Susan's Place Transgender Resources

So I thought it would hurt a lot more but my hatred of my facial shadow has surpassed my desire to need inflict pain on myself. I'm about a 1/3 done and I can already see a noticable difference because no matter how close I shave there is always that bluish tint of shadow. But with plucking, my chin hair was basically stubble if that and the hair that gets plucked out is longer and has that root on its end. My shadow is dissapearing and that is awesome! Hey beauty is painful. My question is for anyone else who goes this route are there any consequences like zits or whatnot? How long does it last? Does it grow back less dense?

And my final question and the most important, will it effect laser hair removal. I will still be able to get that right?

I can't answer your individual questions too well, but I would suggest you start laser soon if you haven't.  Given the fact that you have been on hormones for some time, it would make sense to try and get it out of the way early.  If  you are already passing and going out full time, it would probably be a good idea to start the process.

Good luck on this method.  I haven't done this, but it sounds delightfully painful :)

You are a little more prone to breakouts if you tweeze. Basically you're leaving a hole where a strand used to be for the sebacious glands to fill it with sebum, causing problems with your skin. But it's still better than having shadow. The only problem is that they do grow back .... sometimes ingrown ...

As has been said you are opening your skin to some breakout, a good skin care regime can help this

as for how long this will last it depends on which stage of growth the hair is in when you pluck it

each hair you pluck it either in a growth stage in which case it will it will come back fast

or resting or transitional in which case they can stay gone for weeks. all of your hairs go through all of these stages, so if you are plucking all of your hairs you will eventually clear the whole area pretty effectively , just takes patience and nerve but it is NOT permanent, they will grow back.

my laserlady told me not to pluck, because there is quite a chance that the hair grows back white or blonde if you rip out the melanin bag which is responsible for the colour. and since lasers, no matter what system work better with dark hair.....
makes sense to me.

I can't afford laser for another couple months. Maybe sooner. I only work part time and I was receiving unemployment but it is on hold because they are doing a wage investigation (basically I am being punished for having the audacity to work and not just sit back and party and collect UC). I would have been better off being lazy. Oh well I like working and it keeps me in the workforce. But once that gets sorted out I will get laser.

But I am tired of beard shadow. I pass 100 percent of the time now pretty much but I know people are wondering why I have shadow on my chin and lip. They still call me she with all that and my voice. (Something else I need to fix!).

But I did it and I must say, Wow! It's night and day. I didn't get all the hairs but I plucked the bulk out and I took a photo and you can't see shadow...at all. I can't wait to see how I look once I shave. I put some neosporin on the areas just to make sure no infection occurs. I have a great skin care regimen so I should be fine. I also use Retin-A so I imagine that will help as it is def making my skin so much better. Ironically, my mom of all people gets me the retin-A though she said she isn't buying it for me anymore. She also forbid me from going out front as someone might see me. God forbid as someone might turn to stone from looking at my ugly freak self.

I am doing this too and so far my impressions are...
They do grow back, but because of antiandrogens in the system, that is not happening that fast. The first ones were pain, now it is getting much easier - I guess it weakens them too. Sometimes they come back thinner, sometimes not. Maintaining is still a pain in the butt, but I am waiting for anti-facial hair creme to arrive to see if both methods would combine. Having magnifying makeup mirror really does help (I use 15x one cheapo which I got on e-bay).
Sometimes my skin gets a bit irritated, in most cases not. I am also exfoliating with salt-based scrub 3x times per week.
I would not even try to do this on my neck - maintaining that would be hell :P

Yeah I didn't do my neck or cheeks. I can get pretty clean there with no shadow. It is mainly my chin and lips. And I must say that it WORKKKKED! I have almost no facial shadow whatsoever. Maybe if you had a magnifying glass, but this method is a def success and I would recommend it to anyone who is passing but shadow gets in the way making you look awkward. Maybe I'll post some photos. This was def help me in my quest for a BF, though I did meet a guy recently and we're just friends for now but when we were walking together to get some beer, we were walking like BF and GF and I was practically leaning on him and he didn't move, so that's good. I iwsh I was hanging with him now. Tangent over lol

But my fellow pre laser sisters, pluck that facial hair! You can thank me later!

If you plan on having laser or electrolysis, don't do it. It harms the follicle in a bad way, and makes the hair grow back crooked, which can make it hard or impossible (sometimes) to remove it permanently via laser or electro. Also, nasty ingrown hairs can also result... sometimes deep under the skin.

Quote from: versuchsanordnung on June 07, 2013, 12:56:39 PM
my laserlady told me not to pluck, because there is quite a chance that the hair grows back white or blonde if you rip out the melanin bag which is responsible for the colour. and since lasers, no matter what system work better with dark hair.....
makes sense to me.

That makes sense.  I've heard that laser only really works well for people with light skin and dark hair.

Joanna,

I'm in a tough economic situation myself so I hear you.  Having said that, if you could get one session done on your face, it would make a big difference and wouldn't cost you too much.  This method may create future problems for laser, as others suggested, so I would be cautious about continuing this practice.  I don't know too much about the process, but JennX's statement above seems to go along with what I've read before.

