Hello Everyone
  I was wondering about electrolysis for facial hair. I have just recently started seeing a therapist and beginning my transition. I am hoping to start HRT soon, but in the mean time I have been thinking of losing my facial hair(YEAHHH!! no more shaving ). I am a bit worried that it would noticeable, as I haven't really come out to anyone but my wife and kids. I'm just worried that those around me might notice my facial hair missing, I do usually keep my face clean(for the most part, when I'm not being lazy) as I really never liked it hairy. So my question is would people notice that your facial hair is gone or do they just figure you keep it clean shaven. I also want to say Thank You!! to everyone here you give me hope and courage knowing I'm not alone in this world.

It depends on how dark your facial hair is and how much 5 O'clock shadow you accumulate throughout the day; if you're light and not much hair grows on your face then they wouldn't necessarily clue in on the hair loss ; however, electrolysis also makes your skin appear softer as well.

Depending on your skin, there may be redness for a day or so after treatment and you need about 3 days of growth before treatment so the operator can get a hold of the hair. You are talking an hour or two a session and it might put a hole in the bank account. The clearing could be done all over or the operator may want to work one area at a time. In short, it might be noticed if your family is observant. I think you should come out to your family but if not, you might explain it as getting ingrown hairs taken care of.

Sorry, I neglected to mention how swollen and scabby you will be for a couple of  days after each treatment; I must have blocked that part out of my memory, and went straight to the post healing stage.

The thing about electrolysis is it takes a very long time.  A reasonable heuristic is about 200 hours from start to finish.  Think about it, you have more than 20,000 hair follicles in you beard.  Each one must be individually treated and the sad fact is that many will require two or more treatments.  Yes it is noticeable, but only over a considerable period of time.  Best advise start right away.  If you choose to live in the guise of a woman full time one day, having this done first makes life much, much easier.

Ming

There is also swelling to contend with. I used to tell people that I had a reaction to shaving. They didn't quite buy it but they didn't have a clue as to what was going on. I would get my face completely cleared which took many hours in the chair and my face would swell like a basketball.

Yes, you will have some swelling and possibly a bit bumpy - but it goes down within a day. Usually you shouldn't shave closely for a few days after treatment to avoid scabs and scarring.

The thing is, it will take you a year at a minimum, more likely two. People generally don't notice such slow change if they see you regularly. Generally though you will just look clean shaven towards the end of the process.

Quote from: kittenpower on December 13, 2015, 05:10:30 PM
Sorry, I neglected to mention how swollen and scabby you will be for a couple of  days after each treatment; I must have blocked that part out of my memory, and went straight to the post healing stage.

This, absolutely this. That said it's easier to make up some BS excuse for this rather than growing boobs.

Quote from: iKate on December 13, 2015, 05:30:52 PM
This, absolutely this. That said it's easier to make up some BS excuse for this rather than growing boobs.

Pfft! I have c cups and people don't even notice if I'm dressed male or even neutral. It's a bit disheartening.

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Hi Caryn,

(BTW, that's a lovely name. One of my best girlfriends is named Caryn.) As others have said, it depends whether you have a noticeable beard shadow now.  Even then, if you ask (repeatedly ask) your electrologist to thin not clear your beard, it will be easier to do it in stealth. 

When I first started electrolysis I had much more swelling and redness after each session.  As things progressed, it lessened, for some reason. I had never had scabbing.  I started on straight thermolysis, but later (too much later, if you ask me) found out that blended electrolysis (galvanic and thermolysis) was less painful and produced less reaction in my skin.  I always scheduled my appointments for a Saturday so I had a day to heal before going back to work.  If you have a problem, try scheduling Fridays after work to give you the most time. In addition to lidocaine cream for pain, you can use ice packs and hydrocortisone cream to minimize swelling and redness. I never did more than an hour and a half per session, partly because of limits to my pain tolerance, and partly due to adverse effects on my pocket book.

You do need a couple of days of beard growth for electrolysis, so there will be that.  But if you work in a male-dominated work environment like I do, it shouldn't be a problem.  Men are mostly clueless.

Quote from: iKate on December 13, 2015, 05:30:52 PM
This, absolutely this. That said it's easier to make up some BS excuse for this rather than growing boobs.

Lol!  Kate you crack me up!  And by the way, your new avatar is as close to a smile as I have ever seen you   You look great!

