So far i had 5 hours done. Of all that, maybe 10 minutes went onto some thick hairs on my chin, but all the work was on the upper lip.
I wanted to ask if its normal that in 5 hours we couldnt get my upper lip cleared at all. I did have little trouble with area under the nose, but nothing that would be untolerable. After 5 hours i still have bunch of hairs left.The reason i know is because they are bleached and i havent bleached since i started in mid july. True, all the long thick and noticable are gone, and you can hardly tell i have some hair on the upper lip, but i was never hair free. Now i am noticing bunch of new black tiny ones, and i want to scream. I pay 65 per hour, and on one income that comes pretty expensive,so i am hoping to start reducing visits on half hour sessions. From what ive read here after 5 sessions i should be able to go in for 30 minute treatments now, but my electrologist doesnt share my opinion. They way its looking now, with all the new growing in, it seems i will need to quit if i have to continue going for one hour.
I am really concerned.
By the way i go every other week for one hour, and yes, i did have plenty of hair on my upper lip which was never altered (i have never plucked, waxed or shaved).
Bleaching does alter the hair as well, so there is some alteration there.
You never said what type of hair removal your practitioner is using, if it were galvanic, I would expect that you would be lucky to get what you have already. It it were blend, you are probably on track, and if it were thermolysis, or a type of flash thermolysis, I would think you are behind schedule.
The other thing to take into consideration here is the difference between what hairs should be removed, and which hairs should be left alone so that you don’t look like a wax statue. Stop looking in the 10x’s magnification mirror and only look at yourself in the bathroom mirror standing straight up behind the sink. If you can’t see anything in the mirror without bending forward and putting your face near the mirror, then you are doing ok.
You might be at the point where you can do an hour every 3 to 4 weeks soon. It is just difficult to say without knowing what modality your practitioner is using.
I will ask what method shes using next time i go. I hold little stick with wet towel wrapped around it while shes doing the treatment. After she inserts the needle current flows, computerized, and it makes short hissing sound, like an air gun. Maybe that helps. I dont know what setting she uses though. I just wanted to mention that i have only two mirrors in entire house and thats only because they are in the bathrooms and one expects to find a mirror there. 
I banned mirrors out of my life when i was 14 when i first noticed that i have way more hair on my upper lip than rest of the girls i knew. Needless to say, no girl i knew had any hairs on her face. I never look at myself close in the mirror, but since she removed majority of hairs, i am getting more couragious, and now i`ll look from time to time. It looks better 100 % from where i was. I was just concerned with clearance issue, and i am glad to hear that not all hairs are supposed to be gone.
Thanks for your help I really do appreciate it.
It sounds like she may be using blend, or slow thermolysis with an auto delay. Hard to tell from your description. When you find out, let us know. (My money is on blend with an air feature blowing on the skin during treatment.)
I’m curious if you are having an hour of treatment each time on your upper lip? How dense and coarse is your hair? Is it the type that if shaved leaves a shadow in your skin? It is my belief that the upper lip should be limited to 30 minutes per week and if the hair is very dense, then being cleared in 5 hours would not be expected. There are skins that could tolerate the long treatments, and if your skin is in good condition and healing well after the tx, then continue as scheduled.
Also, you mention a hissing sound. Is this your skin or is it an air desensitizer? It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the air devices - don’t they run continuously? Kind of a vibration and blowing sound? I would think that you would also “feel” the air. If the hissing sound is your skin going “fzzt” then I am concerned.
I am a fan of bleaching prior to treatment. Hairs that are bleached to the surface are getting ready to shed so I work on the hair that has dark roots and is still growing. Those bleached hairs will shed and re-grow (showing up dark) and are easier to treat and be gone with the first tx.
It sounds like you are gaining confidance - good for you!
Sanny, you had your first treatment July 14, 2007. We are talking about 4 or 5 treatments in 8 weeks time. You are just starting the electrolysis process and hair will keep coming to the surface because hair grows in cycles.
