Pregnancy brings many changes to the body, from increased hair growth and hyperpigmentation to hormonal shifts that alter normal growth cycles and laser treatment results. All these aspects may prevent positive outcomes when receiving laser treatments for hair removal.
Pregnancy hormones may make laser treatments unsafe; to safely resume them after delivery. Therefore, any laser sessions started should be stopped until postpartum. This allows time for your hormones to return to their original levels before continuing treatments again.
1. Increased hair growth
Laser hair removal is a safe, popular cosmetic treatment used to reduce unwanted body hair and inhibit its growth using light energy. A doctor or laser technician directs a beam of light at the region you need treated, producing thermal damage to dark pigments in hair follicles which prevent new growth – saving time spent shaving, waxing or using depilatory creams.
However, certain people experience more hair growth during pregnancy than others and it can even appear in places it hadn’t before (e.g. chin!). Therefore, some pregnant women may wonder whether or not laser treatments should continue while expecting.
Due to a lack of clinical evidence on laser hair removal’s safety during pregnancy, no clinical advice can be offered or advised against. Furthermore, many reputable clinics will refuse any treatment if pregnant; this decision should not be seen as being difficult; rather it demonstrates their responsibility in safeguarding both you and your unborn baby’s wellbeing.
Hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy can increase hair follicle size and affect how effective laser treatments work; this could hinder their effectiveness if used alone; once your pregnancy has concluded, though, laser treatments will resume as scheduled.
If you undergo laser hair removal prior to pregnancy, its effects should remain quite stable once gestation has ended. You may need follow up sessions once your delivery is over; or alternatively you could try shaving, waxing and other temporary hair removal methods until it’s possible for you to resume treatment.
2. Changes in skin tone
Hair grows in cycles, with each cycle ending when its time for it to shed or fall out. Pregnancy hormones stimulate dormant follicles to activate or shorten growth cycles for thicker and fuller hair growth; once delivery and hormone levels return to normal however, normality should return and hair growth should resume more easily.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case and some women may notice more hair growth in areas they didn’t experience a problem prior to pregnancy. While this won’t last permanently, it can be frustrating when faced with hormonal fluctuations and weight fluctuations associated with being pregnant.
In these instances, it’s essential to discuss temporary solutions with both your obstetrician and midwife. They may suggest waxing as it’s safe if done far enough away from sensitive areas like stomach or nipples; shaving may also be an option if desired but try not shaving directly below or above your pubic bone near due date just in case a cesarean needs to take place.
Medical professionals typically do not perform laser treatments on pregnant women because it could endanger the fetus. If the procedure was effective for you in the past, and continues after birth to normalize hormone levels it could be possible.
3. Increased risk of pigmentation damage
Pregnancy hormone fluctuations can lead to dark spots appearing on your face known as “mamamask of pregnancy.” This pigmentation occurs from increased blood flow to your skin and should fade with time after delivery, however if your hormones continue to fluctuate when returning for laser hair removal treatments you risk damaging these dark areas with the light used for this process.
Darker areas of skin tend to respond less favorably to laser treatments than lighter areas; additionally, hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy can alter your natural sensitivity level and lead to greater risks of burns and complications during laser treatments while pregnant.
Laser hair removal should be avoided while pregnant; traditional, temporary methods, like shaving, waxing, threading and tweezing may be better options to control unwanted hair growth. You should try shaving, waxing, threading or tweezing instead – they are safe options that allow you to reach hard-to-reach parts of the body more easily as your bump grows larger.
Those concerned with Melasma can visit a dermatologist to seek treatments, including bleaching creams that contain hydroquinone or chemical peels containing Azelaic Acid or Vitamin C, although it’s best to wait until after pregnancy has concluded and hormone levels have returned to normal before starting treatments like laser hair removal, since no human studies exist on its effects during gestation; wait until then!
4. Less effective treatments
Laser hair removal involves having a doctor or technician direct a beam of light at the area in which you want to remove hair, creating thermal damage to its follicle. This causes hair follicles to shed their contents, ultimately leading to hair falling out, which often reduces or eliminates unwanted growth. Topical anesthetic cream may also be applied during treatment to minimize discomfort; however, FDA advises against doing this during pregnancy as your body could absorb some chemicals and have adverse impacts on your unborn fetus.
Pregnancy hormones may also accelerate dormant follicle maturation and shorten growth cycles, prompting hairs to return at unpredictable rates despite multiple treatments, leaving many unsatisfied.
As your baby bump increases in size, daily tasks, such as shaving the legs, may become increasingly challenging to do. This is particularly evident during the third trimester when bending over can become challenging as areas that were once easy to reach become challenging to shave.
Even with all these complications, it is still wise to discuss laser hair removal during pregnancy with your obstetrician. They will be able to advise when your hormone levels have returned to normal and whether or not you are ready to resume treatments.
While pregnant, it’s advisable to explore various other methods for hair removal like waxing, threading and tweezing. When considering one of these alternatives, make sure your clinic has clear policies around pregnancy as well as experience in providing these treatments – this will allow you to feel more at ease in continuing treatment when appropriate.
5. Less effective top-up treatments
Due to hormone shifts during gestation, laser hair removal sessions may not be as successful during your gestation period. Therefore, it may be best to wait until after gestation has ended and your hormone levels return to normal before scheduling laser sessions for hair removal.
Even if you received most of your treatments prior to becoming pregnant, an increase in hair growth may still occur due to changes in hormone levels that trigger new hair growth from destroyed follicles that were destroyed through laser treatment. Furthermore, hormonal fluctuations may cause skin burns and hyper-pigmentation causing burns and hyper-pigmentation as a side effect of gestation.
Pregnancy alters the natural hair growth cycle, making any remaining active growth phases harder to target with laser treatment, potentially leading to slower results and less-than-satisfactory outcomes.
Laser hair removal requires multiple sessions in order to achieve optimal results, since laser energy penetrates deep into each follicle in order to destroy it from its root. On average, six treatments should provide optimal results.
Due to these considerations, reputable clinics generally do not advise treating pregnant women during gestation with laser treatments; instead, they suggest temporary methods like shaving, waxing and plucking instead. They can also offer more invasive alternatives like electrolysis which works more precisely and specifically on all phases of hair growth cycles than laser therapy can. Should you become pregnant after already commencing laser treatments it would be prudent to discuss postponing them – your clinic should have clear policies regarding this matter.