Yeah maybe I won't do it anymore. That's good advice. I just kinda wanted to see what I look like with no shadow and I look good jk lol I doubt, and I hope, doing it once won't hurt laser too much. I should be getting it in a couple months if not sooner. Mainly I just wanted to check if I passed much better without it and if the shadow is the sole culprit of why I get sir'd sometimes, though rare. I'm just tired of looking like a man and nothing says man like beard shadow.

Quote from: JennX on June 07, 2013, 05:17:55 PM
If you plan on having laser or electrolysis, don't do it. It harms the follicle in a bad way, and makes the hair grow back crooked, which can make it hard or impossible (sometimes) to remove it permanently via laser or electro. Also, nasty ingrown hairs can also result... sometimes deep under the skin.

Jenn this is only true for electro. Laser doesn't care what condition the follicle is in as long as its dark ;)

That said, plucking will interrupt the laser hair removal process because it tends to reset the growth cycle of a hair, meaning it might not be treatable again for another 4 months- which would delay the laser process.

With electro, they say that it damages the follicle but I have read multiple places about people that have plucked and even epilated facial hair and the electro tech had no idea.

That said, I have also heard the other way around- with electro not being possible after years of plucking.

Hmm, well then maybe I'll keep doing it lol I do lovelovelove it! My money is tied up in a big bouquet of red tape so until I get that it will be hard to save the measley amount of money I get paid cause I use it for HRT and my social life. Plus my social life got like ten million times better as my best friend said she accepts me, I met a guy who I like (and may like me; we've been texting and I slept with him just in the same bed though not sex) and he knows I am trans and basically said that I look exactly like a 25 year old chick it's just the shadow *cough cough* and he even has a really good friend that is trans and is learning to be a laser tech! It's like I won some mystical trans lottery! Of course I do have problems ie my mom who is really pissed at me since I stopped dressing andro and started dressing how I want. Tangent again. Sorry. Hey it is my thread jk lol

But I'm only plucking my chin and upper lip so they could do the neck and little hair on my cheeks, right? Then chin and lip. My hair isn't very thick but it is black on pale skin so hopefully this doesn't effect it and Jenny is right. Which Jen do believe? They're both so awesome I can't choose! I just feel so much better without the chin hair. Like leaps and bounds.

Quote from: Joanna Dark on June 07, 2013, 08:43:41 PM
Hmm, well then maybe I'll keep doing it lol I do lovelovelove it! My money is tied up in a big bouquet of red tape so until I get that it will be hard to save the measley amount of money I get paid cause I use it for HRT and my social life. Plus my social life got like ten million times better as my best friend said she accepts me, I met a guy who I like (and may like me; we've been texting and I slept with him just in the same bed though not sex) and he knows I am trans and basically said that I look exactly like a 25 year old chick it's just the shadow *cough cough* and he even has a really good friend that is trans and is learning to be a laser tech! It's like I won some mystical trans lottery! Of course I do have problems ie my mom who is really pissed at me since I stopped dressing andro and started dressing how I want. Tangent again. Sorry. Hey it is my thread jk lol

But I'm only plucking my chin and upper lip so they could do the neck and little hair on my cheeks, right? Then chin and lip. My hair isn't very thick but it is black on pale skin so hopefully this doesn't effect it and Jenny is right. Which Jen do believe? They're both so awesome I can't choose! I just feel so much better without the chin hair. Like leaps and bounds.

It's generally a bad idea to tweeze facial hair off.. kind of a known no no in the mtf arena.

But what can I say... I just started doing it after my 6th and last laser session. I am going to use my Tria from now on so I don't really care about interrupting a laser schedule. I needed to be clear and I was not willing to wait any longer. Luckily 95% of the hair that I tweezed out fell right out as it had been treated by the laser a week earlier.

I haven't shaved in 9 days. That is a first in probably 13 or 14 years. Soooo much less makeup too. Life is grand!

Hopefully it doesn't come back to bite us in the butts.

Quote from: Jennygirl on June 07, 2013, 08:49:21 PM
It's generally a bad idea to tweeze facial hair off.. kind of a known no no in the mtf arena.

But what can I say... I just started doing it after my 6th and last laser session. I am going to use my Tria from now on so I don't really care about interrupting a laser schedule. I needed to be clear and I was not willing to wait any longer. Luckily 95% of the hair that I tweezed out fell right out as it had been treated by the laser a week earlier.

I haven't shaved in 9 days. That is a first in probably 13 or 14 years. Soooo much less makeup too. Life is grand!

Hopefully it doesn't come back to bite us in the butts.

That depends on the point you have reached, once all laser or electrolysis is done and you only have a few stray hairs left plucking is fine

I only have a few strays and that is how I take care of them, works fine for me; but wea are talking about after years of electrolysis

First off I can't believe how anyone can do this....I had tried one to two hairs years ago on upper lip and said F this!!

