Electrolysis instead of Laser

[NataliaDoll]

I guess I'm making this post not for a questions but for a suggestion. Basically for anyone who plans on getting hair removal I wouldn't get laser hair removal! I was told my hair would be gone in 10 sessions I finished my 9th and my "last" ones Monday all of the sudden I noticed more hair on my face than before I started! I am so angry about this because I literally had no hair besides my lip and chin which was pretty thin. I had a few spread out hairs on my face but not that noticeable so I did the lower face sessions and 10 months later I noticed more hair than before in areas I never had it on my jaw and upper cheeks? I googled and noticed there are many patients who have had more regrowth after laser than before! My testosterone is blocked so I know it's the laser. Hopefully they can work something out for me on Monday but regardless I'm FOR SURE not going back unless it's free I'm going to do electrolysis since it does give permanent hair removal instead of stupid laser.

Get electrolysis it's better in the long run

[Dena]

I can't speak for laser as I have never had it but I have discovered something with electrolysis that may explain what you are seeing. When I was shaving every day, my face was clean as my facial hair was never that dense. At the point where I could stop shaving, I found batch of slower growing finer hair that I could never see because daily shaving never gave them enough time to grow. Electrolysis removed the thicker of those and I now have a very fine feminine peach fuzz that I don't worry about. It's possible that hair was always there but laser couldn't touch it because of color and shaving hid it until now.

[HappyMoni]

I started with laser and then went to electrolysis. With laser on my chest, I started seeing thick blond hair sprouting. I definitely never had these before. The laser operator swore that it was impossible to stimulate new hairs to grow. My personal experience said otherwise. I then went to an electrolysis establishment. I actually came out as transgender to my electrolysis provider while she was working on my upper abdominal area. She said, "We should start on your face instead, because hormones will take care of a lot of this hair." She was correct. The hormones knocked out a lot of body hair. I am sold on electrolysis now. The only place, in my opinion, that laser is good for is an area like legs that are very hairy with coarse hair. The hair there grew back much finer after laser and electrolysis would have taken forever. My advise is let the hormones do their job while you concentrate on the facial hair. Hormones won't help there.
Moni

[Tess2016]

Hi... There is a warning on this post suggesting its been at least 30 days since it was lasted posted on.. However, I really feel there is no point in starting a new post, so here goes.. 

With regards to hair growing back after Laser.. Its really strange that you can buy a Laser Head Set that promotes hair growth on the head and their are other combs and brushes with Red Light Laser that do the same.. No one really knows how it works, so the Laser removal might well stimulate new hair growth..

I have a few problems of my own.. I bought the Infinity G to remove so call grey hair but not so sure it really working. Its early days but its supposed to remove grey hair. My big issue is, which is worrying me heaps, is my face hair, being grey/white.. Laser is no good for grey hair but electrolysis is colour blind so it works on grey/white hair.. But, it can have some issues which is scary particularly the leaving marks comments and other side effects.. To use electrolysis on my entire face will be very expensive and I have yet to find a mob in Brisbane Australia to do it.. So I was thinking Thailand.

I was wondering if anyone here has had large areas of grey hair removed from their face and does anyone recommend a mob either in Australia or Thailand or other pleases to have it done.. My intention is to have my FFS after my SRS... As stated here, hormones will take care of some of my body hair.. But the face is a hard one to deal with..

Tess...

[Dayta]

So far I have had laser done on my legs (85% complete), bikini area (60% complete), underarms (~100% complete, after starting there with two rounds of electrolysis) and chest/stomach (maybe 10%, just started with one session). 

I have had hands and feet (100% complete) and back (85% complete) done via electrolysis, and just began my face, strictly with electrolysis (6 hours in, maybe 15% cleared?).  I haven't had any issues so far with lasting marks from electrolysis, but I am in a large market (LA, CA) and chose providers very wisely.  I think the laser method works well on large areas with dark hair/light skin, but there seem to be other areas, like my face, much better served by electrolysis, given access and affordability. 

I really like both my electrologist and my laserologists, and have had completely positive experiences with both. 

L

[Tess2016]

Hi.. Good to know you have no lasting marks with electrolysis... I found a mob in Brisbane that does electrolysis, but no email so I have to phone.. That means I have to book an appointment.. emmmm ..

I do not have a great deal of body hair so I think my Infinity G might be good for that. Might be due to the fact I have a very high natural oestrogen levels without any HRT... My only real worry is the face.. Right up to 22 I had no hair at all on the face.. Since then I have suffered from testosterone poisoning.. 

I really want to get the face hair gone before FFS..

Tess..

[ainawa88]

... I finished my 9th and my "last" ones Monday all of the sudden I noticed more hair on my face than before I started!

I would ask the technician if they used different settings. That happened to me after my third or fourth session and it's because they switched from long-pulsed to intense pulsed (without informing me, I might add). After they switched back I had no more issues with laser/regrowth.

