Hi I'm Haider 20 a guy, and really hairy, i just got my first treatment of laser hair removal, but i didn't get a proper after skin care explanation, they used the soprano xl alma, would it possible to let me know what i can do and not do, especially since its sunny here in London, (I know London)

Reply It’s really strange that your clinic didn’t provide you with the aftercare instruction they should actually provide you with something or when they are doing the consultation they should briefly go over what your aftercare routine is.

I’m not sure what skin type you are and what setting has been used on you but normally all aftercare are more or less similar with laser.

You do need to wear SPF 30 on any area that you are exposing to the sun; if you are getting your face treated then you do need to wear minimum SPF 30 throughout the whole treatment.

You should be shaving in-between you’re not allowed to do no threading, waxing, tweezing or any other method of hair removal, the only method you’re allowed to do is shaving in-between.

With the aftercare you should start to notice that your hair would shred after 5-19 days, if they don’t shred normally we do recommend that you shave after 10 days because that helps the shedding phases as well. But if you are also worried the aftercare instruction you can always go down back to your clinic and ask them to go through it with you because they should be giving you something stating the aftercare instructions.

Hi, After shaving, some people get black spots on their armpits.. recently i started laser hair removal treatment, i want to know if the black spots will disappear with the treatment. thank you

Reply Hi, Often it is possible that the black spots could just be hair follicles which are still present or perhaps they may be ingrown hairs. If what you are enquiring about is whether it disappears with laser, then as soon as your hair begins to reduce, become finer and you see a good reduction.

Then the black spots will disappear alongside this and ingrown hairs will minimise. However if those black spots are something other than hair follicles or ingrown hairs – such as scarring then I would recommend that you show a therapist the area, as they should be able to determine if it is just a hair follicle or not.

I hope that helps

Manroop

I Manroop, I am an Indian girl. Once I have shaved/waxed I notice these black/drown dots on my legs, which are very unattractive.

Is there anything you can suggest to prevent these dots from appearing. I have noticed that most other girls that are Indian do not suffer from these dots, is there anything that I can do.

Please help! Thanks.

Reply The black and brown dots on the leg area are probably hair follicles or the brown dots could also be scarring caused by in-growns.

If your hairs are quiet thick and you have fair skin then brown dots may be more noticeable. The only way to remove these dots is by undergoing laser hair removal treatment.

As this treatment removes the hair follicles, we have noticed on our clients that alongside the treatment the brown dots begin to disappear.

Manroop

Have done 2 IPL and 6 nd yag treatments on the face at two separate clinics on the face (sideburns , upper lip and chin)and after a few months not fully happy with the results as a lot of it still growing back and quite thick. No hormonal or polysystic ovaries. What makes me decide to take the risk and spend again if there is no guarantee?

Answer: There is never 100% guarantee that the hair will not grow back, you will however get an overall reduction of hair growth. This reduction again depends on your hair and skin type.

It does take up to 6 to 12 sessions with laser and you will require maintenance top ups. Top up sessions could vary between 3 months to a year.

When having laser treatments your sessions apart should be done according to hair growth for eg between 4 to 8 weeks apart.

If your growth is still thick after a full laser course go back to your doctor explaining that you had laser and its not worked for you and that you would like to have another blood test to rule out hormonal imbalances.

Manroop

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by Kiran
(Wembey)

I've had laser from a clinic in Wembley. I think it was an IPL machine they used. It killed like crazy. However after my third treatment I've still got hair growing. I thought this thing was to stop hair from growing.

Can you just explain the hair growth cycles in more detail thanks

Kiran


Answer Hi Kiran I will try to explain as best as I can. Did you know that the human hair goes through a 3 phase growth cycle and each person's hair cycle depends upon their own genetics?

From the time you are born, you have a fixed amount of hair follicles and these don't increase after birth. Whilst many people believe that the hair they see will never grow again, this isn't always true.

Our hair follicles undergo a growth cycle and no two individuals hair grows and sheds simultaneously. Assuming they did, we'll be hairless before our new hair grows.

Could you imagine that?

A lot of the time, say around 80 to 90% your hair is within the Anagen phase (growing phrase); about 2% in the Catagen phase (transitional phase) and then the remaining 10% within the Telogen phase (shedding phase)

In the Anagen phase the cells in the hair follicles start to divide and form a papilla and a hair bulb. When these two get together they form the hair shaft.

Thereafter the Catagen phrase begins. This is when the Papilla from the hair bulb separates which then slows down the cell production resulting in the shrinkage of the hair follicle. Thereafter the hair begins to shed in the Telogen phase.

This means that your hair will have to be in the Anagen stage (growing phase) in order for the laser to disable the papilla preventing the follicle producing another hair bulb. Therefore the number of laser sessions depends on your hair growth cycles.

This is so important for you to know because many people having laser hair removal mistake the new hair growth with re-growth of the same hair follicle.

