Interested in gettin LHR, could I have your opinions?

Hi. My first post. First I just wanted to say thanks to LAGirl. Your guide and diary have been great. Also thanks to the makers of this site. Ok, I am a 25 year old male. Half asian, half black. As I’ve gotten older, my facial hair has gotten thicker and fuller. For the past 3 years I’ve been getting severely ingrown hairs. It’s an actual condition apparently. The hair grows kinda into the skin, and gets infected. The infeted spots turn into huge red bumps. The skin is swollen and soft, and that affects the hairs around it. It’s getting bad. At any one time I’ll have at least two scarring wounds on my face. The last few weeks I was treating 4. Anyway, I am contemplating laser hair removal. I’ve set up an appointment at a local dermatologist. But I’m wondering what people who’ve had the treatment have to say about it. I have a picture of myself up on the net, so you can actually see my skin type and hair type since I’m unsure. I think it’s type 3. My hair is brown, and some of them - like 2 or 3 per 30 or 40, are weird redish/clear. Well, any input would be great. In the picture you can see some wounding from finer hairs up higher on the beard line that form tiny bumps. Of course, in my neurosis I try to pick them and it gets bad. One thing I thought of too was that I am losing some hair on my head. Seems kinda funny I want to permanently remove some hair, yet save others. Anyway, I might look into hairloss treatment as well, many of the effective treatments promote growth in other places as well as the head. So, I wonder if I were to get lhr on my face, then later started a hair loss treatment plan, if my facial hair would come back. ?

Link is here
face pic.
Thanks for your input. Citizenchan

Judging from where the red marks are located on your face, are you sure you’re not experiencing just some acne? As for your facial hair, it’s interesting how you don’t have hair growing under your lower lip/upper chin area. Anyway, if you do choose to do LHR, you must use a Yag laser, because of your tan/brown skin.

Your skin is pretty dark, you’re probably a type V if not darker, not III. Types I-III are very light. So, if you do decide to get LHR, you need a Yag laser. In addition, a dermatologist is not necessarily what you need to be looking for when looking for an LHR clinic. You need to find someone experienced in laser hair removal in particular. 3-4 consultations are recommended as well before you pick one. Search this forum for some recommendations in your city too. Laser does alleviate the type of condition you are talking about for most. But if you’re doing to take some kind of medication to increase growth in other places, I would stay away from LHR until you complete that treatment. This is an expensive procedure and treating a male’s face is difficult already due to hormonal stimulation there. You don’t want to waste your money. However, I would think only a few treatments with a Yag laser should alleviate some of your issues. So you won’t have to go for complete removal, but you should see your hair get finer and less dense after just a few treatments.

Thanks for the info. Yes, I’m sure it’s not acne. In the photo you can’t see the areas on my neck and jawline that get the ingrown hairs and bad scars. What you can see is caused by much finer hair, so the wounds are less severe. I’m going to see the dermatologist about other possible treatments before LHR. I’m considering LHR as both a last resort and 99% “cure”, though I know it isn’t a cure necessarily. I will see if the dermatologist has some suggestion. I know there are other options, just not many. Thanks again for the input.

Oh, forgot. Yeah, it is funny the way my hair grows. I have none on the middle of my upper lip, right under the middle of the nose. Then it grows longer at the corners of the upper lip than it does closer to the middle. I think it is my chinese side. I think of it as a fu man chu 'stache or something. I dunno if they groomed their stache’s to look that way, or that was just how they grew, in either case mine is natural.

you might get more hair growth in a few years. i have a friend who’s almost 24 and just started growing more hair, he didn’t have that much before, just patches.

Tend Skin is a product that’s recommended for ingrowns. you can google their website or find more info on the hairfacts part of this website.

Thank you.

citizenchan, I am going to urge you to think twice about this. As I look at your picture, first thing’s first - those red spots are acne. Period. I have seen black men who shave and get a face full of bumps and ingrown hairs, and those are not it. In fact, the largest pimple is located well above your beard line.

Second, your beard appears very fine. I am an Italian male with a very thick beard - it grows straight so I never get ingrowns - but I know thick beards, and yours appears almost fine.

