Approximately how many hours of electrolysis would I need to clear my upper lip?(female)

I’ve been visiting this electrolygist to get my upper lip cleared. So far I’ve had 6 sessions. Each time I come she fully clears my upper lip. I haven’t been given an estimate on how many hours it would take to see results, it is slightly lesser hair but still the same thickness if not thicker, but there’s a very slight difference, up to the point where I’m not really sure if their is any difference at all. Is seeing results on the upper lip with electrolysis supposed to be this slow or is she likley doing something wrong?

On the average one can start seeing substantial results within three months of regular visits. It’s best to have a treatment when the hair is fresh. Clear it and repeat. The visits will eventually get less frequent and it will take less time to clear it but you are most likely looking up to a year of treatments. It may be less or even more. On the average.

Rita Dietrich
Retired Electrologist
26 years of experience

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As a 30 year user of multi probe galvanic, you would definitely see a difference after 6 visits using this method. In total if the lip was not heavy then about 6-8 hrs in total
It is difficult to give an estimation without seeing the lip and knowing what the end result is you want to achieve from stripping every hair off to reduction eg remove the shadow. I am assuming you are currently using thermolysis

Total of what permanence? Treatment time spent over the first 3 months?5 months? 8 months? Total treatment time?

The issue you are having here OP, is that entirely different criteria are being offered to support differing times, what PRECISELY is being quoted to you and what are the criteria of which the comparison is made? Literally, apples and oranges comparison.
If you are talking initial clearance, I’ve seen upper lips that I have been able to clear, in under an hour. I’ve seen upper lips which took 3 or more hours. That’s with thermolysis, but essentially every modality will have it’s advantages and disadvantages in so far as to how much you will “see the difference” .
The Only measurement that counts overall is Total Treatment TIME or TTT. This is the total number of hours of treatment , to effect permanency, in all cycles of growth, or in other words The total hours of treatment over the ENTIRE PROCESS.
In general, having cleared the area once initially ( whatever figure that is,) we see continuous cycles of hair growing in, that we have not treated previously, for 3-5 months, necessitating weekly or biweekly appointments to clear the new growth. We can treat and kill hair in all cycles of hair growth ( anagen, catagen or telogen) , literally any hair that is showing. In order to to effect the complete removal in the minimum overall length of time( 12-18 months) we must clear the initial growth ( the longest part of the process) then repeat to clear all hair that grows in between. This has the effect of improving the appearance because we are removing the hair as it appears. If we remove all the initial hair, and all the hair that grows in over the first 3-5 months of treatment, then we see a reduction in the amount of returning hair.
This mythical point ( that anyone can make up a number for realistic or not) of “when I will see the difference” is an arbitrary measurement, and completely subjective of the person providing it.
If the question is " when will I be able to look at myself in the mirror and not see nothing but hair" this will depend on how you, as a client , approach treatment , your regularity and length of appointments, the modality the electrologist chooses, the amount of hair you have , and a myriad of other factors. But here’s the starting point:
The entire process will not be less than 12-18 months. It may be more if you don’t get enough treatment to remove all the hair in each growth cycle.
In general we don’t see a reduction in the amount of RETURNING hair, for one full growth cycle which for upper lip is 3-5 months.
The amount of hair on your lip at any given time, will be completely dependent on how frequently you are making appointments to remove additional growth. Weekly in many cases, but I’ve seen people do it twice weekly as well.

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hello,

shouldn’t the person not go in for another session if the area is still red? is it safe to have the same area treated twice in a week?

Why would the upper lip still be red a week later? In my own practises, the redness from picoflash at reasonable levels to cause the destruction of the hair follicle the redness lasts for some less than a few hours. That is using an insulated probe.While some who use different levels of energy or uninsulated probes might have differing results, but this has never been an issue for my clients.

The redness fades before i get home after my session

however the area is swollen for about a day. and i get tiny red dots which stay for two days. and an occasional white pimple from time to time because where i live is very humid, i am guessing the area reacts to the humidity. also the area stays very dry for over a week. I actually have oily skin, after a session it really dries up.

Thats what i mean, when the area is still under these affects of electrolysis i am assuming it is dangerous to have another session until all these symptoms go.

Your “Guess” that the white pustules ( and swelling) are from humidity is incorrect. It’s a sign of contamination of the hair follicle. This can be from not properly disinfecting skin and implements before treatment, probe re-use ( never allow a treatment to be performed with anything but a brand new from the package sterile probe) , or possibly an allergic reaction to the nickel used in the creation of stainless steel which used to make the probe. Swelling and pustules a week later is NOT normal.