changes in pigmentation?? hmmm. need some help!

Hey everyone,

First of all, cheers to smooth skin. Ummmmm. ya. And let’s go implant some hair on all them naturally smooth folk. Well, at least spray on hair.

I’m gonna run this by the lady (nurse) who did my patch test, but i thought i’d BETTER check in with the experts on this site first. OKAY: I had my patch test 3 weeks ago with the lightsheer diode laser (chest). I got pretty red and also bumpy (BuMpY - yes, I’m a dork) immediately following the session (which I found, to say the least, quite painful!), and then for a few days after it remained fairly red (no pain, though). I also had two or three pimple/bumps form in the small box area (you should have seen THAT - a beautiful smooth square inthe middle of my chest. I looked ridiculous). These bumps came on about a week after the test, which I’m guessing were ingrown hairs, and they were really annoying, and I (slap me) tried to squeeze them b/c I thought they needed to be squeezed. That probably wasn’t very smart cause I caused a bit of a scab which then created a bigger problem… and it’s not healing very fast there…

Now, three weeks after, the area still seems slightly red/discoloured, especially where the ingrown bumps were. It’s not the entire area…just sort of patches here and there. I know that my skin gets red very easily, (especially on my chest) and i’m just wondering if this is irritation from the hair being exfoliated on top of the ingrowns… I have white skin, (not tanned) and quite coarse/dense hair (I’m 23 yrs old). The skin on my upper chest (where the patch test was done) is more sensitive and not as evenly toned, and prone to pain!

Does it sound like I have had pigmentation changes? Has anyone else had a similar experience, especially those who’ve had LHR on their chests? Is this very common?? Should I be concerned about it, or give it time and see what happens??

I also had a patch test done with the NG Yag area just below the light sheer, at another practitioner. It seems the Yag was less painful, but the hair that the Yag zapped was more fine, and i seem to be having more regrowth than with the diode. The area is a bit redish in spots, but not as bad as the diode.

ARGHGHG. I really wanna get my treatment done, but I don’t want to have a bloted/patchy chest!!

Look forward to hearing from you guys (I’d esp. be interested in hearing chest hair experiences, cause I know the chest can be quite sensitive to pain; and maybe someone can offer some advice!). I’d also appreciate any feedback on choosing between the Yag or Diode, from your experiences.

THANKS!!!

Hey Hoodieguy81

Ok I will try and provide you some ideas as to what might be going on.

Post treatment with the lightsheer seeing red little raised bumps is a good thing and is a sign that the follicle recieved a good bit of energy, possibly even enough to weaken or kill it off. These bumps can last from 30 min to maybe a day much more then that and I would start to be concerned. That said you will see little red spots at each treated follicle for up to a few weeks after a treatment as the skin heals, think of what it looks like when a scrape or cut heals, not painful and not raised or swollen.
Those areas you are talking about that are still swollen or raised might be infected follicles, this can happen and is why they usualy prescribe some sort of antibiotic and or cortical type creme to apply post treatment for a few days.

Please do bring these red spots to the attention of the practitioner as they should be made aware of any side effects you may be experiencing. If they are just ingrowns yes they suck, I get a lot more of them now that what hair I have left is thin/weak and more then likely unable to push through the top layer of skin, gentle exfoliation helps me keep them at bay.

As for the pain, Of all the areas from the neck down on my body the upper chest and perianal areas were the most painful. I never used any pain medication but there are topical creams that are supposed to help. Ask the practitioner what they have to offer in this area.

Chris