*pluck* OUCH! !#@%!.... *pluck*

[helenr13]

There was one woman on a site years ago who said she used an epilator on her face and that it worked.

She also said that it took awhile before she "got used to it." I bet!! But she also said that after that while the pain was drastically reduced.

If you can recall or are going through eyebrow waxing in early transition I imagine that the process is about the same. Those earliest sessions as I recall were very rough with very coarse eyebrow hair.

Now, the hair seems much finer and the strips are much easier, in fact they pretty much glide off, because the hair has grown finer.

The hairs, I think, do not get "thicker" due to plucking although if I were an elektro I could see telling ya that to make sure you used me instead of doing the plucking! I've ever imagined my eyebrow hairs getting "thicker" after I pluck them. They all seem to get finer to me. Perhaps YMMV?

N~

I'm unable to have laser or electrolysis because I have a pacemaker, so I've tried numerous other ways to rid myself of beard hair.

Yes I've epilated my face, but never able to complete my whole face in one session because of the extreme
P-A-I-N. I tried just doing a small area each day but it made my face quite sore and the pain was unbelievable especially above and below my lips.

I've used hair removal creams such as Nair for Men which have been no more effective than shaving. The only preparation which has actually slowed down growth is Eflora (also marketed as Vaniqa). Its full name is Eflornithine Hydrochloride Cream and it requires a prescription. But be warned, it's expensive if you are paying for it and once you've started you have to keep right on applying it twice a day or it's back to square one.

Plucking? If I was doing thirty years in jail and had nothing else to do but pluck hairs all day it might work in time for my release 

By the way, I'm still shaving daily

[Ms Jessica]

You agree that I'm ugly ?   

LOLZ.  I thought the context of the remark would have indicated what I was talking about-- leaving the laser and electrolysis to the pros. 

As for the shameless plea for a compliment:  (rolling my eyes is one of my favorite pasttimes)
Puh-lease.     (in other words, you look great)

[Ellieka]

LOLZ.  I thought the context of the remark would have indicated what I was talking about-- leaving the laser and electrolysis to the pros. 

Yeah, I knew what you meant but I saw an opportunity to fish for compliments. Or insults...

I always thought that one of the warning signs of adulthood is learning not to ask questions you really don't want to know the answer to.

Honestly I don't give a rats ass what most people think about my appearance. I'd rather look like an ugly woman then a good looking guy. I don't get the crap beat out of me when I walk down the street but I don't get many catcalls or turned heads either. I am perfectly content to go mostly unnoticed. At least I'm not afraid to show my face in public or admit what I am.

[sd]

I am clearly no expert on this, but I wouldn't recommend sunglasses to protect your eyes from a laser unless I saw some documentation showing it really did work. I have seen people who have used a few pairs of sunglasses stacked to do welding, it worked, for a little while, but they still ended up with flashburns.

Research it first, it's better than being blind.

[Jeneva]

I am clearly no expert on this, but I wouldn't recommend sunglasses to protect your eyes from a laser unless I saw some documentation showing it really did work. I have seen people who have used a few pairs of sunglasses stacked to do welding, it worked, for a little while, but they still ended up with flashburns.

Research it first, it's better than being blind.

Just so no one misreads my earlier post.  I never suggested sunglasses for the tria (diode laser).  I used a pair of protective glasses rated for the tria wavelengths.  As I said Vulpes had already done the legwork on them for everyone else.  Here is a direct link to his page for anyone interested http://www.geocities.com/vulpresults/tria.html

The silk'n is not a laser, it is an IPL (high powered flashlight).  Because it is an IPL there isn't going to be a tight wavelength band to block (its wide spectrum).  I did only use sunglasses for that, but at no point was I actually near my eyes and I used my free hand to block the light and since it is button triggered I kept my eyes closed during the pulse.  With the silk'n its not a bad idea to close your eyes before the pop anyway simply because it lights the room enough to be annoying.

Actually since then I've had my eyes checked since then and I'm still 20/20 with no problems.  My wife and children all have eye problems so I have to carry vision insurance.  Since I was covered as well and there isn't a big copay, I went along on the last visit since I hadn't had mine checked in a ~5 years.

YMMV and any facial use is denied by the mfr.  Please use your OWN judgment on safety and eye protection.

[xsocialworker]

I don't think any home remedies really work. I would include any hair removal tools you buy yourself and herbal hormones from the vitamin counter. I am speaking from experience, both mine and others. When I finally began eletrolysis by a professional and prescription hormones, the speed of the changes was amazing. I started in 2001 and in two years I got a job as female and went to conferences in DC ( as my new self) as the guest of CSAT and SAMHSA. I really believe that anybody who thinks they can transition without professional help is just prolonging the "agony".

[NeonStars]

I use hair removel cream, but it make all my skin red an the skin that i have put it on will be numb or a a few hours =/

[Tammy Hope]

I tried waxing once on a test strip along my lower breastbone and onto my upper belly and I found that on the soft fatty area that the result was a very blotchy area that lasted for days. That made me afraid to use it in some of the problem places (I find that when I shave the places where I get the worst results are the softest fattiest areas) I had been hoping to take care of

(I still have that $15 paperweight)

But the major problem I had wasn't that- the problem I had was holding off shaving long enough to get enough hair for the wax to stick to. i CAN'T go 2 or 3 weeks without shaving - I just CAN'T.

At least not for a temporary removal - I might put up with it for a laser or electro session.

As for plucking, I don't have a steady enough hand or good enough eyes to grab a single hair with a pair of tweezers. The only places i pluck are in my nose (yuck!) and one persistent hair in near the bottom of each earlobe.

[V M]

I've tried a few waxes and found that most are too chemi for my sensitive skin. The only one I'd recommend is the GiGi microwave wax system. It takes a little while to learn to use but it does a good job without giving you a nasty chem. burn. Luckily the girl that gave me the wax showed me how to get the wax to the right temp and some good application techniques. I think there are a few other co. that make similar products, but I haven't tried them. I wouldn't give Nair to my worst enemy 

[Ellieka]

I finally broke down and bought an epilator for my body... I absolutely love that thing! I don't dare use it on my face but it works great every place else. Only cost me about $40.

[Tammy Hope]

How long does the hair have to be for an epi to work?

and how long is it before you have stubble again after using?

[Ellieka]

It will get hairs as short as about 1/16th of an inch so you don't have to let it grow out for more then a weekend really. I let mine grow form  Friday to Monday morning then I use it. I can go at least three days before I have to retouch some spots.

HRT has really slowed my body hair growth though so depending on how long you have been on them can make a difference.

I got the Remington epilator/shaver from Wal-mart... it has both a power cord and and rechargeable batteries. 

[kalina]

I'm so sick of having facial hair that over the last few days I've taken up plucking them one by one. I was wondering how many of you have also done this and what have been your results, i.e. how long before you noticed regrowth and over time did you notice and permanent reduction in regrowth?

I have read that over time regrowth can slow significantly but I was looking for some real experiences here.

Thanks!

Back in the day, I was the queen of tweezing. I tweezed all of my mustache hair and goatee hair and tweezed my eyebrows, too. All of your hair doesn't come back at the same time. It comes back in cycles, so one wave of hair comes back say every other week and another wave comes back every other week between those weeks. If you're going to be transitioning, however, I'd recommend laser hair removal. After 12 sessions, my facial hair is all gone save for maybe 6 that come back every other week. I can tweeze those easily without fuss.

[Ellieka]

Yep. Laser is the way to go. I'll be going for my first session July 21st... YIPEEE!