First Post....... frustrated

Hair Removal Methods Do-It-Yourself Electrolysis
#1

Hello James, Andrea, and everyone! I’m Dee.
I’ve been lurking here for years and I finally am posting. I’m TG and have been doing my own electro since 2008 but I’m getting tired and frustrated…

I must say I have a graduate degree in physics so I have some competence with things. So, I built my own galvanic machine - it has a well calibrated current control and a meter to read the actual current. I have a small switch in my left hand that I squeeze which works awesome. I do work on my face, in a 3x mirror, also wearing +3 diopter reading glasses when possible.

I’ve done say, 8 or 9 full clearances on my upper lip, going on somewhere in the range of 200 hours total on chin, cheeks, neck, and upper lip, and have been on a consistent scheduling since around March 2009. But I’m getting very frustrated. The hair keeps coming back quite full. It is definitely more sparse in many areas but results are very discouraging :frowning: I’d guess there’s still 65-80% the hair count on upper lip still…

Typically I will run 1.0 mA of current held for between 8-10 seconds. This should be the required 80 to 100 lye units for strong hairs such as beard. I’m very confident about my insertions and I have no scarring or other complications. Hairs don’t always come out with zero resistance though. My typical skin reaction is red, sometimes bumps like mosquito bites which go down after a couple hours, regional swelling which goes away within 2-3 days, all traces gone within say 5-6 days.

THEN the hair starts back. I have less than 2 weeks before more hairs. I do understand that growth cycles cause this.

Can you recommend potentially heavier treatment? Or can I expect an abrupt drop in hair count sometime as the cycles come full circle…

Thank you :slight_smile:

#2

Unless you took before pictures, your perception of the reduction is unreliable. You usually can’t expect to see signs of reduction until you have achieved a full clearance that leaves the entire area bare of the offending hairs. After that, you should work hard to keep them from coming in too far before you treat them again.

I am most worried by your assertion that you see new hairs in two weeks. If you have a full clearance, you should be able to coast for about 3 weeks. Could the hairs be breaking off?

#3

Hi James! Thanks for the response.

I understand. I actually do have before pics. Yes as I mentioned, at least 8 full clearances. Bare upper lip. I typically retreat every 4 or 5 weeks which i have done for the past year.

Not breaking off. I always have papillae from upper lip hairs.

It’s funny, I never had much hair on cheeks at all, but upper lip and chin were about as dark and thick as it gets.

As far as seeing hairs, I might see, using strong magnification, a few young hairs as soon as even a week. Two weeks and I can see maybe 20(??) hairs, albeit not bad. Three weeks I start to have a shadow. I’m due for upper lip again, I can take notes…

Do hair matrix cells in any way “spread” similar to plant root systems? Such that allowing too long between treatments can cause disproportionately more regrowth?
-Dee

#4

I misunderstood you. If the magnification is good enough, you could see hairs to work on a day after finishing a full clearance. It takes 3 weeks for the naked eye to notice hairs. So as far as that part of it goes, there is nothing unusual there.

When you treat the hairs, do they come out with cloudy gel sheaths around the hairs, or do you just get full hairs with black bulbs and no root sheaths? You may not be letting the hairs get enough treatment energy (on the other hand, too much treatment energy would also have the possibility of looking like this. Overtreatment could also leave a dissolved hair that has a melted end.

One of the biggest problems with self directed work is making a perfect insertion and staying in that position long enough for the treatment to complete. If you lose your position, the treatment is ruined.

I hate to tell you this, but 200 hours with a pro would have cleared a whole lot more than your upper lip in the past 2 years.

#5

(nods)

Typically I do get the clear sheath. Yes I understand the critical nature of insertion. Perhaps I may not always be still enough during the treatment however.

I realize a pro would be much faster, galvanic is automatically 10 times slower than blend or flash, etc., even at the somewhat intense power I use. And yes, my hair would be long gone by now or close to it. There is no way I can afford otherwise at this point in my life. No, it doesn’t matter how economical. I’m that poor. :frowning:

-Dee

#6

Then I guess you should come over to my place and do odd jobs, electrical work, and build me my new robotic arm for my client view HD TV in exchange for some good fast work. :wink:

#7

I agree something’s wrong. Full clearances, on schedule, good releases every time… And yet a year and a quarter later and you only have 60% results? Unless facial work takes longer than body work or something.

Doing your face is probably reeeally hard, so your insertions must be hitting the bulb and anchoring section of the hair, but maybe missing the papilla and blood supply (below the actual anchor of the hair which sits a little higher up in the follicle than some people expect)… That could make a hair release but maybe not kill it if the insertion angle is off enough.

Not my business, but are you on any medication to help manage your hormones and hair growth? That might make your job a lot easier… Like spiro or something…

#8

James: Thanks for the offer hehe - if I can make it up to Buffalo sometime I would definitely give you a call :slight_smile:

Kitty: Hello. Upper lip and chin can be notoriously particularly difficult to kill from what I hear on this site. I actually did the sparse hair I had on my chest with seemingly lasting results. Hair eventually regrows there but I’m pretty sure it’s different hair.

I find doing upper lip easiest of anything because of the line of sight which allows me to wear glasses, and angles are easy for me with good control. Also, I have, at times tried to push just slightly on the deep side due to what you’re saying about the blood supply. But I’m not consistent with that and mostly try to get the tip exactly at the papilla.

I’m on low dose of spiro. Can’t really afford higher dosages…

#9

Dee Tee, have you considered making a machine that operates the high frequency?
My knowledge of physics is very limited, but I guess it should not be too difficult. The mechanism should be similar to iron the clothes or hair.

This will allow you to work faster.

#10

Hello dep
hmm… of course I’ve considered it, and I’m sure I could build one, but it’s not as cut and dry as a simple galvanic machine. Had I known it would take this long I should have built one from the beginning lol. I may still consider it but there are so many more variables to calibrate etc. I’ve heard of someone attempting to convert a CB radio… heh

Has anyone else here done self-work on heavy facial hair and gone the full course?

#11

On occasion I have had the opportunity to see inside a machine thermolysis. I remember having a pair of coils with copper wires and little else. Do you think if I make a picture inside, that would help you? I do not cost much. Remove a few screws, open the lid and make photo.
With this machine I worked for years in all types of hair of my clients in the 80s. Later, at home, I kept all the hair it left over in my body. I did not plan to give another utility, but if it serves you of something you will be happy to give one last mission to this simple machine.

#12

oh thank you Dep :)it is kind of you to want to help.

However, it really wouldn’t help me to see the inside. An electronic schematic, on the other hand, would be another story hehe.

#13

I think I can get for you the electronic schematic. But when you have it installed and you are working with it I hope that you do not have near a apilus Platinum. Interference save you press the pedal. :wink: