involve numerous visits to a dermatologist, so once again a costly affair.
• Tattoo removal creams can be very effective, but depend again on the type of tattoo, the area concerned and type of skin. Some creams are recognized by the Tattoo Removal Institute. One positive factor though is that the only real side effect you may encounter is some bleaching on areas of your skin that were not tattooed. The downside with this method of how to remove a tattoo is that the creams don’t always work and the effect is pretty gradual. So after spending the cash and not seeing the results as fast as one would like, many people give up on this method.
• TCA or trichloroacetic acid is an exfoliate method that uses acid to progressively fade the tattoo until its gone. The acid is actually very similar to wart removal acids that breakdown your skin layers one at a time. Again like the cream method, trichloroacetic acid takes its sweet time so results take some time to show, but all said and done it will in most cases fade the tattoo over a period of time.
• Glycolic acid peel for tattoo removal is a home chemical facial peel. It makes use of alpha hydroxyl acid and is another home method of how to remove a tattoo. It again takes time but is as effective as the other methods and obviously a lot less expensive than getting surgery.
• This brings us to surgical removal of tattoos. This method needs to be preformed by a doctor or dermatologist and in almost all cases will leave some form of a scar. It basically involves making an incision in the area and then stitching it up. This method is normal only used for smaller tattoos and can be very costly. Another downside is that it falls under cosmetic surgery so in most cases it will not be covered by your insurance.