Couple of Newbie Questions

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

Hey all. I’m planning on heading into an LHR center very shortly (talked it over with the wife, and she’s onboard with the idea) and had a few questions. First off, a bit on me:

I’m 33. Generally light skin with a slightly olive tint. I’ve had problems with excessive hair growth through most of my adult life, increasing over time. Back has pretty much full coverage at this point (something I don’t like) with a goodly “scruff” down my neck and the top of the back. Arms and legs are generally quite hairy with dense coverage of long, fine hairs. Same on chest/abs. Hair over my body is all dark brown.

I started out (at my wife’s behest) with shaving and loved both the look and the comfort. Quite happy with that part. The problem was/is that I have to shave every day. If I get a good shave on my chest in the morning, by evening, I’ve got regrowth.

No problem, says I…I’ll try epilating. Did full-body. Put up with the pain (hurt like hell the first few times, particularly the chest). The problem was that I could epilate my chest on Monday morning and by Tuesday have enough regrowth to epilate again. No where near as dense, but still there and requiring removal. I went with a combination of epilating and shaving for a while before it became clear (to me) that the epilating was exacerbating (in a big way) one of the other ongoing problems that I’ve had: acne/ingrowns. It got pretty bad on my chest.

So I stopped epilating about a month ago and went back to just shaving. I’ve gotten pretty good with it (full body in less than 30 minutes)…but would very much like to find something a bit more permanent so that I can get back to nice, quick showers <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

So…onto my questions:

  1. Given the rather rapid regrowth that I seem to have on my body hair, should I be worried that LHR is not going to “take”?

  2. I can’t imagine that this would work out, but there’s no harm in checking – does anyone have any experience with insurance coverage of LHR? I’m assuming that since it is squarely in the cosmetic area, that it’s entirely out of the insurance game…but was figuring it would be worth approaching given the problems that I have with acne and ingrowns (recently had to have an abscess surgically removed from my forearm – before I got into the shaving thing).

  3. Is it normal for LHR centers to provide payment plans/financing? Or should I expect to cover the full amount up front? On a related note, is it normal to find “fixed price” quotes, or are they “per treatment” (as in: should I look for “$2000 for your chest and back for 6 sessions” or should I look for “$200 for each session on your chest”)?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

#2

  1. Hair growth does not effect whether or not laser will “take.” It’s a good thing your stopped epilating a month a go, because your hair cycle should just about return to normal now and that effects whether the laser will “take” or not. The more dark thick hair you have during the growth stage, the better laser will work.

  2. No insurance will cover LHR. LHR is for cosmetic purposes and only offers permanent hair reduction. Insurance companies won’t think you need LHR because you have problems with acne and ingrowns.

  3. LHR centers and offices offer LHR at different types of prices and payment plans. Personally, I think the best way to pay for LHR is per treatment (example: $200 for each session on your chest). That way if you don’t like your results, then you don’t have to go there anymore. If you choose a package plan (example: $2000 for your chest and back for 6 sessions), then you will be stuck if you don’t like your results with each session. There is also paying per hour (example: $200 for one hour flat rate), but few places offer that and it’s only good for if you’re getting large places on your body done.

#3

Thank you for the response!

If I could bother you for another opinion (if not, just ignore me…I’ll go away <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />):

I’m currently shaving full-body (nose to toes). I’d be interested in LHR over everything (except face). Is there any reason that I shouldn’t think about this (other than cost)? Should I expect a price break if I go “full bore” rather than piecemeal?

If I have to go piecemeal, I’m currently figuring on the following for order of priority/removal:

  1. Back/neck
  2. Chest/abs
  3. Arm pits
  4. Arms
  5. Legs
  6. Pubic area (do they even do this?)
#4

Thank you for the response!

If I could bother you for another opinion (if not, just ignore me…I’ll go away <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />):

I’m currently shaving full-body (nose to toes). I’d be interested in LHR over everything (except face). Is there any reason that I shouldn’t think about this (other than cost)? Should I expect a price break if I go “full bore” rather than piecemeal?

If I have to go piecemeal, I’m currently figuring on the following for order of priority/removal:

  1. Back/neck
  2. Chest/abs
  3. Arm pits
  4. Arms
  5. Legs
  6. Pubic area (do they even do this?)

Hello there.

I don’t know if this is a universal rule of thumb - but some reasonable quotes I’ve gotten in the Northeast (say, NYC area) for laser treatments goes something like $150 per body part.

Example: If I wanted to do full legs and underarms, that would be 4 x $150 = $600 per treatment, or something like that.

Yes, most laser techs do the the pubic and peri-anal areas. Cheap might be $150 per treatment, expensive might be $250 or more.

Shop around and ask for referrals from people who are happy with their results.

Results will vary with people and their laser techs … but on average most people will have meaningful reduction after 6-10 treatments, provided they are spaced 6-8 weeks apart.

#5

Hi Gryffin,

I plan on having LHR on a lot of areas on my body too. I started on my butt 4 months ago. I’ve had two treatments on my butt and one treatment on my entire legs. I would also like to do my arm pits and stomach, but I can’t afford that right now.

I suggest you should start out with one area (like I did with my butt) and if you like the results (see shedding and reduction of hair), then get whatever else you want done too.

Some places might give you special deal if you get alot of areas treated all at once. What city do you live in? What laser centers/offices have you visited? What do they say?

As for lasering the pubic area, most places will do it. I consider my butt a private area, but my laser doctor/tech has no problem lasering that particular area.

#6

Griffin, please read the FAQs to answer all the basic questions, including avg cost. www.hairremovalforum.com/faq.cfm

Also, you definitely should get 3-4 consultations before you commit to anything. Like OhGodWhyMe suggested, it’s helpful to start with one area, and per treatment option to see how LHR can work for you before committing to larger areas and/or packages.

All those areas won’t be a problem to treat. Most clinics do all of them. Most clinics will also offer discounts for multiple areas, and in your case, it might be worth getting a “full body” package since it might be cheaper than paying per each area. But like I said above, I would only do this after several treatments on one area that you pick at first and if you’re getting results, as well as after determining that that specific clinic and laser are the best for you.

#7

Thanks for the replies, all!

I’ve got a couple of appointments setup for initial consultations. So far, the one that I’m most interested in is a woman whose office is about 10 minutes from my home – who has apparently been doing a fair bit of work in LHR and has a strong background in electrolysis (she performs both out of her clinic). It sounds like her main concentration up until about 9 years ago was in electrolysis and she then started to pick up LHR as well (studying, she says, with the guy that helped create the technology). Nice woman.

One of the things that I’m going to approach with her is the possibility of a “barter” situation. I do mid-high end web development (with a concentration on security for major corporations) for a living and have a relatively high-powered server on a VERY high-speed connection. In all, I can provide her with a comprehensive solution for a website (something that she needs, IMO – the one she has now, while clean, is extremely basic and one which I came across more by chance than anything else). The development that I can do for her would normally run far more than what I’ve seen for LHR pricing…but it’s just time on my end (and something that I truly enjoy doing). So I’m not out anything but time and she (hopefully) benefits similarly.

We’ll see what kind of interest I can generate…wish me luck <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

#8

professionals that do both laser and electrolysis are the best since they know exactly how hair grows and best way to kill it. make sure that the laser she uses is best for your skin type though.

#9

That’s how it seems to me, as well.

She uses Candela Gentle Lase Plus, and the Lightsheer Diode lasers. I’d judge my skin type between II and III (caucasion, slight olive tint…I tend to burn, but tan well afterwards).

#10

yep, those are good for you.