laser hair removal lower legs (pics)- london -help

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

HI everyone…

I am 22 years old female and living in london… I have decided to do laser hair removal on my lower legs and I really need some advice from everyone here!
for the clinics–
I did some research online and found these 3 clinics which are

1.SK:N clinics
2.skin like silk clinic
(all of reviews of this clinic are positive…kinda weird… anyone know if they are any good or the reviews are fake??..)
3.Premier Laser Clinic

has anyone heard of any of them or did laser hair removal with them before?

I have booked consultation with all of them… but before the consultations I would want to know more about my situation first…

so for better understanding I have photos of my skin of lower legs now…
pic 1
the density of hair of my lowers legs in different area are different…
this area…hair is coarse as i had too much shaving in here before…

pic2
and this is how the rest of my skin mostly look like…

There are few questions:
1.)I am Chinese… so I guess my skin colour type would be like…type IV ?

2.)what kind of machine would be suitable for me?? according to my skin colour and the hair condition? so that I could narrow down the machines type i should be paying attention to while I am doing the consultation…

3.)as I am doing my lower legs and I know it takes longer( about 3 weeks?) for the hair to start shedding… so can i still shave before the shedding starts? as I really don’t want to keep my hair not shaved for that long … they grow really fast…

I am going to the clinics day after tomorrow and some other ones later in this week…
I want to gather as much information before I meet the people in the clinics cos i dont want to make any wrong decision!

any information would be appreciated!! …

: ) thankyou so much for everyone in this forum…!

#2

  • Run a search for London here (Advanced Search over 5 years) and you’ll see dozens of discussions on various clinics in London

  • Yes, you’re likely a type IV due to underlying pigment. You can get test spots done with alex laser to see if you’re light enough for it. If not, then either a diode or a Yag is good. Best to go with a clinic that carries both alex and another type of machine.

  • Shedding takes 3 weeks. Hairs start shedding at about week 1.5 for most. Yes, you can still shave. We recommend not shaving too much to allow hairs to fall out easier.

  • When you go for consultations, ask for settings and a test spot. Post joules, spot size, and pulse width here.

#3

Thankyou for LAgirl’s advice! I am going to report about my consultations and record the settings they did and post it up later.

and i have some other question…

as I browse thru the website i saw someone said that if you have mixed hair thickness ( coarse and fine hair in close area ), you shouldn’t use laser to remove hair… and there are some relatively fine hair on my legs… is it coarse enough to do a laser???

( my relatively fine hair pic )

and I went to the websites of the laser clinics… there’s a machine called
CYNOSURE ELITE MPX LASER SYSTEM

is that a good machine and should I categorize it in Alexandrite/ND:Yag Combination Devices ??

they have GentleLASE and GentleYAG in the same clinic!!

Thankyou so much!!!

#4

  1. The hair in your first set of photos should respond well. Hair in the second pic looks too fine.

  2. Yes, Elite MPX is a combo alexandrite/Nd:Yag. It’s a good machine.

We need to know settings AND which medium (alexandrite or Nd:YAG) they plan on using.

#5

The latest photo has hair that’s too fine for laser. Don’t treat there.

Apogee Elite MPX is a great machine. Settings are important though. Yes, it’s a combo machine.

Did you read others’ experiences in London? Lots here already for you - can save you time checking out every clinic on your own.

#6

thankyou for JMISR and LAgirl.

yes I read others comment about the clinics in london…

I think Sk:n and Renew Medica is what they recommend the most…
but the comment varies… so I am going to check out few of them by myself : )

#7

hi

I have done my first consultation today in london premier laser clinics…
the girl said my skin colour is light and alexandrite would be suitable for me (but i forgot to ask about my skin type…)

the test did hurt a bit but bearable … and then it turned red and i had big goose-bump on my skin.

machine -
Cynosure Elite Alexandrite Laser
15mm spot size
15 Joules
20 miliseconds

I have asked if they could use a higher setting on me , and they said the setting is high enough as my skin appeared red and had big goose-bump…
they say they might increase the setting gradually by sessions.

and i have asked the nurse if all of my hair would shed after the 1st session,
and she insisted not all of them would fall off, the reason is that the spot was in a circle shape ,and they can’t overlap too much of each spot, so there will be lines of gap remaining untouched , and therefore there will still be hair growing…and she said there will only be 10%-20% of hair removal for the 1st session.

