How the !@#$%& do you deal with the days before electrolysis?

[Apples Mk.II]

And please, no Conchita Wurst jokes. A good beard is not the same as ->-bleeped-<-ty hairs.

Back in February I waited as I barely could for three days, to have the electrologist tell me it was not enough growth. We did partial lasering, leaving the hairs ready for electro untouched, and I was told to come back in a few months, with at least five days of growth. This means that this sunday will be my last shave until Friday morning, when the appointment takes place. I had to delay it due to financial issues, and the situation has worsened. I may have had a T spike back in may that could be responsible for this.

I just don't know how to deal with this, and seeing a single hair in my face is pretty terrible. not counting the slow hairs that could not be removed last time, now I have serious fast growers, black and thick. No amount of makeup can cover them. In 24 hours they are between 1 and 2 mm, huge and manly. I think that starting on monday and until friday, I will go back to andro presentation. No push-up bra, makeup, baggy clothes again. The last thing I want is to attract attention over my face, and being full time is freaking horrible. I plan to leave my place only for grocery shopping

Any ideas on how to cope, please?

[Ms Grace]

I imagine your hairs are fairly dark? Mine aren't so I can sort of get away with it beforehand, although my electrolysist only has me not shave a day beforehand - there's no way I could go five days beforehand, especially since I can't shave for three days afterwards. I basically don't show my face in public for a few days. I imagine that might not be an option for you. Sorry, I don't have anything useful to say I guess.

[Apples Mk.II]

I imagine your hairs are fairly dark? Mine aren't so I can sort of get away with it beforehand, although my electrolysist only has me not shave a day beforehand - there's no way I could go five days beforehand, especially since I can't shave for three days afterwards.  Sorry, I don't have anything useful to say I guess.

Morning, Grace. I had around 10 laser sessions before considering laser ineffective at this point. I don't have a bear shadow anymore and most of my face is clean, but I have the damned survivors, like kryptonian hairs. My hairs are divided into three different kinds:

- Transparent hair, fuzz like. Happens  following the jaw bone. You can feel it, but it is not visible.
- slow growth hair, in the upper lip. It's the responsible for not having electro back in february. not a big deal since it can be covered with makeup
- Fast, dark growers. THey are located at the sides of the mouth and follow line down to the chin, like having that ugly vertical moustache. Think of Hulk Hogan:



These last ones are my real issue, since compared to the others, which really need five days, they get 1 mm or more of growth in 24 hours. If I go out by night, I need to shave again. I've been saving daily since march. Some days I try to stay at home to give my face a rest.

I basically don't show my face in public for a few days. I imagine that might not be an option for you.

I go crazy if I stay locked inside home. I am a home student and I have very irritant neighbours, so I need to get some time out, not mentioning grocery shopping. The last thing I want is that after moving to a new place while full time, to make people even more suspicious of me. I am in a stage where I don't pass (five minutes is enough to clock me and notice something is wrong), but where I don't attract any weird looks in the streets as before. Having facial hair again would make me lose my invisibility. That's why I'd rather go in andro mode during those days, and even change the supermarket I usually go to.

[luna nyan]

That is hard situation you're in.

Perhaps the best way is to save enough to have a lot cleared in one go, rather than a smaller section at a time and be fairly sure you have sufficient funds to have two such super sessions six weeks apart.  That way you minimise the amount of time you need off.

Getting rid of the beard isn't  fun.

[FrancisAnn]

It's sure not easy having to let the hairs grow out before electro work, I know all about it.  For me with facial hair I just went out as a male, no other choice than to look like a freak woman with a beard. Good luck on getting them zapped away.

[Apples Mk.II]

The good thing is that I won't be needing a lot of electro. I don't have beard shadow anymore (just a darker upper lip), my face sides and neck are clean, and what I have is... The final boss of hair removal. Wasn't for those damng strond dark hairs that reappeared, staying five days without shaving would be a piece of cake.

[FrancisAnn]

Upper lip is the toughest no doubt. FYI lots of women have facial hairs. Far more than most of us might think. Maybe your lady can zap away strong & kill em dead!!!  Good luck.

[alexis.j]

I have mine lazered, and suffer the dark, thick, extremely obvious beard after a session, which lasts until the hairs shed (usually 10-14days for me). During that time, I feel horrible and don't even bother with makeup or even presenting. So I totally feel for you.
A close shave does not work for me, and I'm not a heavy makeup person, and only HEAVY foundation will solve that for me.
At least the time between sessions seem to be getting longer.

[Apples Mk.II]

Electrolysis preparation, Day #03:

It's been 48 hours since I had my last shave on Sunday. The slow area that requires me to wait five days it's starting to appear, giving me an upper lip shadow again. But the worst par is the undamaged healthy loose hairs, already starting to make a goatee.

I don't want to leave the home until friday, meaning that a lot of "to do" stuff will have to be done during next week... Damn. Looking at the mirror is hard now, and touching my face ramps up my dysphoria.


And on top of everthing... my face itches. A lot.

[FrancisAnn]

I know your pain. No real advise I guess other than make sure the electro lady does a good job on the areas she is treating. It does work & it will be so nice to have clean areas soon. Good luck GF.

