Actually I should say 'hair removal specialist' rather than 'laser specialist', as this lady has a wide range of treatments available and has invested a huge amount of money in various pieces of equipment. She is a qualified doctor and this gave me the confidence to go to her. My initial visit lasted 2 hours and cost me nothing except for some applications which I will mention later.
She spent a very long time explaining the technicalities of hair reduction/removal and explaining what could be reasonably expected. Although I am naturally blonde my facial growth ( I hate calling it my beard) is dark, but as I am now sixty I have a large amount of grey and white hairs which are difficult to treat with conventional laser.
So it was decided that I would need ten sessions of IPL treatment - that's intensive pulsed light - costing £175 per session and I was given an intensive patch test on the day of my first visit, which lasted about ten minutes. I'd be a liar if I said it didn't hurt, but the pain is momentary and there is no after pain whatsoever. If you want to know more about IPL you will have to look it up on the web - it's far too technical for me to attempt to explain.
My next appointment is in January and between now and then I have to apply a special gel which dyes the light coloured hairs, not on the surface but right down to the root where the treatment is focussed, which will improve the chances of success. Also I have to apply a another special skin treatment daily AND, because my occupation means I am working out of doors alot, I am to wear an effective sun block daily, even though it's now winter here.
I will do an update after my January appointment. The clinic is in the south of England and if anyone wants details send me a private message.
I just went to see a new laser technician who works from home and charges 370.00ca for six laser treatments. Thats an amazing price considering I was paying 320.00ca for one treatment before. I know what everyone is thinking "there must be a catch" I won't give a final review until I have no hair but I can say that I am so happy after the first treatment the new 2007 SHR Lasers are fantastic theres less pain and better eradication of the hair. I noticed excellent results after one treatment, this may be due to me having laser done 3 times prior but that was 6 months ago. My next appt is this Sat so I hope to see even better results. At this point I would strongly recommend finding someone who has up to date equipment, knows what they are doing and works from home to anyone who wants to save money. When I asked about the prices she said it was because theres no building rental fees to pay so costs can be made affordable for everyone. Just be careful as I'm sure there are many criminals out there who will scam you, so far it looks like I got a good one.
I think the important thing is to go to a qualified operator who can offer a range of different treatments (there are several different types of laser treatment that destroy or impair the hair follicles in different ways). Then they can advise which type of treatment is most likely to be successful for your skin type, complexion, hair colour, etc. Hair removal is not cheap, takes a long time and costs a lot of money. There are no cheap options which are effective.