Second of all this is not permanent but it will affect any permanent procedures you may eventually want...such as electro

Just my two hairs cents worth.....don't do it!

Quote from: Jennygirl on June 07, 2013, 07:01:02 PM

Jenn this is only true for electro. Laser doesn't care what condition the follicle is in as long as its dark ;)

Both my laser & electro techs told me the same thing... So? Depends who you ask. I haven't shaved in almost a year... A no guy that's touched my face in the last 6 months has complained.  8) So, I'm happy.

Aside from laser, followed by electro to kill the leftovers... Everything else is a waste of time and money.

Quote from: vegie271 on June 07, 2013, 09:02:47 PM


That depends on the point you have reached, once all laser or electrolysis is done and you only have a few stray hairs left plucking is fine

I only have a few strays and that is how I take care of them, works fine for me; but wea are talking about after years of electrolysis

Well now I don't feel so bad... I definitely just had strays.

Quote from: JennX on June 07, 2013, 09:49:20 PM
Aside from laser, followed by electro to kill the leftovers... Everything else is a waste of time and money.

Yeah I should probably just start electro at this point

Quote from: Jennygirl on June 07, 2013, 09:54:07 PM

Yeah I should probably just start electro at this point

That has been the most effective at permanently killing the hair for me. Laser is a good shotgun approach to cover a lot of ground fast... But won't kill everything. Most honest laser techs will tell their customers this upfront. A good electro tech makes a world of difference.

maybe I should tell you, I spent over $20,000 on electrolysis, I started in the bad old days, it took me years and I had to shave 2 times a day when I started  :(

Quote from: JennX on June 07, 2013, 10:04:44 PM
That has been the most effective at permanently killing the hair for me. Laser is a good shotgun approach to cover a lot of ground fast... But won't kill everything. Most honest laser techs will tell their customers this upfront. A good electro tech makes a world of difference.

That's the key word "honest" ....many laser techs guarantee permanent removal in just 4-6 sessions....I will say the 8 sessions I had made a huge difference....but I have still done about 20 hours of electro and will probably do another 10. Even with that I am sure years down the road I will need to still zap a few!!

I will say laser works well on the arms, legs and chest....I have had only one session on arms with good results and two on chest with ok results...but I have used electro for anything above the nipples

I'm not going to be doing it on a regular basis. Maybe like two more times until I can afford laser. If that. I just wanted to see how I looked shadow free. Also, i don't have much facial hair to begin with. It took me 45 minutes to get rid of it. I couldn't shave twice a day as I am smooth for at least 36 hours after a shave. I have soft, downy black hair on my face. It is not coarse like most guys. At least this is what my ex told me. But I prob won't do it again unless I am going to see this guy. You don't think one time will affect laser do you? I mean I used to rip them out when I was younger without tweezers. That is how easily they come out.

Quote from: Joanna Dark on June 08, 2013, 12:26:55 AM
I'm not going to be doing it on a regular basis. Maybe like two more times until I can afford laser. If that. I just wanted to see how I looked shadow free. Also, i don't have much facial hair to begin with. It took me 45 minutes to get rid of it. I couldn't shave twice a day as I am smooth for at least 36 hours after a shave. I have soft, downy black hair on my face. It is not coarse like most guys. At least this is what my ex told me. But I prob won't do it again unless I am going to see this guy. You don't think one time will affect laser do you? I mean I used to rip them out when I was younger without tweezers. That is how easily they come out.

You'll probably be fine. I wouldn't worry about it. MAYBE someday down the line an electrologist might yell at you / us.

-It's unlikely although possible to get some scars this way. But I don't know if this is "automatic" or linked to "doing it wrong".

-Make sure you stop any plucking at the very least 1 month (ideally 2) before you start laser, or else you're definitely diminishing the efficiency of treatment (and thus wasting money in a way).

-Make sure you exfoliate, clean and moisturize really well, or you might get more skin problem. Might. For me though plucking a hair has always been a huge relief to weeks of pain from a repeatedly ingrown hair, and overall a temporary relief for my skin.

Quote from: A on June 08, 2013, 09:58:27 AM
Make sure you exfoliate, clean and moisturize really well, or you might get more skin problem. Might. For me though plucking a hair has always been a huge relief to weeks of pain from a repeatedly ingrown hair, and overall a temporary relief for my skin.

I have a ProX brush I exfoliate with, exfoliateing cream, $20 moisturizer, and use a dead sea salt mask once a week to absorb the impurities and suck them out of my skin. Oh yeah, every night I apply Retin-A to my skin in a an effort to chemically resurface it. It seems to be working. It takes awhile. I easily have most expensive, exhausting skin care regimen on this forum. Not bragging, it's actually quite annoying and I wish I could just get up and go. But I can't so I don't.

I didn't know salt could exfoliate. I thought all it did was dry skin through osmosis.

It's just a facial mask and it does exfoliate since it removes dead cells. It's dead sea salt though not regular salt. I used to use a clay mask or avocado but this works like magic and my face is so smooth after.