Is Laser for the Beard Faster & Less Expensive ?

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

i found this testimonial online and i want to share it.

i’m very very interested in removing my beard - and i just feel annoyed that electrolysis on my beard will take 200 hrs worth of work - spread out over 2 years and cost more $5,000 upwards.

so i’m hearing about people only doing it by starting out with laser and finishing it off with electrolysis. or stictly laser.

i’m 33 and i’m african-american. this guy who wrote this testimonial is caucasian gentleman. i don’t know if that matters.

I’m new here…figured some people may be interested in my experience with laser hair removal for the beard…sorry for the length, but i thought i’d cover as much as possible. Don’t go to any spa type places, esepcially for the beard, you want to go somewhere that only does laser and has a lot of experience doing beards. One thing i learned is that most spas tell you to get a treatment every few weeks, you end up with 6-8, or more, treatments overall. Well thats not true. You need a treatment every 3 months. This is how it goes:

-After treatment all treated hair is burned off the root. some will fall off instantly, others will take approx a week to slide out of the follicle.

  • For about 2 months after that, you’ll be “hair free”. If during this time you have hair that didnt fall out it means they missed a spot. Some spas tell you another treatment is needed around this time, but you shouldnt have to pay for what they missed.

  • b/t 2-3 months after you’ll see hair slowly start to grow back in. this is what wasn’t killed or hair that was dormant. Again, some places will expect you to come back in during this time at the first sign of growth, but dont. Wait until 3 months has passed completely and all the new hair growth is in.

  • the place i went to said under this schedule you should only need 3 treatments, spread 3 months apart to get max results. So far i’m only one treament in, but it’s been 3 months and i experienced everything i wrote earlier, which is what they had explained to me prior to treatment.

I went in hoping to do the neck and all of my beard in two separate visits, within a week, first neck then face. I did neck first:

  • pain was bearable, i only flinched a bit when they treated right below the jaw

  • i never had any redness after, just a bit on my adas apple, slight swlling around the follicles, but was gone the next day. for soem reason i did break out at the corner of my jaw, below my ear.

Because of the break out, i chickened out from doing my bread, and instead just did the cheek area, which would leave a sculpted line on the top part of the beard area.

  • pain was worse, flinched every single time, bearable, but definitely hurt. didnt use numbing cream either time. Broke out again, upper cheek area just had very small folliculitis-like bumps, which went away within a few days. The lower cheeks were the same, but i did get an ingrown there on each side. I think it was due to it beingmore sensitive, which means more swelling and therefore more likely to trap a hair.

-the swelling was never bad, very slight for the most part.

I think the reason i broke out on the corners of my jaw and cheeks is because my beard area tends to dry up more than my neck due to sun exposure, sweating , etc. So it probably caused more irritation there.

As for the results, i’m due for my second treatment in each area and i have to say i like the way it “thinned out” my hair after just one treatment. Not much visual difference on my cheeks since there was much hair there to begin with and treatments remove roughly 30% every time, but my neck area is viisbly different. Hair isn’t as coarse, feels more like forearm hair, i can finally shave it and look clean shaven instead of having a shadow.

Let me explaining the “thinning” of the hair. It’s believed that the laser literally thins each hair that isnt killed, but that’s not true. The laser can’t change the hair itself, it only kills it or doesnt. What happens is that your beard has a certain number of coarse hairs, a certain number of finer hairs, and a certain number of vellus hairs. the laser will mostly kill the coarse and some of the fine hair that is currently “alive”, so it’s leaving you with a lower % of coarse and fine hair with each treatment. So now i have mostly only fine hair and vellus hair. Laser hair removal wont remove all the hair, even after the 3 treatments, but it should only leave behind the vellus hair for the most part.

as for patchyness…i was worried about this, but the only patchyness i had was around my jawline and a small area under my adam’s apple and this was during the “hair free” period. Most peopel think this is because the hair resisited treatment, but it seesm to be spots the tech missed and didnt treat. Since was suppose to do the whole face initially, i thinks he got sloppy under my jaw line and didnt make a clean line, so she missed spots. When i did the top beard line it was a straight line, no missed spots. Patches arent really visible now though since some fine hair grew in and even i can only notice it if i let it grown out.

I dont remember the price off the top of my head, but they had some special going on, for 3 treatments of “sculpted beard”, which is basically the neck and the top ofthe beard/cheek area, it was approx $875. And make sure to read the cancellation policies, usually you have to pay canc fees. I would recommend just buying one single treatment first instead of gettign a package, just so you know what you’re getting into. so as of now i’m trying to decide what to do next. I dont mind the hair on my neck much anymore. Less prickly, easier to shave, etc. I can deal with it. I may stop the treatments on my neck and get one treatment on my beard to even it up, it’s not that visibly uneven, but the feel is different.

