I need to get rid of my facial hair as soon as possible, but I can't tell if it will be obvious that something is wrong with my face for the days/weeks following the procedure. I've read you get dark spots. Does it look just like stubble, or does it look weird and abnormal? I don't want anything to look too strange at work, where I am still not out.

In my experience the only thing I had happen was that my face was swollen for a couple days afterward. It slowly went down and since I always had my sessions on the weekend I was usually back to normal by Monday. I swell really bad though so you may be completely different. It's for sure a little different for everybody. So nice once it starts doing its work though. Totally worth it.


~Evelyn

Thanks, Greeneyes! That is certainly good to hear. I have light skin and dark hair, so it should be pretty good. I just don't want to have to explain why I look strange to anyone at work.

I'm VERY much looking forward to it.

I usually have my laser sessions on Saturday mornings and don't have any qualms about visiting my parents Saturday afternoon.  I'm fair-skinned with darker hair, for what that's worth. 

I had my first treatment Wednesday and for the past couple of days it looked like I haven't shaved, even though I have. Don't know why that is. A little redness too, but overall I just look a little rough. I'm not full time yet though, so it's not a big deal. Nobody at work has said anything.

Hi Daphne,

Some good advice here.

When I started laser/electrolysis I always tried to schedule my session for a weekend to allow a day or two for any redness or swelling to subside. At first, there can be quite a bit of trauma to the skin, but as things progressed
I found the swelling and redness decreased after each session. (But not the pain, unfortunately.)

If you are just starting, laser will not seem to have done much, but as you shave over the next few days, the whiskers will start to shed. There can be damage, either as hyperpigmentation or bleaching, but changes to your face should not be greatly noticeable for a guy.  It really helps to use ice directly after sessions. I also used hydrocortisone cream to keep the swelling down.

Good luck!  It does get easier as you go.

With kindness,

Terri

PS You're very pretty!

I was told that a lot of it depends on the type of skin you have the lighter the skin the more redness one will see when getting Lazer work done. Went in for a consultation found out that the neck and  the  face considered 2 different parts they wanted 780 for 12 treatments 6 for face and 6 for neck

It got pretty uncomfortable for me for awhile there. Nobody really said anything before I came out but I'm sure they could tell something was going on.

I always tried doing my on Thursdays or Fridays (worked Mon-Fri) so that it wouldn't look so bad. My skin is pretty sensitive, my face got red after, lasted for a couple days usually. So, people could sorta tell from that.

The bigger issue, for me at least, was that besides my face being sensitive and rough feeling after a session, was that the hairs that didn't shed from the laser itself took forever to shed. Lookwise, what I mean is, I had a mostly clear face by then but had patches of hair on my face..not a very good look, lol! It looked like I did a half u know what, job shaving, like I missed spots. I wouldn't shave till my next work day (cuz face was rough) but couldn't get rid of them patches; usually took 10-14 days before I could get it looking good again. I was getting it done every 4-8 weeks so that meant that a lot of the time I looked pretty yucky..

I had a ton of facial hair tho; I was the hairiest trans person that she has treated so far, according to her . I always had a shadow, even right after shaving. The patchy issue was only really became a problem about halfway thru my hair removal process, early on had so much that just looked like I was scruffy, or growing a beard, towards the end (now), was only a bit left so wasn't really all that noticeable.

Anyways, just my experience with it, just wanted to throw it out there for ya.

I imagine it differs for each person, but my laser sessions were sometimes fairly obvious.  I have a medium complexion with some olive tint to my skin and dark brown hair.

I always had my sessions on Friday afternoons, so at least the redness had subsided by Monday.

I also bought some tinted moisturizer made by Origins that you can purchase at Sephora.  My problem was that the hair death was uneven, so at times, I had dark areas like the size of a quarter or a dime in a couple of places where the hair had not died.  The moisturizer helped even everything out.  I would apply to my whole face, then brush a bit off lightly with a towel just above the beard line, then I would put a small amount of powder on to take away the shiny look.  It seemed to help, although I did have a few people ask me if something was going on.  I think they must have thought I had some sort of skin cancer or skin malady.

After about five or six sessions, all of the dark spots were gone.  Now, I go in every 2-3 months to kill a few strays (and to have some other areas done).

Hope that helps.

Best,
Keri

I started my first Lazer treatment this afternoon and let me tell you girlfriend it hurts like when getting it done under your nose I have some redness still and my upper lip is still puffy. I keep putting Aloe Vera on it to keep it moist and have all kinds of dead hairs fall out that you can't pull on, and have to let them fall out on there own.
I have had Lazer tattoo removal done and I think Lazer hair removal hurts much worse. Recommended for you to girl up and get it done.
The downside is no make up until the swelling goes down and for 4 treatments it set me back  $1500 not cheap I do want you to shop around find one that has no bad reviews. Can't help but think that me and you are on the same road I live in Oregon and you are back East was thinking maybe we could be girlfriends

I have fairly light skin with olive tones and a lot of grey hair on my face, but enough darker hairs to make it worth my while to start off with laser. I have had 3 treatments so far and my upper lip is almost totally cleared, but looks funny cause it's so patchy. I didn't realize how much dark hair I actually had on my face until I saw how patchy everything got.

Anyway, even with my fair skin I haven't had too many problems with extreme redness or puffiness. It usually only lasts for a few hours after the treatment. The big problem is that not all the hairs come out all at once. It usually takes a few shaves before I get to see how much I really lost. Hopefully a few more treatments and I'll be done and then it's on to electrolysis.

Mine got red like a sunburn for about an hour. It was a little sore after that for the rest of the day, but looked otherwise normal.