I have a client who i have been working on for a month to clear his beard and upper lip. He is on testosterone blockers and estrogen so his hair is not as coarse and does not have a full face of hair. He was tweezing his hair for the last 2 years and now has stopped.
My problem is that I started to notice some hyperpigmentation on the side of his face and am not sure if I should stop working on him or not? His upper lip did not get this or on his chin and he has a lot of ingrown hair, which i believe has to do with the amount of tweezing he has done.
His appointments are for 1 hour twice a week to keep him cleaned up and have been using thermolysis.
This is the first time i have worked on a TG face and had this happen.
I would guess that you are having this problem more so on the left side than the right side. Other than checking that your technique and treatment energy are at optimum levels, you can only push forward to get the full clearance, and maintain the clear skin so that ingrowns don’t happen, and the skin can have a chance to heal, or you can try working in blend, in the hopes that the reduction in the speed and number of hairs will be offset by less pigmentation. Of course, this all supposes that the pigmentation is a result of your treatments, which I am not sure the client would not have with or without you, due to the violence the coarse, curly hairs naturally visit upon the skin both in normal growth, and in getting trapped in the skin and causing immune system response like puss creation and melanin production.
I have a client who has the same situation happening with her in regards to hyperpigmentation on the side of her face but not the upper lip or chin. The intensity of the treatment is also much milder on the sides of her face than the upper lip or chin. I have also considered using the blend to reduce the heat because the hairs are SO tough on the upper lip and chin-- grey, deep, strong hairs. However, like I stated above there has been no hyperpigmentation on those tough hair areas. She has had about 15-20 treatments with me so far.
Why, James, would this problem occur more so on the left side than the right side? I have noticed that people have more problem hairs on the left side than the right.
Hyperpigmentation happens to some and not others and is related to one’s personal immune system response. I agree with James comments. The irritating source - hair - needs to be dealt with permanently and then the skin will heal and the darkness will fade within a a couple to several months. Good after care is essential. Maybe the client had a heavy dose of sunlight exposure to the left side of her face too soon after electrolysis? You just have to explore what the client’s aftercare is all about and go down the list of do’s and don’t’s with them. If they are doing everything asked of them and it still happens, it may be something that they have to tolerate until the hair removal is complete.
That’s why I am in love with the Apilus Platinum and the faster forms of thermolysis. I do not see the hyperpigmentation problems talked about here to much degree of excitement. No one complains either.
I have made sure my client is staying away from the sun and he does not have a major concern about the hyperpigmentation as he believes that it will fade eventually when his appointments are further apart.
I have started using the blend but he complaints that it takes so much longer and that I can clear more with thermolysis. But I let him know that I know what Im doing and its for the benefit of his skin.
He has asked if using a over the counter microdermabrasion will help with the skin discoloration but I advised him that he should wait before starting this.
What is your client currently using for aftercare? Are they applying tea tree oil at night and witch hazel during the day? That could minimize it a lot.
I don’t know what epilator you have, but from my own personal experience, the modes of thermolysis I use DO NOT cause hyperpigmentation no more than blend would. Properly implemented thermolysis leaves the skin looking great and the client pleased with the amount of hair treated in a session. Blend will be slow, but effective. Just prepare your client so as to keep them patient.
i have the apilus senior II and I have been working with my client to keep the are clean (no makeup) and to stay away from the sun as he runs outside in the afternooon and being sunny southern california it does not help. He has been using neosporene as he heard from his last electrologist that would be better for him but I have recomended to just keep the area clean with witch hazel.
There are so many people who don’t know that they are sensitive, or allergic to Neomycin that use of Neosporin really should be avoided. It really could be the difference between a good healing and a bad reaction. I personally am highly sensitive to neomycin and if I use neosporin, I get a weeping of the skin in the place where the product has been introduced, and, as melanin is a part of my immune system response, I also get darkened skin in the area of the irritation. This pigmentation change lasts for weeks after the reaction has settled down.
You have a good epilator. Many times a not so good aftermath from an electrolysis treatment is caused by the client, not the electrologist. Witch hazel, aloe and tea tree oil (sparenly) is the best in my book and my clients verbalize that they like this trio.