#2

Firstable you have to know that only electrolysis can permanently remove hair. This is why it is difficult to compare laser and electrolysis. According to the FDA, laser provide “permanent hair reduction” but not a “permanent hair removal”.

#3

Dear 666 (you little devil you!).

There is a women on the East Coast who primarily works on African American men’s beards … using very low energy Nd:YAG laser. She is said to get excellent results.

Who to contact? Call the Instantron company in Rhode Island and speak with “Skip.” Skip knows this woman and attests to her success.

#4

hmm…thanks a lot man. i’m actually from washington DC. so - that won’t work for me…but thanks…

i’ve heard that before that YAG lasers are ideal from african-american men - because simply put our hairs are curl in ward.

any other suggestions…i guess this topic has been covered too much already and nobody cares to contribute?

this is not a pic of me.

but i look something like this…

i just feel that - starting out with laser and finishing off with electrolysis is less expensive and faster.

than do electrolysis for 2 years.

#5

Yeah, that seems like a good strategy: laser first … then “finish off” with electrolysis; but here’s the “rub.”

Not in my personal experience. This “finish up with electrolysis” has become so exasperating for me that I seldom take clients who have had a lot of laser before seeing me. Why?

It’s all about delay, delay delay! I have some notion about what’s “going on,” but operationally the laser delays returning hair growth for a seemingly endless amount of time. Consequently, I cannot predict any time frame with a formerly-lasered person. And, they get annoyed with ME!

“Gosh, you did two clearances and it looks the same! Why do these hairs keep coming back?” And they do!

Right now I’m “deciding” on a client that has had several years of laser and now has evenly scattered hairs (that will not “be gone with laser”) all over his back. Seems like an easy case; it’s not going to be!

I don’t have a “Kumbaya attitude” on this subject. I say, pick one system and stick with it. Get the results you get and then leave it alone. Clients often think, “I’ll try laser and if it doesn’t work then I’ll go to electrolysis.”

Problem is, you just screwed it up for the electrologist.

BTW, I do NOT know where this YAG-laser technician is located. Skip is in Rhode Island; not the laser tech. Call and find out. She could very well be in D.C.

#6

really? very interesting.

so - where did this idea of starting with laser and ending with electrolysis come from?

i heard that many people do it. this strategy doesn’t work?

#7

Many people do it, yes they do. It does work, sure.

However, I don’t want clients to be at this for YEARS … I like to get it done … within a time frame I set. This is more about me than the client.

If you don’t mind fiddling with it for a seemingly unlimited time … then that’s fine.

#8

for a man beard - i hear its 200 hrs. spread out over a 2 yr period with electrolysis…

but with laser only a few months. i’m just trying to figure thigns out. everybody seems to have a diff. opinion.

so if i was a guy and i came to you and had laser done on my beard…and now wanted to complete get my face more clean with no hair…it would take YEARS?

so really laser and then electrolysis is not less expensive and is not any faster?

maybe i’m wrong but could laser hair removal be used to clear beards away completely? or just reduce them.

i found this online

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP9kA0Dhr7s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67GeOnGvmps

#9

It seems like you didn’t read my message : laser can not provide permanent hair removal, just a hair growth reduction.

If you choose doing laser treatment, you will have to keep doing laser sessions during years… moreover, when you decide to stop laser, hairs will grow months, years after your treatment.

This is why electrologists like Michael Bono prefer performing electrolysis in a “virgin area”. As he explained to you, “finish up with electrolysis” after several laser treatment is not the faster strategy.

#10

i just feel that - starting out with laser and finishing off with electrolysis is less expensive and faster.

As someone who did that, yes it was cheaper in the long run. The laser helped to reduce the amount of hair there, and then I finished with electrolysis (yes there’s still a couple stragglers that pop up now and then, but compared to what I had, I couldn’t care less about those couple that pop up every now and then).

The total time to finish (2 years) will be longer than doing electrolysis from the beginning. However, the amount of time spent on the electrolysis table will be substantially less as well, so it’s a trade off. I have also yet to meet an electrologist (outside of Bono) who has refused a client who had laser.

I can’t say how effective laser will be on you since I your skin is darker (I’m pale as hell so bumping a laser to high settings is easy for me – for you, not as much). YAG laser is good on darker skin. GentleYAG/MAX is usually one of the better yag lasers. I would suggest looking for someone who has that laser. You can use this to know if the settings on you are effective: http://www.scribd.com/doc/408850/Yag-Protocol

#11

thank you very much. this is why having diff. opinions is very important. thank you.

#12

[quote=Brenton]

I have also yet to meet an electrologist (outside of Bono) who has refused a client who had laser.

Here is another who rejects these cases, myself.

#13

Actually, so far, I have not refused such clients … but they have to understand the “ongoingness” of the protracted ordeal ahead.