[Apples Mk.II]

Preparation for electro, day #05

96 hours without shaving, 24 more to go. Things aren't going well. The hair has either stopped growing, or is doing it at a new low speed. It's an issue I already had before, sucking at growing a beard, but now it's even worse. Basically, most of the hair surrounding my face is ready to be "harvested", but the moustache, what I really wanted to zap, won't come out. It's just black dots. Some hairs are out, but not enough.

Last time they told 3 was not enough and I needed 5. Looks like this time they will tell me I need 10.

[helen2010]

It is a hassle.  Over the last 18 months the time that I have had to stop shaving has blown out from as little as 3 days prior to electro to 6 to 7 days prior to electro.  This isn't that bad if I have achieved a full clearance prior to ceasing shaving, but where I have not had a full clearance, I trim the longer hairs to keep them from causing serious embarrassment.

Even more annoying is that I keep hoping that I will reach the end, but the hairs keep on coming, and every week I seem to need another 3 hours of electro.  Very few black hairs left but if they look too untidy I try to work from home the day prior to electro and the day of electro, which is usually Friday, so that my face has the weekend to try to recover.

Aisla

[Apples Mk.II]

And we are done. 50 minutes, and she won't work on me again until two weeks later. She has cleaned nearly all of my frontal  part, and she had no issue zapping a lot of hair from the moustache....

The problem is that I am extra swollen now, and I can't put makeup. A bit of a problem since I had to go to the company offices.

[luna nyan]

You got through it, and with sanity intact! 

To me, the swelling is worse than the actual pain of the procedure.  Ice, anti inflammatory ex, and remember it's only temporary and another small hurdle.

[MadelineB]

I have had many of the same challenges. What worked best for me is scheduling electro every single week, so she can do full clearance every time (of all hairs long enough), and scheduling my appointment for Monday or Tuesday, so that two days of the long hair days are over a weekend. That is because I work Monday through Friday in a busy, well-lit office surrounded up close by people.

Two other things that help:
A tiny scissors. I can trim a fast grower with the scissors, so it will still be long enough for electro without the Hulk Hogan effect.
Attitude practice: I told my boss what I was doing when I started weekly electro, and she reminded me that there are many women with pronounced facial hair. As long as I am dressed professionally, there is nothing wrong with the pronounced facial hair to other people. It just affects my vanity. I don't let it affect my confidence or it would. It gets better over time. I've had to deal with it for two years, since my facial skin cannot tolerate laser, so I have had a lot of practice.

-Maddie

[Apples Mk.II]

Reviewing the treatment, it's a different kind of pain. She started first with my right side, and since it wasn't as continuous as laser, it gave me so much needed recovery time between zaps. Best of all was not having to deal with the cold air blower and ice packs of electro. For somebody with a mild claustrophobia more related to asphyxia than confined spaces, that is not funny (specially when doing the upper lip). The problem came with the left side. Not only it has more hair, but... it's twice as sensitive as the right (Doing my left eyebrow sucks).At the 45 minute mark I could not stand laying there any moreand I needed to get out and jump. So not sure about how I will hold four days bed ridden after SRS.

I asked her to start with the upper lip, since it was my most complicated area to grow, and the she started working counterclockwise. Actually, the sides of the mouth felt more painful than the moustache.

[StevieAK]

Love the sense of humor in the whole thing.  I had the same thing with my electro woman, she flippantly says its hard for me to see them so let it grow a week???@$%U(?  madness.  I drive 600 miles round trip every three weeks believe it or not and its been hell on time and money and now a week she wants??  I lie and give her four days and just grimmace and do it. 
Plus in Alaska it doesn't get dark so there is never shadow time....
I think we make a bigger deal of it than it is as I ask friends and they are like I can't even see them.  I just know by touching my face and can just know. 
In a hundred years or so we'll look back and laugh about it....uh huh.

[Wynternight]

Love the sense of humor in the whole thing.  I had the same thing with my electro woman, she flippantly says its hard for me to see them so let it grow a week???@$%U(?  madness.  I drive 600 miles round trip every three weeks believe it or not and its been hell on time and money and now a week she wants??  I lie and give her four days and just grimmace and do it. 
Plus in Alaska it doesn't get dark so there is never shadow time....
I think we make a bigger deal of it than it is as I ask friends and they are like I can't even see them.  I just know by touching my face and can just know. 
In a hundred years or so we'll look back and laugh about it....uh huh.

Hiya Stevie - I have a consult tomorrow afternoon for Laser at Solara. Any suggestions for or against?

[StevieAK]

My laser woman in fbx says they use the correct equipment. Try to get package price as they are expensive. They treated the boyfriend of a friend of mine who was very happy with their work. I'll call some ppl in a town get more info and call you.

I get my laser done in fairbanks, electro in a town. Appt on the 2nd of august for electro. I'll be there the 13,14,15 as well for work.

[Wynternight]

My laser woman in fbx says they use the correct equipment. Try to get package price as they are expensive. They treated the boyfriend of a friend of mine who was very happy with their work. I'll call some ppl in a town get more info and call you.

I get my laser done in fairbanks, electro in a town. Appt on the 2nd of august for electro. I'll be there the 13,14,15 as well for work.

Apparently they don't do full face so they were kind of scrambling to decide how much to charge me for it. They told me $1500 for five sessions with two more free if they decide I need more.