Can anyone explain these bumps ? - its a long term thing now

Hair Removal Methods Professional Electrolysis
#21

Hi Dee,

Reading your post gave me a case of the sniffles. I am very consciencious and passionate about what I do. While I am just starting out professionally, I have had good success with the clients that I’ve treated. I am not as fast as I hope to be eventually, but I am very quality conscious and try my absolute best to give my clients the very best that I can do for them. Anything less is simply not acceptable. I have a lot of love for people and anything I can do to encourage or help them is a great personal reward for me.

Speed will come with time and experience, but until then I make absolutely certain that I do not harm my clients in any way - and try to get as much done in the appointment time as I possibly can. I have tried several electrologists over the last year or two and it was this that drove me towards becoming an electrologist. After enduring a lot of treatments that reminded me of the Spanish Inquisition, I decided that there had to be better ways to get this done. Also, after becoming disabled for my past occupations, an electrologist friend of mine kept pushing me to get into the field. I can never repay her for her support and encouragement. I really wish she didn’t want to remain anonymous. She is one fantastic lady!

As far as continuing to post, you will not be able to keep me away! I have learned so much from reading this board! The posts from clients and other pros like yourself, James, and others are a great way for me to judge my own skill level and are inspiring me towards becoming the best I can possibly be.

Thanks again for the vote of confidence. I’m getting all teary again!

Hugs,
Joanie <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

#22

Hey all,

I know this thread has been lead astray somewhat, but I just want to follow up on where I left off, with those following my saga.

So I went back to my electrologist 5 days ago (after an 8-month hiatus, to see what was going to happen with the bumps/dots).

She told me that she honestly had no idea what they were or how they could have formed. She said this was the first time she had seen anything like what I have (And she streats and has treated many women/men for over 10 years, so my reaction is definitely an anomoly as far as she can tell) <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

She did pick open quite a few of the bumps/dots (which to re-iterate , look like little pimples or goosepimples , most flesh-coloured, some red, and a few with a brownish hue), using tweezers, and found that some of the larger,more raised and darker bumps had hairs trapped inside (in-growns), while many of the others had new hairs coming out of them, and then the other half of the bumps/dots seemed to be simply skin when she picked them open( which she did very gently and smoothly so as not to leave a scar.

She really had never seen this with any of her clients before, but believed that in time many could still go away (though Im nervous about just how long this might take- if it does in fact happen… how long can such things really take anyway?).
She suggested that I begin exfoliating my skin with a loofer in the shower (a bit weird for a young man like myself to contemplate), while she will endeavour to remove all the in-growns that she can each time, whilst being extra gentle and watching the thermolysis machine’s power levels(hopefully theyll still be high enough to be effective). Weve been working on 60 (not sure of the unit of measurement,but she does some male clients backs on 100 she says). From the machine’s appearance Im guessing its fairly dated, but not like ancient or anything, just not the latest thermolysis-technology…

hopefully with the exfoliating and the extra car and thermolysis and zapping of ingrowns, that things will improve and I will again be on my way to being hair free , but also skin-condition free with that too.
If things get worse in the coming months, I really will not know what to do… maybe Ill have to try IPL or something, which going on anecdotal accounts of other hair removal methods, I am not too keen on.

Any feedback on this situation, or any further advice (especially from ther thermolysis practitioners on here) ??
I would greatly appreciate any further input…

cheers folks,
hank <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

#23

Hi MrHanky,

I just want to give you a big warning about loofahs. It is fine to use one of the nylon body scrubbers that can be frequently washed in the washer and dryer (both at high temperatures) or even better yet frequently replaced.

DO NOT purchase a natural loofah - as they can accumulate bacteria and the result can be the spread of a staph infection all over your body.

#24

Hey everyone…
Thanks for the Lloofa advice Barbara. I got one of them mitten loofer things.

Ok … I have some details of the machine my electrologist has been using.

Its a ‘RAYVUE solid state “epilation unit”’

  • no model no. , but serial no. is 909 if that helps.she works at around 60 on the machine.
    I have no specific info about the probes. sorry

Again I re-iterate. She has worked on many many men and women over a number of years (cleared full male bear-rug backs and all that heavy duty stuff), and the bumps/dots that Ive had for months now are the first she’s seen, and as such she really had no answers for them.

