Damaged hair follicles won’t produce new growth after laser therapy; however, you may experience some sparse regrowth a year or two post-treatment series completion.
Before attending your first laser hair removal appointment, it is best to avoid plucking, waxing or electrolysis since the laser needs to see the hair follicle to damage it. Shaving is okay as long as you use a fresh blade.
How long will it take?
After receiving laser treatments, it’s common to experience temporary hair loss as your body expels damaged hair bulb from its skin. New hair will eventually begin growing back – usually thinner and lighter than before – though the amount of sessions may differ depending on each individual; some need as few as six or eight treatments while others may need up to twelve sessions (your laser technician can create an individualized plan during initial consultation).
One of the primary factors determining how many sessions are necessary is your hair’s growth cycle. At any one time, only about 15% of hair follicles in any given area are in anagen phase and thus targeted during laser or IPL therapy; any remaining hair follicles are either catagen or telogen phases and thus cannot be destroyed using laser therapy or IPL treatments.
Due to this reason, it is necessary for you to continue treatments until all unwanted hair has been eliminated. Ideally, treatments should take place four to six weeks apart for maximum effectiveness and ensure that no growth cycles go missed as all follicles can be destroyed before producing further unwanted hair growth cycles.
Before your treatments, it is recommended to leave hair natural as much as possible and avoid waxing, shaving or plucking as this will ensure more effective outcomes from them. You should also try to avoid direct sunlight on any treated areas until all series have been completed.
The procedure itself will typically only last several minutes, depending on the size and shape of the area being treated. Before your appointment, you’ll need to cleanse the skin and apply a topical anesthetic cream or gel for discomfort relief; this usually takes around 30-60 minutes before feeling any heat during or after your treatment has concluded.
How much hair do I lose?
Hair removal may only require minutes. When using hand-held laser devices to treat unwanted hair, the doctor presses one against your skin and activates it; sometimes these instruments feature cooling devices or gel tips to protect skin, and you might experience slight discomfort similar to being pinpricked by heat generated by laser beams.
Laser hair treatments use selective photothermolysis to target pigment in hair follicles without harming surrounding skin, inhibiting further hair growth in future and giving you smooth skin free from shaving or waxing hassle.
Hair shedding typically begins five to thirty days post treatment and may appear like stubble, but is actually your body releasing dead hairs targeted by laser. To speed this process up further, gentle exfoliating is recommended twice weekly on the treatment area.
At least six treatments should be necessary to see noticeable results, though results may take longer depending on your skin tone and area being treated. You can always return to LH Spa & Rejuvenation for touch ups during periods of hormonal fluctuation such as pregnancy or menstruation.
After your treatment, the area may appear red and swollen for several days afterward. Stinging or burning may occur at times but usually dissipates on its own without lasting long; if not, try applying soothing cream directly onto the affected area to alleviate pain or use ice packs to decrease swelling and discomfort.
After your first laser hair treatment, it may be tempting to pluck or tweeze any new unwanted hair that appears post-treatment. But resist this urge as any follicles that survived might still be in anagen phase; doing so could result in their regrowth later.
Avoid tweezing and plucking as this will further disrupt the hair follicles that have been damaged by laser treatment, and UV rays from sunlight or tanning beds could potentially harm treated skin.
How much hair do I need?
After your initial laser treatment, some anagen phase hairs may begin to fall out due to damaged follicles which no longer produce new growth. This process should last approximately 100 days for scalp hair but could take much longer for eyebrows and arms.
However, those still in anagen will continue to grow until all their anagen phase hairs reach the end and enter catagen phase; when that happens they will stop growing altogether and damage will have occurred to their follicles permanently.
To permanently rid yourself of unwanted hair, multiple treatment sessions will likely be required. Depending on your hair growth cycle and area of focus, six or more could be needed – some areas such as legs and armpits may need more treatments than other spots like the chin and upper lip.
Your results should become apparent within two or more treatments sessions, as your hair should become noticeably thinner in the treated areas and you should be able to reduce shaving frequency in this region. It is crucial, however, not to pluck, wax, or use other hair removal methods in this region as this could interfere with the process.
At your treatment appointment, the doctor will use a hand-held laser instrument equipped with cooling features to safeguard the surface of your skin and minimize discomfort. Once activated, he or she will send a beam of light through your skin towards targeted hair follicles where its light attracts pigment to destroy them and thus damage follicles permanently.
After several treatment sessions, you should notice a significant reduction in both thickness and darkness of hair in the treated area, leading to less frequent need to shave in that location. You might even avoid shaving altogether!
After six to ten treatments, most people can expect permanent hair reduction. However, fluctuating hormone levels may cause some hairs to return over time, necessitating additional maintenance sessions at least annually or twice annually for optimal results.
How often do I need to get treatment?
Once laser treatment begins, you should experience a noticeable decrease in unwanted hair growth; however, multiple sessions may be necessary for optimal long-term results. Each laser session destroys about 15% of hair follicles in its targeted area; since hair follicles undergo different growth cycles at various points throughout their development cycles, multiple sessions must be scheduled in order to treat all available follicles in an area.
Before each laser treatment, it’s also essential that the area be shaved. Shaving will allow your treatment to be more successful by eliminating any hair that would prevent it from targeting and damaging hair follicles more effectively. Avoid waxing or tweezing activities which could interfere with laser’s ability to target hair follicles effectively.
As part of your treatment sessions, it will also be essential not to pluck or shave the area between sessions as this will remove pigments used by laser therapy to target and kill hair follicles. If follicles remain undamaged by heat therapy they could grow back even stronger with each additional treatment session needed.
After each laser treatment, you may notice your area shedding hairs – this is normal and helps the body unclog damaged follicles. Shedding often takes on the appearance of blackheads or stubble and should not be misconstrued as hair growth.
Your skin may become slightly pink after your treatment, but this should fade as the area heals. A cooling gel of aloe vera may help manage redness or discomfort in this area; additionally, sun exposure must be limited and you should have a cold compress on hand in case any swelling develops.
For optimal results, it is advisable to schedule your treatment sessions at regular intervals either every month or bi-weekly. This will ensure each session coincides with the growth cycle of unwanted hairs, making completion easier and ensuring optimal results from treatment series.