#14

To be honest. like i said. i live in Washington DC. My city has alot of diversity and is a historically a black location.

so - i’m sure there are people who have experience and knowhow - that work on african-american beards…

male & female. And until i actually call up a few who do it and talk to people and get a range of opinions…i won’t know

but i want to say thank everybody who responded very much for the information.

when i start talking to people - i will make sure i get alot of opinions so i can make a decision.

i’m very curious though…not to go too much off topic.

but before all this technology existed - what did women do to clear away their beards in the past?

i saw a history channel documentary and they show women of the past. women back then were beautiful then. but how did they clear away beards back in the old days?

as a kid - i just believed that women didn’t have beards and that its genetic.

#15

I found these video here of a woman in Miami, Florida

who compares laser to electrolysis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_09QKT1hpg

and secondly she says Coolglide (a type of YAG laser) is the only true laser that should be used on black skin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqLxsWM3S1s

#16

I didnt bother with looking at the second video, I got as far as seeing it was the same woman and didnt bother beyond that. For one reason only: she is repeating incorrect information. Her assertation that only hairs in Anogen only hair growth will be destroyed by electrolysis, the bulk of her presentation actually, is blatently incorrect, as has been proven here multiple times. In fact I’m trying to catch her bit of logic on this, it seems she believes the heat is transmitted only when the hair growth stage is Anogen? Makes no sense logically does it? How does the electrolysis machine know the hair growth stage in order to not send heat when it’s in telogen?

Oh, and her assertion that only HER laser can address all skin types because it’s “special”? I honestly would not take any information she gives you seriously.

Oh wait, it gets even better. I did view the second video ( or part thereof) where she explains that because “coolglide” is YAG it is the only laser to be used on black skin. Apparently the dozens of other YAG lasers dont exist.Sigh. I repeat my previous assertion, dont listen to anything this woman has to say.

Seana

#17

The woman is annoying and full of “it.” She has no understanding of electrolysis and is reciting ANCIENT false myths about electrolysis. She made me sick!

Her false assertions:

Electrolysis is an old method. (Old but advanced today.) Look, flying is “old” too … do we still fly in wooden bi-planes?

Electrolysis can only remove hairs in the growing stage. (Total BS.)

Anagen lasts for two weeks only. (Not so.)

We cannot tell if hair is in anagen. (YES we can.)

Electrolysis removes the follicle by disabling the papilla only. (God, give me strength.)

The woman certainly has a lot of conviction, it’s just not correct. My take is that she’s a recent graduate of a “slam-bang” sales-based school in Florida and she has no depth of understanding or of the modalities she’s using.

If you are looking for an absolute definitive answer to your questions, you are NOT going to find it anywhere on the internet … Think: vested interests and half-baked knowledge.

I’d like to smack that women up-the-side of her stupid “flaming red-hair” head!

#18

Let me give you a couple suggestions for your beard removal quest.

Here’s the key point: it’s not the technology; it’s the operator!

If you were flying would you be more concerned with the make and model of the aircraft, or would you have more confidence with a well-seasoned, stable and experienced pilot?

If you pick laser, try to find a place that is anchored. I mean, find a place that is in the office of a physician that has lived in your town for a number of years. I would not pick a company that could be “gone overnight with your money!” (It has happened twice nationally … and they made-off with millions of dollars. And the patients were screwed.) Find a place that can’t “run off” … a place firmly rooted in your community; somebody that CARES about their reputation.

If you pick electrolysis (all are firmly rooted), pick someone that does a lot of beard and bodywork on men. I would not go to a “beauty shop” and deal with a beautician that does facials, massage and does electrolysis now-and-then and works mostly on eyebrows. Yes, some electrologists (like our Dee Dee) can do it all … but usually that is not the case.

If you see a website that talks about “transgender people” … that’s a GOOD sign! This person has a lot of experience with beards. Even better (at the top of my list), is a transgender (male to female) electrologist. Why? Easy: they have been through “everything” and they found the answer: it was personal. The TG electrologist knows how to remove heavy male hair. (My own personal electrologist was a TG specialist. She “killed me” but it totally WORKED!)

And, don’t worry about the “technology” … It’s the OPERATOR!

#19

This is great info. I actually watched this lady’s videos and was convinced that I needed to find a Coolglide laser in my area. Except that there are none within 60 miles of Cincinnati where I live. I know a tiny bit about medical lasers and knew that if the YAG was the important part, the Coolglide was just a model/brand name. I emailed her and she said only Coolglide. So I quit looking! She is very convincing so it was nice to hear what other professionals thought. Thanks for elaborating.

#20

Indeed. Any electrologist who is able to work on curly follicles should be able to finish the job in a reasonable time.

The beard shown above is not very dense - any electrologist should be able to do that job in significantly less than 100 hours - provided she or he is skilled in treating curly follicles. The faster colleagues will probably need a lot less time.