Even if you are given a first full clearance on you upper lip, it is too early to be finished. I agree with Barbara, that working on the upper lip for over 30 minutes is not encouraged. I guess we need to understand what modality is being used. I’m thinking like James that it is probably Blend, since it would seem to me that you could have had a first full clearance in less than 5 hours if flash or microflashed was being used.
Please don’t get discouraged as the upper lip has a tremendous amount of hair follicles per square cm., especially under the nose. The new little black hairs you see are phasing in, so you got to get them treated. If she’s not using flash or microflash thermolysis and can use this modality expertly, then maybe she will switch for you so as to get the bleached, smaller hairs that have been there since July as well as the small new darker hairs phasing in now.
I still own a machine with the air desensitizer feature and I can enable it to come on only when the current activates or I can turn it off completely. The sound is present while the current is activated. Most of my clients found it to be a nuisance, but it was available for the few that liked the distraction of air. If you smell burning skin and hear sizzles please tell her what you are observing,as this may not have anything to do with a the air desenitizer.
Have a polite discussion with her about anything that troubles you, since we can’t see your problem. Just know that you are in the beginning stages of treatment, you sound like you have a lot of hair, make sure you heal well in between treatments, but most importantly, understand that the first 4-6 months are the very hardest for everyone, as a rule. This is why we do a lot of talking about the virtues of being patient for 9-12 months. If you have a lot of hair, add a couple months to that ballpark figure.
Dee
Its definitely desensitizer. She told me about it when i first started, and she said that it helps distract the patient from whats actually being done. (It doesnt, but hey, at least its fun)
As for the healing process, i dont have any, because there is absolutely nothing to heal. I havent scabbed once, nor i had redness or anything. I am prone to touching my face all the time, and i do that even after the treatment and i never had any issues. I dont put anything on my skin after the appointment, i even stop putting aloe. 15 minutes later, swelling goes away, and no one can tell i had electrolysis done. I posted few weeks ago, and you answered that since i dont have any problems after the treatment, shes probably using modern stuff which is up to date, and skillfully. I hope she is :) Its just worries me that now i see bunch of black tiny hairs growing back, and i am wondering should there be so many. I am not sure what setting she uses , but i can tell you that it hurts like crazy, and i am no whimp. This really does hurt.
Even if you had receieved first clearance, you would be experiencing the growth of the next phase of hair at this time. Only having taken a good BEFORE picture, could you tell that the second phase of hair growth is less than you started with, as the difference is a subtle one. (although it would jump out at you in such a BEFORE, and PROGRESSIVE AFTER pictures)
I always have to argue with the ladies about taking before pictures (especially for body work) and yet, it is the only way that they will know that they actually ARE making progress.
you are not seeing hairs “growing back”. hair grows in cycles, and you will see new hairs come out consistently for 4-5 months, after which it will slow down considerably. however, it does sound like either she’s slow or using a very slow method, and treating upper lip for over 30 mins at a time is too much. do please find out what method she’s using. how many hairs do you think she removed per minute? do you ever feel any plucking?
Sometimes i feel sensation of hair being pulled, but that was mostly in the beginning, maybe first two times. Its definitely not plucking because i once plucked a hair from under my nose, and i will never forget that feling. From what ive read here on the forum, its completely normal for some hair to come out feeling like they being thuged. I dont know if shes slow or not. I had way too much hairs on my upper lip to know if shes slow or not. She`s never fussing around though. She goes one right after one, although last time we both had an issue with itchy noses, and had to stop quite often.
I will call later and ask them to tell me my setting and method, and i will post it on here.
You may also want to make sure that your hydration is good. A well hydrated person requires a lower setting, and the treatment will be even more comfortable. A dehydrated person requires a higher setting and the treatment will hurt more.
Those little tugs are hair where the bulb system is larger than the shaft that they have to pop through. No Worries.