Susan's Place Transgender Resources

I looked up the tria hair removal stuff on amazon and Im seeing with shipping and all I need, it's gonna be around 800$. I dont know if going to a doctor to do it is cheaper or not. Ive got some stuff to think about but it's something I finally want to do it weather painful or not. I remember sitting back in 7th grade and Id pluck at my face hoping to kill the hair follicles. It never worked. I never wanted them ever. I always felt like why me and I call it a rat that grows on my face that never goes away.

If I did it at home, I risk damage to my face that a doctor wouldnt do. It's alot to think about. My mom told me once if I did this, it's better to go to a doctor where they can do this safely.

This would be another big step for me and it's a step I need to take.

My advice is, do not get one. I spent a lot of money buying one for myself, and got absolutely nothing in terms of results. On a lot of areas, where I had very noticeable hair, I didn't feel anything even on the highest settings. Even on the darkest areas of my facial hair, it hurt, but it was nothing like a professional laser. With a professional laser, the pain can be incredibly intense, and you will smell the odor of burning hair lingering in the air. The Tria stung a little in some areas, but even then, it didn't seem to do any real damage to the follicles, and I never noticed and hair shedding after treatment. And I really tried to make it work too. I repeatedly zapped the same spot over and over on the highest setting until the pain got really intense, but it still did nothing in terms of hair removal. I don't have light hair either, most of the hair I tried to treat was either black or dark brown. I would like to say something like this is my opinion, and your experiences may vary, but I really can't. When you compare a Tria to the intensity of real laser treatment, it's very easy to see why it didn't get results. If you want to see for yourself, I will even send you mine for free if you'll pay the shipping, but even then I would say you are probably better off saving your money. -_-

The Tria does work.. to a small degree.  I owned 2 of them over the years.  But it is definitely NOT worth the money they charge for it, and the pain and time it takes to use it.  Go to a professional;  you'll be done in 15 minutes for the first appointment and it'll cost a lot less.

The Tria is basically only good for doing very small patches, or zapping single missed hairs (but even then, electrolysis is more effective).

Hi -

It seems facial hair removal is a right of passage.  I strongly urge you to go to a professional who has experience with both laser and electro.  I was older and it took over 300 hours to clear my face and neck.  If you can start early, it's a good thing to do.

Take care,

Rachel

Ive decided to just have a pro do it. Im just not sure of any good places around omaha in nebraska. I looked but Im not sure whos good and whos not. I dont want like some ripoff.

This is something I have to do but I dont want to rush into just any place. Id appreciate any help I can get.

Larissa,

I had the same questions and concerns.  You might try what I did.   I looked up the websites for the local Tri-Ess chapter and a local TG support group.  They had a "Resources" page that listed regional TG friengly doctors, salons, clinics etc.   Through this I found a local medical aesthetics clinic that also does laser hair removal.  They are wonderful and truly TG friendly.

I finished my third treatment and see a noticeable lessening of my 5 o'clock shadow.  Even the gray grows more slowly.

Hope this will work for you!

Professional facial hair removal isn't cheap, and insurance doesn't cover it (or at least none that I've heard of do). But it's worth it. It's so worth it. It does take a while, even with dark hair and light skin (the "ideal" conditions for lasers which work off color contrast). Just make sure the professional is a professional. Removing facial hair is not like removing hair from other parts of the body, or even like removing facial hair from a hirsute ciswoman. There are a LOT of follicles, they are very close together, and they are not all active at the same time.


If it helps at all, here's my personal experience with professional hair removal:

I had my first three treatments done by an accepting, kind, and well-meaning woman who had no idea what she was doing (I was maybe her second trans customer) and who used an old laser. It hurt intensely, it didn't have any visible effect, and it left my skin looking raw and sunburned for weeks. I've had my next seven done by skilled professionals who have been treating transwomen for years and who had new equipment. It barely hurts at all, the side effects clear up in a few days, and we're making progress. I'm over halfway there, but I still need many more treatments.

I've spent $1,335 so far (the first woman charged $125 per treatment, the professionals charge $160) and I will have spent over $2,000 by the time we're done. The professionals do treatments every 2-3 weeks, and the first woman wanted 4 weeks between treatments (which is really too long), so I've been at this for seven months so far. It'll be another 3-4 at least before I'm done.

Even after those ten treatments, I'm still shaving three times a day, but the hair is substantially thinned out. There are just a few places where I can clearly see hair after six hours or so of not shaving (mostly splotches on the upper lip and to the left and right of the chin), rather than having a nearly full goatee after that amount of time. I can still feel the sandpaperish texture of hair in those places after that much time has passed, but I can no longer use it to scratch itches on my hands and arms like I used to. I also no longer look for ways to hide the lower part of my face in public... except for when I'm on my way to a laser appointment wearing my beard of saran wrap and topical analgesic :P


EDIT: Oh, and I strongly recommend, if you see a professional for laser (I can't give advice about electrolysis), asking about how new their laser is. Places with newer lasers are likely to charge more, but it's almost definitely worth it. Ideally, you want a laser that also blows puffs of cool air as it works. That will prevent the heat from building on your skin, reducing the chance of burning you and reducing the pain. That lets them use higher power settings and/or treat a specific area longer in a single session.

Regarding laser vs electrolysis, the general rule that I've heard is go with laser as long as you can, then switch to electrolysis if necessary afterward. Laser is faster and cheaper, but color-dependent. Laser cannot get rid of blonde or red hairs, and it is less effective the darker your skin is.

Before a laser treatment, remove all makeup and shave your face as close as you can. The less hair that leads to a follicle, the less heat required to kill the follicle (or so they told me). But, be careful not to cut yourself or leave your face raw and red. I don't think they can treat areas with open wounds, and if you make your face redder, the laser will be less effective. Also, I think plucking before laser is bad - they need hair connecting the follicle to your skin to act as a fuse transmitting the laser's heat (I think).

Before electrolysis, you actually want your hair to grow out a bit, I hear, so it's easier for them to find the follicles. But, again, I don't have any first-hand experience here.

Larissa, I have been using the Silk 'n Flash and Go, and it is working fantastically.  It is slow going, as treatment times are basically to weeks apart, but if you have the patience it may be a more viable route for you.  I think we paid about $300 bucks for it.

We (my wife and I) have been using it for a few weeks now, and I already have marked bare patches on my upper lip and beard area.  It is FDA approved, and is pretty painless (although the higher levels you do feel a little ting). 

I would suggest looking it up; you might find that this product may work better for you.

Always,
Marlo