Advice on LHR

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

Hi,

I had a consultation at Advanced laser clinic ALC in Ottawa for LHR on underarms and upperlip. I am female, type III skin, with dark hair. The technician recommended Lightsheer laser and did a spot test using 28 J and 30 J which were both not painful and I experienced no reaction other than slight swelling. I saw this setting while she was doing the spot test, but when I asked for the complete settings, she answered that their policy at ALC is that they do not give clients the settings, and that “I should trust them”.

Has any one ever gotten an answer like that? I suspected she wants to use lower settings than I can handle so that I require more treatments.

Does 30 J power sound okay for my skin type, or should it be higher? I dont want to pay for ineffective treatments?

Sara

#2

The most important question is whether you have COARSE hair on your upper lip. If you don’t, like most women, you should get electrolysis on that area to avoid getting no results or stimulating more hair.

We can’t really tell if those settings are high without knowing the pulse width used and spot size. If they used standard pulse setting of 40ms, then the settings are not bad, especially if their machine has a 12mm spot size and not the 10mm.

HOWEVER, I would strongly recommend for you to check out at least 2-3 more clinics to compare everything. You should also check out some clinics that use GentleLASE or Apogee alex lasers since they’re more effective than LightSheer for your skin type.

I would also recommend you to run a search for ALC here and on other forums. The feedback is mostly negative, so I hesitate to recommend them to anyone.

#3

Thanks lagirl for ur reply. Actually the place I went to was LCI lasercom and not ALC (got mixed up with the names).

The hair is not too coarse, but also not very fine, since I’ve been waxing the area for years, but there is alooot of hair and thats why i didnt consider electrolysis. They also had Gentle YAG laser, but the tech said that Lightsheer works better for my skin (is that the same as the GentleLASE u mentioned?). I’ll try and ask for the complete settings next time I’m there.

Thanks!

#4

There is never too much hair for a skilled electrologist with computerized equipment and surgical magnification. I routinely clear upper lips. Sometimes it takes 15 minutes and some appointments go as lomg as an hour (yes, that’s what I said - one hour). Insertion count has reached 500 to 600 hairs on the longer appointments (yes, that’s what I said). I know James does this as well and there are no problems. Not every electrologist can do this because their setup (epilator) would be too rough on the skin with more healing side effects.

ELectrolysis, when performed outside the box of what was accepted in the 20th century, is no longer accepted in 2009 with the proper set up and skill. We can move really fast and skin heals wonderfully. If you don’t have this option near where you live, if other electrologists have not caught on and re-trained, then you will have a slower go, but you will still receive permanent hair removal. Get laser, but have an electrologist in mind because you will need her later.

Dee

#5

I honestly don’t understand why anyone would do an upper lip with LASER. I don’t know the woman’s upper lip that could not be cleared out in a short time with electrolysis, and then she would start looking like she was finished if she got a full clearance, and then maintained it that way.

Between the will of the average electrolysis person to upgrade and learn new equipment, and the lack of will to get more powerful vision and lighting, the industry suffers much, and the client’s suffer even more for the lack of choice.

#6

I’ve been to both LCI and Advanced Laser Clinic in Ottawa and strongly recommend Advanced Laser. I went for several bikini and underarms sessions and one full leg session at LCI before I realized they were using ineffective settings. I also found them rude at times and they charged me more than originally agreed.

I’ve had only good experience with Advanced Laser, where I’ve been treating legs, bikini and underarms . They have the best lasers (GentleYag and Gentlelase) and use high settings. They also have some of the best prices in town and certainly offer the best value for money, since they actually use effective settings, unlike any of the other clinics I ever went to or had consultations at.

I’ve had quite a bit of electrolysis of my face and can give you some advice on where to go in Ottawa, if you PM me. I didn’t bother trying laser on the face, as I haven’t heard a single success story of laser on anything but coarse facial hair.

By the way, Advanced Laser Clinic in Ottawa should not be confused with the chain American Laser Centers, although they have the same acronym.

#7

Squash provided you with great info.

LightSheer is a diode laser. It’s NOT the same as GentleLASE which is an alexandrite laser. Please don’t forget to read the FAQs (link below my post). Differences are explained there. LightSheer is more effective on light skin than a Yag, but alex is even MORE effective.

Also, none of the lasers will work on hair that’s not coarse. That includes hair that’s not very fine, but still not coarse. The fact that there is a lot of hair to treat doesn’t take away from that fact. I know you want the fastest solution. We all do. But sometimes it’s just not possible. Electrolysis is the only thing that works on hair that’s not coarse.

#8

Thank you all for your responses and advice -I’m glad I posted my question here before going on with the treatment that will most likely be ineffective.

:slight_smile:
sara