You should really try to modify your shaving techniques before undertaking a procedure that could very well change the pigment of your facial skin. What kind of shaving cream do you use? What kind of razor? Do you shave with or against the grain? Do you moisturize at night? All of these factors are important. There are also facial preparations especially made for ethnic men who have problems with ingrown hairs, but I don’t think that’s even your problem.

(FYI true ingrown hairs tend to resemble an erruption of small bumps the same tone as the flesh. They generally do not errupt into full blown pimples.)

Consider a shaving cream and not a gel. Kiehl’s makes a fantastic one in a blue tube and at $14 a tube it’s pricey but worth it. Use a toner with alcohol after your shave. Apply a moisturizer afterwards and before sleep. Experiment with shaving carefully with and against the grain - with the grain will not be as close but will irritate less. Good luck.

Yes. I am seeing the Dermatologist about the various options like what you’ve suggested. Appt. is weds. As for the acne. Those smaller spots above the beardline are indeed kinda self inflicted. I get bothered by these tiny bumps that have fine peachfuzz kind of hairs in them and pick them, and the acne looking wound results. What I have little control over, and what I think are the actual ingrowns I spoke of, occur on my neck and jawline. I have seen the condition on black mens’ faces and necks and stuff, as well, and I admit it is very different in appearance from what’s bothering me now. It was self-diagnosis when I decided I have this same thing, but my father is black, I get a lot of ingrowns after shaving - most of which I can see and just rub out, but I do have reasonable basis for that decision. Yet, that’s what I’m going to the dermatologist to find out, for sure. He will also, I presume, give me some treatment options. As per your suggestions: I’ve had the covering bumps over my entire face. Though I was using the Mach3 then, 3 blade razor, and one of the after shaves that burns. I have since changed, and it’s gotten much better, it was like that for maybe a year. I finally inquired about it, changed razors and aftershave and it was gone. So I do know/think that there are other options, that can/will work. But, when I’ve already got scars and am treating more of, what appear to me to be ingrowns, that will likely leave scars - I get rather upset. I imagine myself with many scars on top of scars after 20 or 30 years of these infected spots and I don’t want that of course. So I started to think lhr was a viable, permanent “cure” if you will, rather than an ongoing treatment. Well, I appreciate everyone’s input. In any case, Weds will be the determining factor on what is happening and a course of action. I’ll keep you guys updated. Thanks. Citizenchan

The YAG would definitely be the best laser for you. I have never had any pigment changes from Nd:YAG lasers.

Your beard hairs do not appear to be curly so I am surprised you have so much trouble with ingrowns.

BTW, if you shave daily, you will have less problem with ingrowns as you are not giving them a chance to grow back into the skin. You might try the Gillette Fusion Power if you don’t get laser treatments. It is even better than M3 Power.

Another thing that may be helpful is to use an electric. The Braun Activator causes the least irritation for me. The Braun Syncro is very good too.

I have had eight laser treatments on my beard and it is 90% gone. I have tried a variety of machines and the best ones are the Sciton, Lyra-i, and Cutera Prowave 770.

RJC2001

Thanks. I am anxiously awaiting my appt. I am thinking he will also give me suggestions about what razor/cream/balm combo to use. I have tried electrics before, but I got super irritated by them, only tried 2 models though. I will keep you updated. Thanks for your input.

Ok, I know it’s been forever. I saw the dermatologist. He said what I am getting is glorified razorbump type stuff, basically. My hairs are growing back, ingrown, and getting infected. Many are growing out, and back into the skin. While, some are worse than others, most are not too bad. He gave me some tips on shaving technique, and prescribed some stuff: clyndamycin daily - for acne, and benza-shave for use right after I shave to help with acne and reduce chance of infection of any ingrowns. It’s been a few weeks and I haven’t had a single recurrence of the big red spots. One ingrown that wasn’t infected. He did mention LHR - without me saying anything- as an option, but as a last resort. So far, I’ve been doing well with the current regimen. Thanks for everyone’s input on this.