Efficacy of IPL on fine hair?

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

Hello,

I did laser treatments for a good 5 years consecutively which really helped reduce hair growth in many body parts (stomach, back, bum). I’m now left with really large surface areas with fine or semi-fine but long hairs all over my back, buttocks and abdomen. The derm at the laser clinic told me not to treat these areas with laser so as not to risk induced hair growth. I know this is uncommon on the body? Either way, I don’t want to be lasering those areas if laser isn’t effective on fine hairs.

The areas are too large for electrolysis (?) so my electroligist suggested IPL for those areas but I’m skeptical. Does IPL work on finer hairs? I really don’t want to be wasting my time (& money!) with IPL when I can be treating it with reliable electrolysis. She keeps pushing IPL on me because of the fact that I have so many areas to treat. Unfortunately she’s the only electroligist in town so I don’t have the option of finding another one for the time being.

Any comments, suggestions, and/or experiences are appreciated…TIA!

#2

If the hair is too fine for laser, then it’s definitely too fine for IPL. In general, IPL devices kind of suck compared to a real laser. You can shave it, bleach it, or get at least some of it taken care of with electrolysis (I recommend picking one part that bothers you most), but either way IPL is not an option for you, sorry.

#3

Thank you so much for your reply! Don’t be sorry, I’m glad I know this now. I really don’t want to waste my money and time IPL’ing all those areas to no avail.

#4

Yeah, if you still think the hair is thick and dark enough, then you’d be better off sticking with the laser that worked so well for you already. Otherwise if it’s as thin as you say, maybe just have your stomach done with electrolysis (like me). It’s not THAT large of an area, and next year you can start on your back or butt or whatever you want. Just do a little at a time. :slight_smile:

#5

For me IPL was amazing on my happy trail, it eliminated all the coarse dark hair in only 3 sessions, but for fine hair definitely an alex is what you need/electrolysis.

#6

Yes, IPL or laser won’t work on this type of hair.

No area is too large for electrolysis. Electrolysis can tackle any hair. It’s all about your committment to treatments and finding a good electrologist. A good one can remove 5-10 hairs per minute using thermolysis.

#7

Thank you! Yes my electroligist uses Microflash with her Apilus Senior - she’s quite fast and so far I’m happy with her technique, my very sensitive skin is somewhat calm and back to normal an hour after treament. The only problem is that she’s not very eager to do large areas and I’m not sure if I should attribute this to the fact that she’s always so busy or whether it’s just her being lazy :slight_smile:

#8

It is probably because she is always so busy. Perhaps you could suggest having one hour every week or two, and if you can be patient in this way, it may seem less daunting to her/him.

#9

You can always look for another more accomodating electrologist.

#10

Or just spread out your treatments among a few electrologists until you finally get your first full clearance. Then the work will be less daunting and your regular electrologist might be able to take care of it after that.