I know only 10%-20% of hair would be removed after the 1 session, but as i have read so many of the other’s experience on the internet, most people would experience complete hair shedding after each session for few weeks…and that’s what I am worrying about.I wonder if they said it was just because they don’t want to take the responsibility when complete hair shedding doesn’t happen on me as they do not provide touch-up session. but this clinic is cheaper than many of the others.

so… is the setting and machine good and if you can tell this is a genuine clinic?
if the setting is not high enough… i don’t quite want to go higher as it does hurt a bit and i am bit scared. should I ask them to use another machine on me and what setting on YAG or diode would be a good starting point?

photos-

15 mins after patch test


5 hours after patch test

Thanks everyone!!!

#8

  1. The photos look fine - totally normal reaction (so far).

  2. The fluence is a little on the low side. If–and only if–you can handle it, I would aim for at least 18-20J since the max is 30J with the 15mm spot size. 15mm spot size is the max for this machine, but the Elite MPX goes up to 18mm which would be better.

  3. Yes, Cynosure lasers are amongst the better ones, and their alexandrite laser–assuming you can handle it without burning–is a good choice for you because the pulse width can be adjusted.

  4. Persons of Asian descent, especially east Asian, are more prone to hyperpigmentation post laser treatments. Continue to monitor for the next 2-3 days. If this develops, be assured that it will go away in due course - but it also means that you’ll need an Nd:YAG laser. Another sign that you would need an Nd:YAG laser would be if you cannot handle any higher fluence than these settings.

  5. The 10-20% hair removal per treatment is due to hair cycles (see FAQ) since not all your hair is present at a given moment. Yes, all the hair should shed if properly treated. Even if they are conservative in their technique, >95% of the surface area should be treated. Whatever is missed should be touched up at 3 weeks. Do they offer complimentary touch-ups? That’s important.

#9

Settings are a bit low for a 15mm spot size.

They should be overlapping well in order not to miss spots. It’s not “normal” to leave you with stripes etc.

There is no benefit of increasing settings gradually. You want to kill hair right away, not make it finer and harder to kill.

#10

My grand daughter will be a junior at Smith college in Sept. She will be in London for the year studying dance at the Laban Conservatory of Dance. Her name is Haley.

Skin shades vary widely from person to person. A skilled operator should know her machine and have adequate experience so that she can use her machine properly to get the best results without burning or scarring you. It makes no difference which machine she uses as long as she knows how to use it and adjusts the power to match the situation she is faced with as no two patients are alike. I get a kick out of the posts here that mention the machine, joules used, length of time of the pulse of light, and whether it is a yagg or some other laser. These women do not know what they are talking about. It is the job of the operator to know what has to be done but most do not have adequate training, consequently, results vary widely and you have seen that here.

You will not know anything until you have a treatment. If you know somebody who was treated by your operator you will have a better idea what to expect and how successful the treatments were for that person. You do not want scarring because it is not pretty and can be a painful treatment, therefore, it is best to do the areas far from the eyes by starting at the bottom and working up. That way if there is scarring it will be away from the eyes of those who might see it. You can not do anything before hand as there is no way to know how you will respond until it is over.

I see the red circle around the mouth of the follicle. That is inflammation. It is caused by stretching the skin taught when you shave so that you get a closer shave. The hair pops up and then retreats below the suface after you release it. When it continues to grow after the shave the ends of the hair are cut on an angle and are beveled to a sharp point. This means one side of the hair shaft at the ends is pushing its way out of the follicle and catching on the inside wall of the follicle. The short hair is stubble and feels coarse. This is causing the inflammation.

