Laser hair removal treatments damage your follicles, preventing them from producing new hair growth and producing finer and lighter-colored stubble when it does eventually return.
Your doctor will use a hand-held laser instrument to press against your skin during your treatment, with cooling devices or gel possibly being employed as part of the plan in order to provide additional comfort and reduce any pain experienced during this process.
It’s not permanent
Laser hair removal may not be permanent, but it does result in significant reduction of unwanted hair growth over time. After an entire course of treatments, you can expect an 80% or greater decrease in growth compared with shaving or waxing (which often leave visible regrowth). You should still follow up regularly for maintenance treatment to keep results visible for an extended period.
Due to how each hair grows at different cycles, laser treatments can only target them while they’re in their anagen (growth) phase – necessitating multiple treatment sessions to effectively address all unwanted hairs.
The initial treatment involves sending out heat waves that shock hair follicles, weakening or destroying them and leading to swelling or reddening immediately following treatment, sometimes taking several days before clearing up completely. Follicles that have been weakened or destroyed enter catagen phase which resting period, during which hair sheds off before returning back into telogen phase for another rest period – ready for another cycle in this cycle cycle.
Unfortunately, laser hair removal treatments do not permanently eradicate all hair growth; therefore, it may start growing back after you complete all sessions; however, this is usually only a temporary setback as follicles go into dormancy much faster than after shaving or waxing; when hair does come back it will typically be thinner, lighter and less numerous in number than its previous state.
For optimal results, it’s essential that prior and post treatments refrain from waxing, tweezing or plucking the area treated. Furthermore, sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher and avoidance of tanning beds in the weeks preceding a laser hair removal treatment session are both crucial steps for optimal outcomes.
If any unwanted hair recurs after having gone through full course of laser therapy, consider booking in for a quick maintenance session at LH Spa & Rejuvenation to address it quickly and efficiently. We offer quick maintenance sessions which target any stray follicles not yet entering anagen or telogen phase and help achieve smooth skin!
It’s not painful
Unwanted hair on various parts of the body can reduce one’s self-confidence and is an issue affecting both women and men alike. Luckily, laser hair removal provides an easy and effective solution: this noninvasive procedure eliminates the need for painful shaving or waxing as well as ingrown hairs caused by shaving and waxing; using special equipment, a doctor directs a laser beam at hair follicles heating them up, which causes them to release their locks by dropping off naturally.
Once a full course of laser hair removal is complete, patients can anticipate long-term reductions in unwanted facial and body hairs. Results often outlive shaving or tweezing treatments, and can last years before returning. A few stray hairs may occasionally reappear, though these should be lighter in texture than their original counterparts. Regular maintenance sessions can ensure these new growths don’t become dark again and become too long or dense.
To perform laser hair removal, your dermatologist will use a hand-held device and press a button on it, protecting and minimising discomfort for you while moving the device around in circular movements to the surface of your skin. After each circular pass, its tip is then cooled off again before returning back into its initial state.
As part of your treatment, you may feel a slight pinprick sensation as heat from the laser damages the hair follicles. However, if you have sensitive skin there are alternative laser treatments that don’t use as much heat.
Laser hair removal should not be seen as permanent for two main reasons. One reason is that your body can repair damaged hair follicles; though these won’t produce new hair again, their hair might grow thinner and finer than before; consequently you might still require regular sessions for the affected areas.
It’s not expensive
Laser hair removal is a quick and relatively affordable way to rid yourself of unwanted body hair. A laser targets pigment in hair follicles to lighten them and stop further hair growth. The number of treatment sessions needed depends on factors like hair color and coarseness, hormonal influences and which area you’re treating; for optimal results it is advised that other hair-removal methods (plucking or waxing) be discontinued at least four weeks prior to beginning laser treatment sessions.
Tanning before laser treatments should also be avoided as its UV rays can interfere with its effectiveness. Shaving is recommended the day prior to appointments because it removes surface hair that could block laser light from reaching follicles. Furthermore, products like deodorants and lotions which might create barriers between your skin and laser may create further interferences with its effectiveness.
On average, it takes five or more initial treatment sessions for someone to significantly decrease unwanted hair growth. Sessions should be scheduled four weeks apart and provide an effective alternative to shaving, waxing and plucking which may damage skin or lead to ingrown hairs.
Once your initial laser treatments are completed, the results should leave your skin silky-smooth. Unfortunately, these effects aren’t permanent; in order to keep stray hairs at bay you’ll likely require regular maintenance sessions at least several times annually.
Contrary to other hair removal methods, laser treatments kill all cells within the hair follicle itself – meaning when hair does grow back it tends to be significantly thinner and lighter than before.
Laser hair removal can be an extremely safe and effective option for most people, provided they seek out an experienced cosmetic dermatologist such as Dr. Michele Green in New York to perform the procedure. Not all lasers are created equal and an untrained practitioner could burn or discolor your skin – so when choosing laser treatment experts like Michele Green to perform it is key.
It’s not a quick fix
Many men and women who decide to undergo laser hair removal are excited to put an end to shaving, waxing and threading for good – only to hear of maintenance sessions after their initial series is completed. Here’s why a follow-up course might be beneficial:
Maintenance laser hair removal sessions serve to prevent further hair growth. Although you will see results shortly after beginning treatment, ongoing touch-up appointments are key in creating long-lasting and often permanent effects.
Laser hair removal treatments work by heating and disabling your hair follicles – which produce new hair strands – with laser beams, creating thin and lighter follicles once treated. Therefore, it’s imperative that between laser sessions no tweezing or waxing take place on the area being treated.
Shaving before your appointment may help alleviate some of the discomfort and redness associated with hair removal treatments, although most people describe the experience as similar to being pinpricked warmly – much less painful than other methods. Your hairs may continue to shed post-treatment, giving an appearance of continued growth.
Touch-up laser hair removal treatments will still cause damaged hairs to grow back in, but at a much slower pace compared to prior sessions. Therefore, future sessions will become even more effective and you may only require fewer visits for permanent results!
Hormonal fluctuations may compromise the effectiveness of laser hair removal treatments, particularly during periods of pregnancy or other significant hormonal shifts.
PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) causes high androgen levels that can result in male-pattern baldness and body hair growth, so those experiencing PCOS will require laser hair removal maintenance more regularly than other people. As high levels of androgen production result from PCOS, male pattern baldness as well as unwanted body hair can occur as a result.