Thanks to you all for the suggestions and great advice thus far!, just wondering if there are any more ideas about my situation with the bumps - either possibilities of causes or possible resolutions/treatments.

Id really be grateful for any further advice or suggestions…

Im feeling in a dire situation here.

cheers folks,
Hank

#25

Hey folks,

I know youre probably sick of this thread and hearing about the bumps I have by now, but I was really hoping that someone has some degree of feedback re: my situation and the recent updates I have provided, since having resumed thermolysis treatments with my electrologist after 8 months hiatus.

Particularly helpful, would be any feedback,especially from the CPE’s on here about the type and quality of my electrologist’s equipment…which I just detailed in my previous post. At the very least,feedback on her equipment status and how effective/dated/damaging it is generally considered to be by PRACTISING ELECTROLOGISTS, would at least serve to be rather helpful in deciding whether I stay with her or move on or what?

Any info and advice would be truly appreciated and Id be very grateful
thanks so much people,

Hank.

#26

I received an e-mail asking me to respond to this. I think he clicked on the wrong person but

I cannot comment on the equiptment Mr. H. You are in a different country and I have never heard of it. But I now know that we were not over treated on the same presets.

I can however comment on very high settings for too long a period of time. If you are having ingrowns perhaps too much heat is rising to the surface and the pores are closing in the healing process. This makes total sense.

I hope all electrologists are taking note here. Dee relay this info to the electrology chat.

I am an esthtician, I see clients who have strong medical Retin A and Laser resurfacing treatments. I also see people who have had cosmetic tatooing. These proceedures will put the skin in healing overdrive. The pores get closed, hairs can become ingrown millia are formed, bumps happen. I am glad you informed your electrologist. She can adjust.

Now I am wondering about your climate. Dry deserty? I wonder how climate/skin moisture might effect this. The heat rising.
My personal bump problem is not like yours. My skin is allipod. Nearly oil free. My bumps were immediate and went away after a month (well I can still feel them). There is no hair to dig out. I was over treated and internally the skin formed scabs or collegen clumps that have broken down. I just honestly have never had an ingrown problem. Besides having facial/vanity related electrolysis I don’t have much body hair. When it comes to me wanting to experience a treatment for research sake I don’t have much to offer.

So one mystery down another to go.

James, did you mean me? Did I give you what you wanted? Any way I needed a break, moved my disabled sister and such.

#27

Yes Janean, I meant you!

Anyone who can use the search feature can find my general answer to this question. I figured, what was the point of writing anything at all when I have seen that you and some less vocal CPE’s believe that my discussions on this topic are either muddled, or misleading. So I spent my time instead pointing out the question to you so you could get it right the first time, instead of the usual point counterpoint.

So there you go, that is her answer without having to bounce off anything I said.

#28

Huh? Okay, this is confusing. I’m not seeing where James has made any comments on this thread about mrhanky’s bump problem. Whatever are you referring to, Janean? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

#29

Hank: I have KP on my arms and it is exactly how you describe your condition to be. I’m not saying that you do have KP, just saying that the description is the same. I was actually going to start electrolysis on my arms next month to cure KP since I thought removing the hair will cause the bumps to calm down. I’m still going to go ahead and try it. Maybe once you are totally free of hair in all those follicles, the bumps too will disappear. It’s strange though that it just appeared now, since usually KP is something that is always present since puberty. However, it is not that uncommon to have it appear later on. Like when some women get pregnant, they have deficiencies of Vitamin A and calcium and KP appears. Another reason for these KP bumps is dry skin. I know personally when I get electrolysis my skin is completely dehydrated and I have to take extra care to moisturize it internally and externally. Maybe your arms are also lacking moisture due to electrolysis.

People on the KP message boards have found tremendous improvement on their bumps with these methods:
-drinking 2/3 glasses of pure carrot juice (for Vitamin A)
-increasing intake of fish oil and flaxseed oil to get in more omega 3 fatty acids (help skin and reduce inflammation internally)
-exfoliating in the shower and then applying Nutvia extra virgin coconut oil to the areas with bumps.

if you want to research it more for yourself you can check out www.keratosispilaris.org and browse through the General Discussion forum.