I hope this explains it better

All the best

Manroop

by jkc
(UK)

Hello,

I have IPL laser done on my face and neck.
I have been around 8 times now and the last few times my neck has been burning without fail. It goes a dark brown colour, scabby and then leaves a slight mark on my neck once near the end of the healing stage. I put Bio-Oil on but you can still see the marks.

Why is this continuously happening to my skin (around the neck area)? Should I stop getting treatment around there?

I have complained before but was told that it's just my skin and perhaps around the time of the month and was told to put cooling lotion on.

Please help as I am getting worried about this and it affects my confidence too.

Many Thanks.

Reply I would go back to the clinic that you’re getting your treatment done and just say that you’re worried because it’s leaving a mark around for neck area.

My personal opinion would be that you shouldn’t really get burns around the area the only possibility of you getting burnt is that they have gone slightly high then the normal settings or you’ve got a tan that’s a another reason why you may just find that skin is slightly burning around the area but to be honest, the best person to contact regarding this issue would be your clinic.

Also try not to wear any perfumes around the neck area and just make sure they do cleanse the area because the perfume could be causing the reaction that's just another factor you should consider as well but again do contact your clinic and just let them know that you’re concerned about the burns and pigmentations.
They burns should lighten depending on how burnt the skin was, but normally they do lighten and disappear within 3-6 months. Best advice to use some lighting creams.

The one we use is Skin Brightening Complex by Crystal Clear. That works well on the areas of pigmentation or any burns so you could try that cream or speak to your clinic and see what they would recommend to you but the best thing is to contact your clinic because they have your notes and your history.

Manroop

by Anastasia Alkhatib
(Jordan)

I had laser hair removal on different parts of my body : bikini armpits and my legs. Hair in bikini and armpits areas had grown back and falled, but on my legs they didn't grow back, only black spots poped out.

It has been more than a month and my legs look horrible I can't even wear a skirt, is that normal? Please help me

Reply

I understand you have had laser hair removal done and you have noticed that you have black spots on the area where the treatment was performed, and you also have no growth there.

What that normally means is the hair follicle is still present, or it could be that there are ingrown hairs.

I am not too sure as I have not seen you skin or your hair. From what you have said it may be that the hair follicles are present and the fact your hair is not returning it is stunted and the hair growth is just slower.

The best thing to do is to go back to where your treatment was done, and ask them to have a look at it. I think you may be better off having a treatment on top of the area, if it has been longer than 4 – 6 weeks since your last treatment you should normally be having your next treatment.

As your hair follicles weaken then the black spots should start to disappear anyway as you will have less hair.

All the best Manroop

by nagina
(southall)

Hi I am getting laser hair removal done on my face and have been told that on the day of the session not to wear any sunscreen on my face, but isn't that going to be dangerous for my skin as I will be traveling to the Clinic without any sunscreen on?????????.

I have been wearing sunscreen on everyday because i don't want any discoloration. can you please let me know thanks.

Reply We normally don’t advice to wear sun cream on the day of the laser treatment because it can reflect the laser beam.

If you are really concerned coming to the clinic in the sun you could wear it but ask the therapist carrying out your treatment to give you a good cleanse.

As long as you are not in the sun bathing and lying there exposing your skin for hours on end, 5 or 10 minutes in the sun without sun cream is not going to make that much of a difference.

For your information most clients don’t wear sun cream on the day of the treatment.

Manroop

by Jas

Can the laser damage tattoo's during or after treatment?

Reply

The answer is yes. Laser can damage a tattoo. If the laser is in direct contact with the the tattoo and the techiocan has accidentally gone over it the tattoo can lighten and the skin can burn.

by lura
(tbilisi)

hello, I've done lazer on leaps for 2 times. when i did it first doctor told me after week or two hair would grow and i would become able to take them from leaps.some of them grew but some of them are very little don't grow just appear on the surface and make leaps look awful.how can i get rid of them i mean hpw to make them disappear.

thanks in advance!

Reply Hi Lura,

I have understood that you are referring to the upper-lip and perhaps even lower lip line. Please excuse me if this is wrong. You are concerned with your expectation of results between treatments.

I am unsure which laser machine you have been doing treatments with so I will try to give you the best possible idea of what your hair response should be like.

After your first few laser sessions your hair growth will return and continue to grow within the first 10 – 14 days.

On its first appearance the hairs will come through as stubble. You will have to be patient with smaller hairs as they may just be taking longer to come through. It is a normal result of laser for your hairs to take much longer to grow. If you normally see your hairs come back after a few days this can extend to a week, and after your first course could even extend to 3 - 4 weeks.

Depending on which laser hair removal machine was used on the area you will find that in this first period of 10 - 14 days you may have to shave the area in order for the hairs to shed.

If you were using a Soprano machine, then sometimes the hairs will fall out by themselves or you can even lightly pull them away from the skin. This normally works when the hairs have become finer. If the hairs are stubborn then you should avoid pulling at them.

Please do not be alarmed at the idea of shaving. It is simply a method which will cut the hairs close to the skin. To avoid any cuts from your razor, make sure you are applying shaving gel on the area first. A good trick is to use a hair conditioner as an alternate to gels as this will soften the hairs. You must always ensure your razor is wet.

