Hair Removal- Guest Post

As with all mature women, there comes a time when we might want or need to learn more about methods of removing hair as that is something most of us have to deal with as we age. Some women have a lot or dark hair when they are younger so this guest post is basically for all of us. I want to thank Aleya for being kind enough to do this post for me because it will explain and answer questions we may have.

Electrolysis Or Laser: Which Is The Right For You?

I have been performing laser and electrolysis hair removal in New York for seven years now but have just now moved my practice to VS1 salon in Long Island. Most of the people who want to do hair removal generally ask the same questions and Connie has been kind enough to allow me to share this information with you. 

There is a constant battle between which is a better form of hair removal: laser or electrolysis. Both techniques have followers that swear that one is better than the other and so it’s hard to know where you should invest your time and money. Here are the facts on both techniques to help you get a better idea on what you’re getting into.

How many sessions will it take to complete the process?

Laser- In general it takes 7 sessions, however if someone has very sensitive skin or a darker skin tone it may take up to 9 sessions. Never go for more than that because you’re just throwing your money out the window.

Electrolysis- Since everyone is different there’s no way to know how many times you’re going to have to get treated for the hairs to die out. Some people go for weekly treatments for 6 months, others go for two years.

How often should I get treated?

Laser- You’re hair growth cycle takes 4 to 6 weeks to complete so a better choice will be 6 weeks because you’ll get a more complete treatment.

Electrolysis- At first, it’s recommended that you get weekly treatments so that you treat the hairs while they’re short. The science behind this is that the shorter the hairs are, the weaker they are and the faster they will die. The longer they are, the stronger they are and the process of killing the roots will be slower. Once the hairs have thinned out nicely you can go less often.

How fast will my hairs grow out again?

In both cases, it depends on you and how fast your hairs grow in general. There are however, some differences.

Laser- The first time you do laser, the hairs may or may not grow back immediately, After the second treatment, the growth will be slightly slower. By the fourth treatment it will definitely be a much slower process and you will see bald patterns on the treated area.

Electrolysis- This is where your genes and ethnic background play a major part in your beauty routine. People with European, Asian and Canadian backgrounds see a slower growth rate after just a few treatments. On the other hand people who are of Middle Eastern, Asian (Indian) and Spanish ethnicities have to get a few more treatments to start seeing results. The hairs are generally thicker, stronger and more stubborn.

Is it permanent?

Laser- No, laser is not permanent hair removal. It is however permanent hair reduction. Laser companies guarantee 30 to 70% of the hairs to be made inactive. It’s a rare thing to get rid of 100% of the hairs with laser.

Electrolysis- Yes, this is the only form of permanent hair removal in the world and has over 100 years of success stories to back it up.

Am I a candidate?

Laser- In order to be a good fit for laser, you must have thick, dark hairs. If you have lightly colors, thin or sparse hairs you should avoid this technique because the results can be the opposite of what you want to achieve.

Electrolysis- Everyone is a good candidate for this procedure regardless of skin tone and hair color or thickness.

How old do you have to be to do these treatments?

While it’s not written in stone, I believe that it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Laser- Once you hit puberty, your hormones change and new hairs are constantly sprouting. If you can wait until you’re in college it would be a good idea to do so. However, if you’re dead set on doing laser then I recommend that you wait until you’re at least 16 years old.

Electrolysis- When I was in school we learned that because of the sensitivity of the skin you should wait until a child is 14 to do electrolysis on them. Although there are many electrologists out there who do work on younger kids, I prefer to wait.

Are there any dangers?

Laser- It’s very easy to burn someone while doing laser on them so I recommend that you do several test shots before doing the actual treatments. Also, it’s highly important that you never wear makeup, perfume, lotion, oil or deodorant on the areas that you are going to get treated because you WILL burn.

Electrolysis- It’s very hard to burn someone while using this technique but people with sensitive skin may get scabs for a few weeks or days after each treatment. The best way to avoid this is to have the technician use a gold probe on your skin and to splash cold water onto your skin after each treatment.

Still not sure which is right for you? I like to start the larger areas and the more stubborn hairs such as the legs, arms, underarms and bikini with laser and finish them off with electrolysis. This way you will save a lot of time and money while getting a good treatment. I prefer to do electrolysis on areas that have a small amount of hair or thin hairs such as the face, upper lip and arms.

If you have any other questions about laser hair removal versus electrolysis please feel free to comment below and I will answer them. Thank you Connie for giving me the opportunity to connect with your readers.

Again, thanks to Aleya for taking time to inform us of two very important and permanent means of hair removal.