[DawnOday]

As I understand it Lasers and Ipl cannot determine what to eliminate if you have blonde or grey hair. Dark hair works best. You are best off getting electrolysis. It is expensive but it is the only permanent solution and proven to work.

[Maybebaby56]

This is known side-effect of laser epilation. It does occur in a small number of patients:

http://dermatologytimes.modernmedicine.com/dermatology-times/content/tags/dermatology/light-laser-therapy-may-stimulate-hair-growth

~Terri

[Tess2016]

Hey... I wonder if anyone has tried "intense pulsed" on the head.  Probably have with the Laser Head Set.. Most things like this are discovered by accident.

Tess..

[LizK]

I have both Electrolysis and Laser from the same place so there is no conflict over which is better. They leave the dark or black hairs for laser and go after the grey ones. Laser is so much better for your skin. I have had no regrowth of dark hairs from my laser treatment and find it excellent. I have had new growth come through in similar area's but this gets less each time. As each layer of dark hair follicles becomes active it can be zapped and will fall out or die under the skin leaving a black dot that is absorbed  It won't work at all on lighter hairs. I am about to have treatment 9 and expect to have a heap more. There are so many layers of skin cells that are in various stages of growth and some may not come up for 18 months or more. I read regularly of girls who after a fair number of years are still getting the odd hair stubbornly coming through and thats after 100's of hours of Electrolysis treatment.

I am getting similar new growth with Electrolysis but it is finer and also dark unlike the original grey hairs in the area so it too can be zapped by the laser. It took me quite some time to work out what was going on. But any new growth from dormant cells activating is black and not grey...I hope this keeps happening because I am able to tolerate the laser far better than the Electrolysis. I know this is not the same experience as some others are having but I really think it comes down to the skill of the Technician and the difference between IPL and Medical Grade laser Treatment which is what I am having. They give very different results.

Liz

[Tess2016]

That is interesting... I hope my grey regrows as dark hair.. That is much more doable to get rid of.. Laser is most definitely more tolerable and cheaper. I wonder why dark hair can grow back.... One thing is for certain. Hair growing where its not needed or wanted, is very annoying...

Tess...

[EmilyMK03]

I have had 9 laser hair removal treatments across 9 months, and it's been extremely effective.  I haven't had to shave at all in 3 weeks.

I've heard that laser hair removal works very well for Asians (due to our fair skin and black hair).  I'll likely never need to do electrolysis.

[LizK]

.... I wonder why dark hair can grow back....
Tess...

I don't know but I can't work out any other way I am getting the results I am. I have never seen any new growth grey hairs, I have seen new growth dark hairs which get zapped by the laser. I have a spot under my chin about 2inch circle that was cleared once with Electrolysis about 8 months ago...I seemed to have nothing come up in this spot ever...So I began to watch and the only thing I did see, very rarely, was the occasional black hair so what happened to all the grey? I can't explain it either and I don't know if it will keep happening but I sure hope so.

Liz

[V]

I had my laser /IPL treatment at a clinic in the UK called "Transgirl" which specialised in hair removal for trans folk. But they always made clear it was permanent hair reduction not removal. And you should leave 6 weeks between each Laser/IPL treatment to get the maximum effect. I had that treatment for years, as a complete cycle of facial hair growth takes 10 months. So each follicle only gets one zap every 10 months. Each follicle needs at least 3 or 4 zaps to fully wither away. Hence you really need to plan a hair removal regime over many years. I had 6 years of Laser/IPL, before moving onto electrolysis for a further 4 years.
I had 2 years of Laser/IPL before I even transitioned.
I had the Laser/IPL treatment on my face, neck, chest and underarms. The hair was adequately reduced on my chest and underarms with just this treatment. I had to continue on my face and neck with electro. Even now I still get hairs on my face, hence I spend 30 mins each morning plucking them out.
I was a very hairy guy, it was a massive undertaking. I couldn't afford to get my arms, hands, legs or feet done. I have to shave my arms, hands and fingers every 4 days. With my legs, I often just wear trousers 

Yup, being trans is tough.

Hey... I wonder if anyone has tried "intense pulsed" on the head.  Probably have with the Laser Head Set.. Most things like this are discovered by accident.

Tess..

I had really bad hair loss and male-pattern baldness, in fact by the time I was 12 years old, my hairline had receded so much that my nickname at school was 'Dracula'   
Once on hrt, things improved a bit but still not enough to stop wearing a wig after I transitioned. So I took Finasteride and that helped a bit too. Then I had some hair transplants to enable me to finally stop wearing a wig. But my hair still wasn't great. Then my boyfriend saw a product on a shopping channel (might have been QVC) called the "Hair Max". It's basically a comb with a set of laser red LEDs that shine onto your scalp. Yeah, sounds like a total gimmick, and that's what I thought too. But it was offered with a 6 month money-back guarantee, so I thought "What the hell, might as well give it a go".
I used it for 10 mins 3 times a week, and I gave it a year, and actually it has had an effect. Both my boyfriend and my hairdresser have said that I have more hair, but it took a good year to really see any results. So yes, laser light can stimulate hair growth as well as reduce it. It all depends on the frequency and intensity of the light wavelength.

