Beauty

[Carmie]

Laser is effective only on dark hair on people with light to med light skin tone. Electrolysis works on any skin and hair color, but can be painful and sometimes leaves scars. No matter which option you choose, it might take months or years for the hair growth to stop and you must keep going back for treatments until it does.

There is also a third option. VANIQA cream can be purchased by prescription only. It also will not work overnight, but unless you are allergic to it, it is effective and not painful and can be applied in the comfort of your own home. It only works on facial hair. It can also keep new hair from growing on your face. It reduces the rate of hair growth, so that if you do pluck, it takes much longer to grow back.

Best wishes to you.

[suzyQ3]

On 9/10/2014 Gigikiwi said:

I had about a year of electrolysis every week. It worked on some of the hair. Please understand, there are two hairs in each follicle and they grow at different rates. So this requires diligence and patience and self control. Not pulling in between appointments. You can cut the hair or shave it close but no pulling. That was difficult for me. It did take care of a lot of the hair. I have hypothyroidism and facial hair is an issue for some with that dx.

I will tell you that after I ceased going, some of the hairs grew under the surface of my skin and I have to lift them out with a needle to pull them. That became a problem. So, I then went to derm for laser treatments! That went well, but it ended and I have now some of the hair still coming and some of it is very fine. I think I need another round. It is not inexpensive and you see them about every six weeks. I did six sessions.

Of the two, I would do the laser. Just do enough sessions, or do it, give it a couple of months and then go for another round. I have damaged my skin plucking and picking at it.

Truthfully, it has made me crazy!!! Get them while they are dark, they do lighten in time with age and they cannot be zapped if they are not dark.

I feel for you, Gigikiwi. I have had a more positive experience with electrolysis than a couple others who have posted here (no scarring whatsoever and no problem with the mild discomfort of the procedure).

It's funny that you should mention hairs growing under the surface. That's what finally drove me to start this process, plus my increasing obsession with plucking. Wow, that's bad on so many levels. I have curly hair, so that means a tendency for ingrown problems.

Before I started electrolysis, I had a consultation for laser therapy. They were very honest about the whole thing. I had dark hairs but also some blonde and then the lovely white ones that feel like a clothesline (I think they come with age).

Anyway, I asked about the light hairs, and they said no, that laser won't work and that maybe I should supplement with electrolysis.

I went home and thought about that and concluded that it was silly. Why not just do the one procedure that will work for all my hairs. I do occasionally go in now because I'm a bit obsessive about even one or two hairs that might pop up (you're right about the follicles).

But once I started treatment, I did not develop any more ingrown hairs, thank goodness.

I wish you luck with your treatments.

[BigBro6]

I just came back from treading on the chin, so easy and quick. In NJ 16.00 bucks. I have blond and one white hair. I would get burnt from waxing, cannot do the other stuff.