Shaving will not cause your hairs to return thicker, they may appear slightly blunt but if you are continuing with your laser sessions, the hairs will still be finer than they were originally. You can attempt this and will hopefully find that the hairs go away.

You must avoid waxing or plucking the hairs in the area. This is because in order for laser to be effective your hairs must be connected to the hair roots.

You are currently at an early stage in your laser treatments. For the face it is recommended that you have 12 sessions followed by regular maintenance sessions. After just 2 sessions it is common that your hairs will still be stubborn, thick and visible. As you have more treatments you will eventually find that the hairs are becoming thinner, finer and will take longer to appear on the skin.

I recommend that you talk to your therapist/doctor who you received treatments from. You should enquire whether you can use the method of shaving in between treatments. I cannot foresee a reason why they would recommend against shaving but the aftercare may vary between different laser machines.

I hope this has helped.

Hello:
If I did waxing in my leg 5 months ago does it mean that my hair is not in anagen phase and is not good for the laser?

Reply

Hi, if you have waxed 5 months ago then all your hairs have probably returned by now, therefore it is fine for you to have your laser treatment done. However, if you have had waxing done 2 -3 weeks before your laser appointment then there would not be enough hair growth present for us to treat.

When you are doing laser hair removal, you can only trim or shave your hairs. You would not be allowed to do any waxing. This is because your treatment would be ineffective if hairs are not connected to the blood supply.

Also you would need to avoid stimulating any new hair growth between laser treatments. We recommend that you shave before the treatment, no more waxing.

We cannot predict the phase your hair growth will be in when you come in for treatment. Even Scientists are unable to predict when hairs are at an anagen phase. It can either be in the Anagen, Catagen or Telogen phase. And we are unable to predict when the anagen phase will be present.

Hence why with laser treatment you would require between 6-12 sessions, as we just cannot see what is happening beneath the skin.

If you have waxed 5 months ago and have not shaved or removed your hairs since then you may have some hairs which are in the anagen phase, yet majority may be in the Catagen and Telogen phase.

Statistics state that it is about 18 – 20% of growth is in the anagen phase at the time of treatment. There could be less or more but we simply cannot predict which stage your hair growth would be in.

I hope this helps

Read this article: Waxing vs Laser Hair Removal

by Fatima
(South Africa)

Hi what are the intervals for laser hair removal is it monthly?

Reply Hi Fatima,

Yes, the intervals for hair removal is normally every four to six weeks, depending on the area you're treating and the number of sessions you've had. It could be a bit more, could be a bit less.

Normally once you start off it's every four to six weeks but once the hair reduces it could be six to eight weeks and it really depends on the area.

Manroop

by Mary

Hi,

Will you lose "a lot" of pubic hair after only 1 laser treatment?

Must you wait 1 year until you know exactly how much hair you "permanently" lost or can you gauge it before that period? If so, how ?

Does shedding mean that the follicle is dead?

More importantly, can 1 treatment alone cause patchy growth "permanently" or "temporarily" ?

Reply Hi Mary

You've asked a question, will you lose a lot of pubic hair after only 1 treatment?

It really varies to individual to individual how much hair loss they will receive or how much hair reduction they will receive after the first treatment. The majority of clients do see about 20% on average reduction of hair growth. It could be a bit less than 20%, it could be a bit more than 20%.

Every individual is different. How laser works is that, if the hairs have been successfully treated in the anagen phase, you will have a reduction of hair growth.

If the hairs haven't been successfully treated in the anagen phase but in the other phases where the hair's not connected to the blood supply, then those hairs will just merely shed, and you'll have new growth coming through underneath.

The other question you asked, does shedding mean that the follicle is dead?

No, shedding does not mean that the follicle is dead. Shedding merely means that the laser treatment has treated; the hairs that were present at the time were basically shed.

Now the hairs, again as I've mentioned, if they were in the anagen phase, those shouldn't grow back. But if they're in the other phases, and those hairs have shredded but you've got another hair growing underneath, so it will come back through in about 4 weeks’ time. So you may, after 2 weeks or after the laser treatment, it's all shed and it's very clean. But, in another 2-3 weeks you'll probably start getting new growth again, and if you don't treat that growth again, it's going to become a bit more prominent, a bit stronger again. And you probably wouldn't have that much reduction after 1 treatment.

So you need to have a repeat number of treatments because it's very difficult to predict what stage the hair growth is in. So on average people will get 10-20% reduction after the first treatment.

Again, it all really depends on the colour of your skin and hair growth cycle as well. So I wouldn't worry too much that you've lost a lot of hair, if you don't want to continue, because I don't think you would have got sufficient reduction in 1 treatment.

You may have gotten a reduction, but there's a possibility if the hairs went in the right phase, you may not have got any reduction, so it just depends. I hope that's clarified things for you, but if you do have any concerns, just go and speak to your therapist, and go into your clinic, raise your concerns; they'll probably explain the whole procedure again to you.

Manroop