I did electrolysis for over a year before switching to laser, and it was the most painful thing ever. I had prescription EMLA cream and combined that with a prescription painkiller and it still hurt so much that I cried the entire time when I had my upper lip done. It wasn't as much painful as it was a searing excruciating stinging and what felt like mini explosions underneath my skin. My chin wasn't that bad at all, and it was very easy to carry on a conversation and sorta relaxing having it done on my chin. But upper lip is just terrible.
My electrologist recommended that I apply the Emla cream a certain way, and I did it wrong for a while until she addressed it again. Basically you have to apply generous thick layers of the cream (to such a point that you cannot see the skin underneath the cream), and then cover it on top with saran wrap, and have it on there for an hour before the electrolysis starts. I started doing it in sections of saran wrap, so that my electrologist could wait till the last minute to remove sections that she was working on. After I started doing this, it was MUCH more tolerable, but still incredibly painful. But different people have different tolerances to pain, so your experience may vary.
