Just an update - I did end up scabbing on day 2, what a bummer! Wendy called to ask about my skin condition and she was very surprised that I scabbed, considering how great my skin reacted when she was doing the treatment. She did tell me that she used really low setting too! She suggested I go longer between treatments, to allow more time for healing.
Wendy sounds great. I’d surely keep her. Work with her so things can be customized and refined for your situation. Follow meticulous aftercare advice. It’s pretty hot these days in California, so maybe some extra sweating caused the scabbing???
Everybody is so different and we need to ask questions and get feedback from each other so as to know whether to change the plan or stay on track with the plan. The beginning sessions are ALWAYS the toughest for both the electrologist and the client. We see hair of all different sizes in all stages of hair growth that can be settled pretty close together. If there has been years of tweezing and waxing, the difficulty is compounded, but We Shall Overcome!
I know you are glad that she took the time to call you to ask about your healing outcome. Thumbs up to Wendy!
Dee
I can’t help but ask, since you live in San Diego, did you manage to stay clean and dry for at least 24 hours? Did you sweat at all in the treated area while it was still healing? In warm and/or humid climates it is hard to avoid discoloration and scabbing due to sweat.
Price is an important factor, yet I would also consider are you getting good results from your treatments. If the answer is YES, then I would most certainly continue treatments with this electrologist. If you are not seeing the desired results after 4-6 months of electrolysis, then I would call other practitioners.
Oily or moist skin tends to react more than dry skin. Use of make-up to cover the treated area also is a factor. Be sure to use newly purchased make-up that is free from bacteria if you must conceal the area. The best route to follow is keep it clean and let air get to the area, and try not to touch your skin.
Hmm well it is certainly hot, I may have sweat and not noticed. I did take a shower within 24 hrs after treatment, am I not supposed to?. I also wear a very light powder on my face 2 days after treatment with brush that is more than a year old though I clean it with a damp towel from time to time.
I do use alcohol and then witch hazel to clean a few times a day after treatment, I do not touch my face, I wear my hair back, I try to stay out of the sun except for in the car and in and out of it, and I have scabbed with my regular electrologist too, except the size of the scabs with Wendy was smaller, maybe using a thinner probe than my other electro does? My sides scabbed more and don’t fall off as quick as chin scabs and sides also feel tender way longer than chin.
My skin is definitely sensitive, I use extra gentle everything, so I know it contributes to it. Oily, probably not, except my nose <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />! T-Zone used to be oily as a teenager, but for the last few years skin is generally dry, I moisturize religiously, using cetaphil only (recommended by dermatologist) after lots of hit and tries. I do use moisturizer all over face included treated areas the morning after my treatment, so say about 14 hrs later. I can try to avoid that.
so scabs are caused by moisture and bacteria? and is not a normal reaction to skin tissue that got damaged by the heat/current?
I rarely get negative feedback about facial scabbing. My clients heal fine, as long as I choose the correct program and correct probe size for them and watch the skin’s reaction closely during treatment. Just curious as to what kind of machine your Wendy uses as well as the electrologist before her? One can be scabbed with any brand of machine, computerized or knobbed, if improperly used, but I have found that it is much easier to control the heat on a computerized machine than a knob job in order to reduce scabbing.
If the scabs are very small and do not connect and are lightly colored , then don’t worry too much. Please tell your electrologist though, so the two of you can work on this together.
Dee
The pores are open after treatment so the powder/makeup can introduce bacteria under the skin. I would really recommend not using the powder and just let air get to the skin.
Did you mention whether you have ever tweezed the hairs? If so, more treatment energy is required to get them to slide out of the follicle and kill them. Initial growth ie. the first clearing is tougher to remove too. The tiny hairs that grow in later are easier to remove.
One point I should make is that a smaller/thinner probe is a hotter probe. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> The heat is concentrated like a pin point. A larger probe is cooler because the heat is spread over a bigger area. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" /> The skin stretches so a larger size probe is more comfortable for the client.
In regards to San Diego, I’m considering electrolysis for the first time on my face after laser treatments. Who would do you think would be best for this in San Diego? Thanks.
Hair Free Solutions 619 223 6131 (Rochelle)-Shelter Island
New Image Electrolysis 858 565 1171 (Rochelle or Wendy) Kearny Mesa
Or Roxanne Perfect down in South Bay (don’t know the number, but she has a stellar reputation amongst SD electrologists)
These are the very best.
All of these listed would welcome you to visit their offices, talk a bit about what you want done, and give you a good timeline estimate.
Good Luck
Mantaray
dfahey, Wendy used the Apilus Senior, my usual electrologist uses the A R Henkel UC2, scabs with her were bigger in size than the Apilus, but it seemed to my layman eye, that the Apilus probe was thinner.
Lisa, I wait as long as I can before applying the powder, I would hope that the pores should close within a day especially with the use of the witch hazel. I will try to go one week with no powder and see if that affects the appearance of the scabs and report back.
Yes, I have been waxing my chin for years, but not tweezing. Conversely, no waxing on sides, though have been tweezing 5 or 6 hairs there about once a month. Mostly just bleaching there. The scabbing on sides is definitely not on just those 5/6 hairs, but all over.
I still don’t understand what the scab indicates, does it mean that the surrounding skin tissue cells around the follicle have been damaged, does it mean that the insertion is improper or crooked? or maybe the skin cells are so tightly bound to the follicle that no matter how smooth the probe slides in, it is piercing skin cells and therefore there is a scab? Also why are some scabs bigger than others within the same treatment…