Many may be perplexed as to why their hair grows back thicker and darker after laser therapy; this condition is known as paradoxical hypertrichosis.
Laser therapy treatment areas must not be treated by tweezing, waxing or plucking as this could destroy targeted hair follicles and lead to their removal. Instead, exfoliate this area three times every week in order to stimulate anagen phase hair follicles into growth.
What Happens After Your First Treatment?
After laser treatments, it’s not unusual for your hair to appear thinner and lighter in color due to heat damage caused by laser beams on hair follicles. As time passes, though, finer and less noticeable hair will regrowth over time.
Laser hair removal requires multiple sessions for optimal results. Your physician will press a hand-held laser instrument against your skin during your first appointment; some devices even come equipped with cooling devices or gel to reduce discomfort and protect the surface of your skin from harm.
As with any procedure, laser hair removal may cause some minor discomfort; you might feel a pinprick sensation as the laser beam passes over your skin to target hair follicles. A topical numbing agent may provide additional comfort; alternatively, products causing light sensitivity should be avoided prior to receiving laser treatment and daily protection for this area should include using broad spectrum sunscreen protection.
After your laser treatment, the initial weeks should see an initial decrease in unwanted hair, due to your body gradually exfoliating away dead cells targeted by the laser and appearing as blackheads or stubble on your skin’s surface.
During this period, it is permissible to shave any hair that bothers you; however, we advise against resorting to shaving and other hair-removal methods which target the root. If necessary, sharp razors and shaving cream should be used in order to minimize friction when shaving.
Your treatment course might cause hair regrowth after it ends, as hair grows in cycles that the laser targets only those hairs in their anagen phase, or growing phase. When hair does regrow it tends to be much finer and lighter colored than before your treatments began.
What Happens After Your Second Treatment?
As part of your initial laser hair removal treatment, a doctor or trained laser specialist will use a handheld laser instrument equipped with cooling features or cool gel for cooling to protect and reduce risk. Side effects could include hyper- or hypopigmentation (darkening or lightening of skin).
Laser hair removal sessions may cause temporary discomfort; however, any lasting damage will likely only last short-term.
One to three weeks post treatment, refrain from shaving, plucking or waxing in the treated area in order to stop unwanted hair regrowth and encourage dark and thick strands to fall out naturally. Once this period of time has lapsed, any remaining hairs can be safely shaved off or trimmed as usual.
Permanent results typically require six to eight treatments for best results. The amount of sessions depends on your own hair growth cycle and treatment area size, so it’s essential that you follow your treatment plan strictly and schedule follow-up appointments every six weeks for best outcomes.
Laser hair removal sessions typically result in lighter and finer regrowth. As hormone levels change, more areas may experience growth.
Rarely, after laser hair removal, hair can grow back even stronger and thicker than before – known as paradoxical hypertrichosis – more likely affecting patients with darker skin types or those suffering from conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
For your safety, choose a doctor-run clinic staffed by experienced doctors and trained laser technicians. Avoid “cheap deals” or backdoor offices offering laser treatments without being monitored by qualified professional (i.e. unregulated clinics that won’t hold you responsible in case something goes wrong during treatment). These unauthorized clinics won’t answer directly to you should something go amiss during a procedure.
What Happens After Your Third Treatment?
Hair grows in cycles, with periods of active growth followed by periods of dormancy and then eventual shedding. Laser treatments work best on active growing follicles because these produce pigment for which laser treatment targets. Hormonal changes may disrupt this cycle; therefore it is wise to be aware that multiple sessions may be necessary for long-lasting results.
At each session, laser light absorbs melanin from your hair follicles and converts it to heat, killing the follicle and stopping its ability to produce new hair follicles – though some active ones will continue producing new growth; after several treatments the number of new follicles becomes significantly reduced.
After each treatment, it’s normal to experience swelling or redness in the treated areas, which an ice pack can help soothe down. Lotions or makeup that interfere with healing should also be avoided during this phase if possible; green-based formulas neutralize skin color while acting to counter any redness caused by laser therapy treatments.
After your initial laser treatment, you should begin to notice some hairs have started to fall out due to the laser’s ability to kill hairs that were in their anagen (growing) phase, creating stubble-like particles in your treatment area. Since the laser only targets pigment within these hairs and not skin tissue around them, no harm or other issues will result.
Hair in the treatment area transition into their anagen phase and will therefore be targeted during subsequent sessions, further speeding up hair loss. You should come back for 6-8 treatments over four to six weeks apart.
Face and neck areas are hormonal zones of your body; therefore it may still grow some unwanted hair even after multiple laser treatments have taken place. We therefore suggest performing touch-up laser sessions every three to four months for an additional 90 percent decrease in unwanted hair growth.
What Happens After Your Fourth Treatment?
Laser treatments offer an effective, long-term alternative to other hair removal methods that are both time consuming and give only temporary results. Plus, lasers are significantly less costly and more comfortable than electrolysis – the latter involves manually plucking individual follicles one at a time! Many patients see permanent or near permanent results after several laser sessions; even when hair grows back it tends to be lighter and thinner than before.
Laser treatments involve doctors pressing a hand-held instrument against your skin in order to target hair follicles and destroy them with intense heat. A cooling device or gel may also be applied on top of this instrument in order to protect and reduce discomfort for you; some individuals may even feel like an intense warm pinprick during this treatment process.
Laser treatments gradually put damaged follicles into a dormant or shedding phase, where they no longer produce pigment that gives hair its color or produce new hair follicles. This shedding process may take up to three weeks; you may see patches of regrowth; however this is normal since different groups of follicles will have entered growth or anagen phases at various times.
Laser treatments should be conducted every six months to keep unwanted hair at bay; however, you may be able to go longer between sessions; your doctor can advise as to the optimal schedule for you.
If you have an active herpes simplex infection (oral cold sores or genital herpes) in the area where you want to remove hair, antiviral medication should be taken prior to and seven days post laser treatments in order to successfully achieve results.
Sun exposure should also be limited during these times and used with appropriate sunscreen protection, to prevent hyperpigmentation or hypopigmentation in treated areas from happening or worsening, which occurs when too much or too little melanin is produced by your body respectively. A broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 protection or higher will help mitigate these side effects and help avoid hyperpigmentation or hypopigmentation from happening or worsening.
