I'm sooo angry!

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

I’m not exactly sure what to do. I’m 22 year old Italian male. I have not been blessed when it comes to body hair. Thank goodness I have no back hair, but my chest and legs need some work. About 8 months ago I went to a dermatologist (embarrassed as hell by the way) and explained to him my troubles. I wanted to have a few treatments done so that I’d have less hair on my legs (reduction) and hopefully no hair on my chest. So we worked out a price, 1600 dollars for the full chest and both of my legs, top to bottom. that price worked for me and the first month I notices patchy regrowth, but hairs fell out. I then waxed about 2 months later so everything would grow back hopefully thinner, and normal. WELL, for the first 3 or 4 months all the hair on my body was like stuck in a certain phase where it grew very short and sort of thin… I felt so happy thinking finally I’d have what I wanted… but now the last month I am exactly as hairy as I started. IT all grew back thick and long… I honestly notice no improvement, except I’m still paying off what I owe on a credit card. What am I going to do :frowning: Did I get ripped off? I have white skin, and dark hair. I’m a perfect candidate, or I thought. Advice pleaseeee

P.s. my g/f is blonde, shes so beautiful too, I’m always hiding myself… I don’t want to go to the beach, and I tend to shut the lights off when were alone… I feel like a wacko, but I don’t like myself :frowning:

#2

Sorry to hear about your bad laser results! :frowning:

I’m surprised you didn’t set up a course of treatments with your doctor. It usually takes several times over many months to see any lasting result, Even then, there are no guarantees. Some consumers see full regrowth at 3 to 6 months after final treatment.

I’d speak to the dermatologist about the matter and tell him you are dissatisfied with the results. Perhaps you can get free touchups or reshot at higher levels. If you were told to expect a certain result, you should ask them to make good on that promise.

As far as your girlfriend, I’m always sad when I hear our readers are so self-conscious about unwanted hair that they worry it will affect their relationships. Sometimes it can help to talk a little bit about it. Go slow-- don’t pour your heart out all at once about how much it bothers you, but bring it up casually, and maybe later on tell her about the laser treatment. I’m sure she’ll be sympathetic if you tell her you wish it was gone, but who knows, she may like it! At the very least, she obviously doesn’t mind too much since she’s with you now. She sees that you’re a great person who she finds attractive. Don’t let your unwanted hair wreck your self-esteem! :smile:

#3

What laser was used? What fluence level was used?

It takes several treatments to get lasting results because you have to hit the hair follicles in the growth stage. This is normal.

Your expectations are too high for only one treatment.

RJC2001

#4

The first time I had my chest done with the diode laser at a fluence of 32 - 35J with 100ms pulses I had fairly good short term clearing but after 2 to 3 weeks regrowth started to come in. By the 5th week it was like nothing had been reduced but one has to remember that hairs are in the dormant stage at times and I feel that the first treatment might have cause a lot of the dormant ones to start growing thereby making it look like no reduction occured. The second treatment done today was at a slightly higher level around 35J 100ms and with the help of a little overlap of each pulse almost all hairs have been treated. I expect to see some clearing (in the 10% - 20% range) and would be suprised to see any more then that. I was told by the doctor to expect a minimum of 5 to 7 treatments and even after that that some hairs will still persist. So realisticaly speaking you should set yourself up to expect a series of treatments before any significant reduction can be expected.
It took me a long time to build the cash reserves (2 years) to attempt laser hair removal and even with the best skill and technology I have to accept the potential that all of my money, time and pain will be for nothing if my hair and body chemistry are resistant to this form of treatment. Unfortunatly laser hair removal is a lot like gambling, sometimes you win and other times you come up short.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news but though an honest point of view might help some of the people out there make a more informed decision regarding this expensive and not totaly proven method of removing body hair.
I personaly still have great hope and am in this for at least 4 to 5 treatments before I re-evaluate my decision to go this route to remove my body hair.

Chris

#5

Well, thanks guys for responding. The laser that was used on me was an apogee (sp?) I don’t know what fluence level. (I was sort of ignorant going into this place, his web site seemed so attractive and trustworthy) I really regret going back to my doctor because he seems so interested in the money, and was mad at his wife who gave me the whole deal for that price. I even remember him making a statement, sort of like, “you may not need to come back.” (Is that a hint?) I have no money right now to waste on hope. Maybe when I save up a bit I’ll look around for a doctor with just a tad more compassion.

  By the way, ANDREA, I was with my g/f tonight and I hinted that I want to wax my chest and legs and she was like "nooooooooooooo"  But I'm going to anyways because I'm really not happy with body hair. So slowly letting her know how I feel about that works.  Its too bad there isn't another way to thin out hair rather than wax completely..  It's weird having bald legs. But the muscles look really good like that...    :grin:      choices choices..

P.s. Home electrolysis sucks! I thought I could take pain, especially waxing, but I feel like crying when I zap myself. grr I’m so sick of hating myself, and what I go through to make myself look the way I want to.

#6

BE CAREFUL about waxing. If you have a lot of hair and your skin isn’t used to being waxed, you could end up with A TON of break outs and irritation. Not to scare you, but just be aware that the first couple of times one waxes, this can happen.

I waxed 2 small patches of hair from my boyfriend’s shoulders, and WHOA! He got mad at me because his back was broken out with zits for 3 weeks and he was always having to scratch his back. If you get waxed, you might also want to get it done professionally and buy a bottle of “Tend Skin” in advance (reduces ingrowns and irritation).

#7

Hey I wouldn’t wax if I was you, from what I have read, waxing will make you hair even more resistant to laser hair removal.
It takes a bunch of treatments timed just right for laser hair removal to work, figure on spending thousands. I don’t keep track anymore,but I’m sure I’ve spent at least $12,000-$15,000 already on laser hair removal.

