Last year I decided to take a big risk and try laser hair removal. I'm about five treatments in so far. Find out what happens in my Diaries of a Laser Hair Removal Guinea Pig:
Part 1: Why I went under the laser
Part 2: What happens during a procedure?
Part 3: Is it working?
Part 4: A few months later, I report back in.
Have you tried laser hair removal, or would you never? Weigh in below.
Part 1: Why I went under the laser
Part 2: What happens during a procedure?
Part 3: Is it working?
Part 4: A few months later, I report back in.
Have you tried laser hair removal, or would you never? Weigh in below.
Comments
I love laser hair removal. LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I suffered from painful, scarring ingrown hairs at the bikini line. Two laser treatments and I never had another ingrown hair. Three more, and I never even have to shave. With dark hair and light skin, hairs were visible under the skin even after shaving. I never wore shorts. After laser treatment, I have visibly smooth skin and put on shorts for the first time in 15 years.
I highly recommend GentleLASE or other laser that uses a cryospray – a burst of cooling spray half a second before the laser hits. It reduces discomfort immensely.
I work for a med spa and actually perform the laser treatments. I have seen first hand how well it works. I have clients tell me all the time that it has changed their lives. It is almost painless and very quick. Shop around though….there is a big difference in laser quality.
I’ve used laser hair removal on various parts of my body and am still continuing treatment. The laser I am being worked on with is the GentleLASE. I highly recommend laser, the results I’ve gotten from it have literally changed my life (cliche but true!). I am much more confident in my appearance now and hair removal is no longer a never-ending uphill battle.
I am having laser hair removal done now. I absolutely love it! I have had four treatments and about 50% hair reduction. I agree about the GentleLase laser by Candela. From what I’ve read the GentleLase and GentleYAG are the two best lasers, depending on your skin type. I’ve kept a photo diary of my progress check out my signature link to see the pictures of my laser hair removal process.
I think laser removal is great. However, one should take into consideration that the lighter the hair (less pigment) the less it will work well. Laser works least on blondes and gray hair. The reason is because for the laser to “kill” the root it must have pigment in the hair shaft to adhere to and travel down to the root. Most laser machines should have varied intensity settings. I had it done and I am pleased. Although I am a dark blonde, most of my hair is gone except a few lighter ones.
Deborah, Did the laser work on blond hair? You said you are dark blond – so it is a little brown? My understanding is that laser will NOT WORK AT ALL on gray or blond hair.
Some people say it won’t work on light brown hair, but I think it would work on any hair that is darker than the skin.
If you did have results with blond or very light brown hair can you tell us what type of laser and what settings were used?
I have read something about a new technology using radio waves or something that is suppose to work on all hair colors – it doesn’t target pigment, but it affects things with a higher density than your skin.
There are new lasers that work on light or gray hair, but they are only about 50% as effective. I write about it this article: http://beauty.about.com/od/laserhairremoval/a/laserfacts.htm
Here’s the part: A new device, Aurora by Syneron, uses both intense pulsed light and radio frequency to treat women with blonde or gray hair, but they are only about 50% as effective as other lasers.
Thanks
I always need to have hair removal treatments in order to pull out some of my unwanted hairs. This would be the best and effective hair removal treatments from the other procedures. I would prefer to have this treatment for its convenient and lesser pain procedure.
Since there are so many ladies giving your there thoughts I thought I would share my experiances as a Male. I have had laser treatments for many many years probably when laser hair removal began. I know that there are better lasers today and I just had my last treatment about two months ago.
Well sorry to say that it just does not work, it is not permanant. Perhaps it may work well for some ladies with light hair. I have laser done on my face, I hate shaving. I have dark hair and light skin. I am the perfect candidate. Now it does kill the hair but in about 8 to 10 weeks I need another treament. It just grows back. The procedure for thick course hair is painful even with the numbing cream and a pain pill. The most painful area is my upper lip and chin.
I did laser hair removal and was completely disappointed! :’( I wanted to bad for this to work for me and after 5 treatments I gave up! I have light skin and hair but I felt I should have been told at round 2 or 3 that it wasn’t working. Will laser hair removal work on hair with little pigment? Maybe I went to a lessor quality place?? I really want to try this again but don’t have money to waste again. Any suggestions??
Zoe,
I’m sorry you had such a bad experience. Laser hair removal works best on dark hair and light skin. There are new lasers targeted for light hair, but you have to do your research and make sure the right laser is being used on you.
Unfortunately, not all places are going to be honest with you. Because the results are different for everyone, they might not have known if it was working correctly or not. But they should have known if the lasers they use work on light hair, light skinned people.
Good luck with your decision,
Julyne
OMG. laser hair removal changed my life too!! My showers are no longer 25 minutes long. No more shaving my legs and armpits every 2 days. So worth the money!! And I used to get really bad in grown hairs.
I went to a place that used a cynosure machine (not sure what type) but it was amazing and im now hair free
i highly recommend laser
I did laser too i have light olive skin and dark hair i did my head/beard/face/eyebrows/eyelashes/ears/nasal/and everything else im completely hairless in eight sessions i used the cancer blood cell killer dehydration sun burn satan laser! amen ra!
I purchased a laser hair removal package from a well known and highly recommended plastic surgeon’s office here in Orlando. I went in for my consultation and they told me I was a perfect candidate for the sessions. Great! I did 8 sessions (the minimum recommended to see results), just to try it out, praying that I would see a difference in my chin and lip hair growth. Well, here I am a few months after my last session and I am regretful. I went to several places before I decided on my ultimate choice, and all 4 places told me I was a great candidate. After a few sessions I noticed my hair was kind of growing faster and more pronounced. They told me not to worry that it was just my body expelling the entire hair and that it would drop out within a week. 0_o After the total 8 sessions I realized that my lip and chin hair seemed to be growing OUT OF CONTROL, I went to an endocrinologist who proceeded to tell me that laser hair removal will NOT work on blonde hair, and as a matter of fact it can actually make the hair thicker, more coarse and will stimulate it to grow FASTER. My blonde facial hair sprouts occasional dark brown ones and it is noticeable when looking closely to my face so I never thought I wouldnt be a candidate. Please just educate yourself a lot more than I did!