Am I completely happy with my hairline now? Not really. But the rest of my head is OK, and my bald patch has gone.

Am looking at a final round of hair transplants to sort my hairline to my satisfaction, but it is possible with perseverance and money!
I thought I was a hopeless case too.

I look at all the lucky trans girls with full heads of hair with envy. You don't know how lucky you are!

[LizK]

Can you tell me what you mean by Laser/IPL

Thanks

Liz

[Tess2016]

That "Finasteride" stuff is a bit iffy.. Better to take Biotin. Its safe and still blocks the DHT's... Also use a Biotin shampoo.. Its does makes a difference...

I was also wondering about the light brushes etc. They do sound like a gimmick but who knows. They are mostly very expensive so really not sure if I should invest in one, I cannot really afford to buy anyway. There is the new FUE process using the the ARTAS Robot which I would love to have done... The system before that they removed a strip of skins and then removed the follicles from that.. It seems to have amazing results but its expensive, but better than removing a strip of skin, which leaves a long scar.. There is also Stem Cell hair replacement, which I feel is the next big thing.. With the use of the Red Laser Light bruises, combs and head sets etc, set on a certain frequency suggest that the hair follicles are there... Its just a matter of promoting them to grow.. It always seems harder to get hair to grow than to kill it off.

Tess...

[V]

Can you tell me what you mean by Laser/IPL

Thanks

Liz

Hi Liz, IPL stands for Intensed Pulsed Light. It was what the clinic referred the treatment as, but it is still a Laser.

That "Finasteride" stuff is a bit iffy.. Better to take Biotin. Its safe and still blocks the DHT's... Also use a Biotin shampoo.. Its does makes a difference...

I was also wondering about the light brushes etc. They do sound like a gimmick but who knows. They are mostly very expensive so really not sure if I should invest in one, I cannot really afford to buy anyway. There is the new FUE process using the the ARTAS Robot which I would love to have done... The system before that they removed a strip of skins and then removed the follicles from that.. It seems to have amazing results but its expensive, but better than removing a strip of skin, which leaves a long scar.. There is also Stem Cell hair replacement, which I feel is the next big thing.. With the use of the Red Laser Light bruises, combs and head sets etc, set on a certain frequency suggest that the hair follicles are there... Its just a matter of promoting them to grow.. It always seems harder to get hair to grow than to kill it off.

Tess...

I've taken Finasteride for the last 12 years, with no problems, so I'm gonna continue with that.

The 'Hair Max' light brush cost me £300, so yeah, it wasn't cheap, but what treatments for hair loss are cheap? It's cheaper than implants. And it worked for me. It has a working life of 10 years, so that works out at £30 per year, which isn't so bad.
I'm not trying to be an advert for it though, we all just do/try what we can.

I have had Follicular Unit Graft hair transplants with a company called DHi. They took individual hair follicles from the back of my head and transplanted them at the front. Yeah it's expensive and the new hair takes a year or more to regrow, but it does work.
It's hard to get my hair to grow on my head, but equally as hard to try and kill it off on my face and body :/

[Tess2016]

I still recommend Biotin products. They are DHT blockers.. I have wondered about those brushes for a while.. Its nice to chat with someone who has actually used one and succeeded with using it.. Hair transplants are very costly and invasive.. But if I can get some results using a Laser Light Brush that appeals to me so much more than transplants. I really like the idea of using a Laser Light Head Set, just put it on and carry on doing other things..... They are expensive but still cheaper than transplants.. I like the idea of stimulated my own hair growth too..

Tess..

[LizK]

Thanks V I wasn't sure what you meant because what you describe is different to my experience but then I am having different laser to IPL type you had. The laser they use on me will kill the follicle at the first pass which is one of the big advantages over IPL, it will not change the number of dormant follicles you have, nor treat them but once zapped, that follicle will not grow another hair...dead is dead. Electrolysis fries them with heat and Lye and Laser fries the follicle with heat as the the hair pigmentation heats up.

I too have had hair implants which were taken from a strip in the back of my head and I am about 6 months down the track and dealing with the last of the ingrown hairs coming through. I will be able to style a fringe easily now, once my hair has grown out. It will be a year in at the beginning of August since I cut my hair which was a buzz cut prior to that. I am so impressed with how the hair is growing and how natural it looks. I can see already after 6 months growth that it will thicken nicely over the next 12 to 18 months


Liz