#8

Yah, based on the doc getting mad and his comments to you about not needing to come back, I would certainly look elsewhere.

The apogee is an alexandrite laser, which is considered by a lot of people to be almost as good or maybe better than Lightsheer(Diode laser) Some people claim Lightsheer to be better, but both are very good lasers. If you have light skin dark hair, then alexandrite or diode lasers would probably be best. The thing with Lightsheer is that regrowth can be patchy and the risk of side effects “may” be higher. I am not sure about the Alexandrite though.

I wouldn’t give up just yet! Maybe find another practitioner. I think Andrea has a practitioner directory on her site hairfacts.com

As it was mentioned, you may end up spending in the neighborhood of 12,000 dollars over a period of time. Some who want to completely eliminate body hair altogether probably spend even more. It sounds to me though that you are more interested in reduction, rather than complete removal. Besides, it sounds like your GF finds the idea of some body hair to be sexy, as do a lot of women.

If I were you I would 1) Find some resolve and patience(very imporant) 2) Find a different practitioner who uses either the Apogee or Lightsheer. 3) Plan to spend at least 12K over about 6 treatments 3) Then you may want to even inquire with a doctor about taking Finasteride(Propecia) *A quote from HairFacts.com “Promoted for use in treating pattern baldness and benign prostate hyperplasia, respectively, it’s a type II 5alpha reductase inhibitor. This enzyme blocks the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a potent stimulator of hair loss in scalp follicles and hair growth in body hair follicles that have androgen receptors.”

So in short, a treatment used to preserve the hair on your head, and promote prostate health may also be effective in helping reduce body hair. High levels of testosterone help body hair thrive, while it can be damaging to scalp hair. I’ve seen plenty of men who have a lot of hair everywhere except for on their head!

The main drawback to Propecia or similar androgen blockers is that men “may” have a reduced sex drive. That doesn’t mean your sex drive will disappear though, it just may be “reduced”.
So if you already have a really high sex drive, you’re 22 and Italian, then you probably wouldn’t have much to worry about but ASK THE DOC.

Writing the above paragraph has just made me think that maybe I should convince my boyfriend to take Propecia… but that might be like trying to get a dog to eat a piece of cheese that has a pill wrapped inside of it haha :wink:

Good Luck AHHH! :grin:

[ November 10, 2002, 02:57 AM: Message edited by: Jgirl76 ]

#9

</font><blockquote><font size=“1” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>quote:</font><hr /><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>… I then waxed about 2 months later so everything would grow back hopefully thinner, and normal…</font><hr /></blockquote><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>Well, as others have said, you should have more than one treatments, and 3 to 6 treatments are usually recommanded. Also, no waxing at all during those period, just shave them off.
Sorry to hear your story.

#10

Great comments, everyone!

AHHH, just keep bringing it up in casual situations when you are both in good moods, and your g/f will probably come around and be totally fine with it. Keep explaining why you like it, and maybe offer to do something nice for her in return, to thank her for being understanding.

#11

I can’t believe how much they charged you just for one treatment! I assume your price of 1600 dollars is US$ ?? :frowning: I am in the UK, and have bought a package of 6 FULL LEG treatments, which my therapist includes feet, toes and bikini line for free, and it only cost me £1200 (about US$1860) for the whole course. A course of 6 treatments on the whole back costs £550 (about US$850). According to the price list from the place I go to, the treatment you just had (one single treatment on both full legs and back) would only cost about US$700, but this is much reduced if you buy the packages (Only US$2700 for the whole course of 6 complete treatments to both full legs and full back).

I have only just had my second treatment last week, and after the first treatment my therapist told me I would probably NOT notice any difference - she said it takes 2-3 treatments before you can see any reduction in hair growth at all. The hair didn’t grow back at all for the first month, which was wonderful, but then started to gradually reappear, and after 3 months I thought it looked similar to how it did prior to the first treatment, except for one very small area which she had missed the first time, and that was like TWICE as hairy as the rest, so it did make a difference. Time will tell if the whole course works, but I am very positive about it so far. Definitely find yourself someone with a better attitude towards customers, and a much lower pricetag!

By the way, I am a very hairy female, and have always loathed my hairy legs (which are as hairy as mens legs - in fact they make most men look positively bald!!), however as much as I hate hate hate my own body hair, I just love it on men - I find it very masculine and sexy. I’m sure millions of other women feel the same. An attractive Italian guy with a nice muscular body covered in thick dark manly hair just sounds like a complete sex god to me!! So maybe try to make peace with your own hair a little more - it is a wonderfully sexy fashion item on men. :wink:

Good luck anyway if you decide to continue with the laser, but just don’t expect instant results - it takes time, patience and perseverence. I would definitely find another practitioner though!

#12

Fleabag where in the UK are you from?

Those prices sound really good ! What laser are they using on you?

#13

laser is no good. It did not help, well it did give me hair free for few weeks but for it’s price it is a rip off. Those people should pay for this.

#14

Laser can be good. I had 4 treatments to my lower back with a GentleLase and 2 years later there is still not a single hair.

#15

i share with my gf about my intentin to remove hair. Initially she accept it, but after a month , she think i’m a bit ‘weak’ or girly that she decided to break off with me.

#16

I’m very sorry to hear that, Laxer. I would say that her opinion is pretty judgmental and superficial, if you ask me. Arnold Schwartzenegger and many other tough guys remove body hair, and no one calls them weak or girly.

Even though breakups are never fun, I’m sure you will find someone who is fine with your decision. It’s really not that big a deal.