With kindness,

Terri

Thank you so much for your input. I have brown hair and to me it isn't that noticeable but that's me. I thought about telling people if they ask is that I really hate my facial hair and had to get rid of it, but not sure if that sounds weird LOL. Its always nice to get some outside input from others that have gone though this.

In my experience, telling other people usually elicits a lot of sympathy from women and terror from men.

Does lasering take as long as electrolysis?  My estranged wife did it to her whole body over time, and she swore it's better than electrolysis.  Doesn't seem to have as much of a rash, at least it didn't on her.

Lol thank you Grace just the thought of all guys in the shop cringing in the corner made me smile.

Quote from: iKate on December 13, 2015, 05:30:52 PM
This, absolutely this. That said it's easier to make up some BS excuse for this rather than growing boobs.

Hahaha!!
This is so true!

Quote from: Karlie Ann on December 13, 2015, 07:35:38 PM
Does lasering take as long as electrolysis?  My estranged wife did it to her whole body over time, and she swore it's better than electrolysis.  Doesn't seem to have as much of a rash, at least it didn't on her.

Hi Karlie,

Laser is much faster than electrolysis, provided you don't have blond or very light-colored hair, but is not as permanent.  For body hair, which is finer than facial hair, it is a much better choice.  A few treatments can usually knock down hair to vellus hair, at least.

Terri

I've been avoiding electrolysis because I'm on HRT and not sure I can pass as male without stubble. Not saying I'd pass as female either, but I don't need any difficulty right now.

I've been thinking about getting it shaped a bit so it just looked cleaner, and maybe thinned. Not sure.

*

You can see my progression here at this Susan's thread:  'Re: The All New 'Before & After Topic (v 3.0)', Reply #1633.

I went from heavy shadow in 1981 to nothing by 1983; you can see my 1985 picture - clean and no make-up.  I did only electrolysis; laser was not available at my time (1970s - 1980s).

I did draw attention, but I had already been under fire for the prior five years.  Gossip led suspicions about something prevalent at work.  I went to a routine visit to the home of a co-worker one evening.  In midstream conversation she apparently realised something was amiss; she directly asked me about the absence of my facial hair.  I had no answer for her but felt cornered if I told the truth to her.

My presence and my changing, though I still presented as male at work, all led to me being fired on a charge of being F-M transsexual.  By those days, I was deep into my 'male fail' period without myself realising it.  My attire was uni-sex female wardrobe except for the required male business office dress shirts.

My electrologist told me it did not matter to her that I plucked my hairs as long as she had enough to zap - I went once per month or so on a Saturday afternoon.  I never shaved between electrolysis sessions so I can't tell you about that issue.  Plucking toughened my capacity to tolerate the pain of the electrolysis device so that she could work quickly at high power and zap many more follicles than typical during my one-hour sessions.

My electrologist applied witch hazel on my face to start and throughout the session.  She instructed me to splash cool water on my face every little bit and also apply witch hazel.  She also taught me that I saw worse than reality.  She took me kicking and screaming, well not quite that bad, on errands with her one day following treatment.  I wore no face make-up to cover my face.  I noticed that other people took no notice of my appearance.  Hmm!  That built my confidence about my treatment.  YMMV, as the saying goes here.

I noticed that I got physically drained following my sessions; I frequently needed a nap when I got home.  My electrologist told me that was the effect of the erector pili muscles being destroyed by electrolysis.

*

I had lots of people tell me not to bother with electrolysis pre-HRT, but I couldn't stand seeing all that facial hair, so I did it anyway. With the electrolysis, I was in there for an hour at a time every 1 week. I cried the whole time she was on the upper lip and near the ears. That hour didn't really make much of a dent. I think the projected time to completion was something like 3 years. I also looked like a chipmunk for about 3-4 days after each session and I couldn't shave during that time either.

I switched to laser and liked that much better. She did full face clears every session. Each session lasted 15 minutes and I did a new session once a month. It still hurt a lot, but 5 hits to the upper lip instead of a couple hundred was well worth it. And the swelling died down enough to shave after about a day each time. After 6 months, I have only a few scattered hairs left.

I started HRT 1 month after my last session. I was planning on using electrolysis to clean up the few that got away, but my wife says she can't even tell they're there, so I've just been shaving them instead.

My electrologist  told me about applying an ice pack to the skin where the electrolysis was.
that way it will cool the spot and prevent burning. it should be done as quickly as possible.