However, you have another problem. Chinese people do not have much facial or body hair and women do not usually have ANY HAIR ON THE LEGS or arms.
As male hormone is the only thing that makes hair grow you probably have additional evidence of this. Most common symptoms can be (you do not need all of them) hair growth on legs, arms, abdomen, around the nipples, and upper lip. Also irregular periods, heavy flow or scanty flow, acne, weight gain and often the breast cup size gets smaller, All this is due to too much male hormone. It is made in the ovaries and then gets converted to estrogen. If you do not have adequate estrogen you see evidence of the male hormone. This can start in your teens and get progressively worse. You do not have to have all of them but the amount of hair on your legs is evidence of what I mean. If you have additional symptoms it may be more than an inconvenience as many women do not ovulate regularly or not at all. CHECK THIS OUT AS IT CAN BE VERY SERIOUS ESPECIALLY IF YOUR PERIODS STOP. All medical problems can either be mild, moderate or severe and everything in between. It takes an experienced physician to recognize this. Most commonly the problem is called Stein-Leventhal syndrome. See a doctor who is a female as they understand this more than a male doctor unless you can find a REPRODUCTIVE ENDOCRINOLOGIST. Do not put it off as the hair can spread to more areas and be more aggravating than it is now. Let me know if you have any of the other symptoms as I am curious as to whether I am right about the hair on your legs. Chinese women almost NEVER have hair on their legs or arms. The other symptoms are seen in the more serious cases. The doc does a blood test to check your hormone levels and can make a diagnosis with that. THE MOST COMMON TREATMENT IS BIRTH CONTROL PILLS. IT IS POSSIBLE YOU ARE ALREADY USING THEM AND HAVE BEEN HELPING TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF YOUR PROBLEM FOR A WHILE. IF THIS IS CORRECT YOU ARE LUCKY OR YOU MIGHT HAVE HAD MUCH MORE HAIR. KEEP ME INFORMED AS I AM CURIOUS TO KNOW IF MY “DIAGNOSIS” IS CORRECT. A GOOD OPERATOR HAS SEEN A LOT OF THIS AND SHE SHOULD BE ABLE TO MAKE THE SAME DIAGNOSIS. IT IS ESTIMATED UP TO 20% OF ALL WOMEN HAVE THIS PROBLEM BUT AT VARYING DEGREES. MUCH OF IT DOES NOT SHOW UP IN THE DOCTORS OFFICE UNTILL THEY GET MARRIED AND TRY TO HAVE KIDS. THAT IS WHEN THEY GO TO THE DOCTORAND THAT USED TO BE AROUND 25. NOW WOMEN GET MARRIED LATER AND SEE THE DOC ABOUT 30 OR LATER.

#11

I would say that 15 Joules with 15 spot size for a person of Chinese background is fine. However, the Milliseconds can come down from 20 msc to 10 msc. Again, a patch test is needed. Lower msc would be IDEAL for your hair type on your lower legs.

#12

Hi…I reviewed your entry on “HAIR TELL” and noticed the size of your leg. It appears, from the picture, your lower leg is slightly on the heavy side. Most young Chinese girls are slimmer than appears in the photo. I point this out because most women with excess hair on the extremities (lower legs and forearms) are also overweight. If you fall into this category… you definitely have one of the medical problems I described.

Please note… I am going from a photo that might be distorted due to how close the camera is to the subject. If it is not on the “heavy” side my observation could be off, however, but hair on the extremities of a Chinese woman is definitely reason to seek a doctor.

Next… the number of suggestions posted for you by people who have minimal or no training shows how many different ideas they have without seeing the patient. My operator has to show me she is confident of doing this and is in charge as she is liable for the outcome. I would never let someone treat me who is willing to listen to the patient instead of letting the experienced “expert” run the treatment. If my operator listened to the patient it would demonstrate she was not sure of herself and not right to treat me.

Let me know the outcome of your doctor’s visit. I can not be more serious about having this checked out if you have additional symptoms from the list I sited in the previous message.

#13

Type of laser is important. Disagree on that.

#14

I wasn’t going to respond to this, but I feel I must given the claims made about the OP.

Unless you are a physician, you are not qualified to make any medical diagnoses and certainly shouldn’t be attempting to do so over the internet. Not even a physician should do that.

Persons of all backgrounds have body hair. Some more than others. On its own, body hair is not a cause for medical concern.

@ the OP: your legs appear perfectly normal in the photos.

#15

Hi JMISR… As an MD you know the consequences of a hyperplastic endometrium, consequently, I merely told her what other symptoms to look for and then seek medical help (preferably from a female doctor as males merely order birth control pills and go no further.) (MY 26 years experience working with a Board Certified Doc who does absolutely NO cosmetics and my concern for the patient). I have referred a number of women to the Mass. General Hosp. REPRODUCTIVE ENDOCRINOLOGY GROUP (DR. KATHY MARTIN, Chief.)

Don’t forget… SHE IS CHINESE and NORMALY they have virtually NO HAIR ON THE BODY EXCEPT AXILLAE, PUBIC, SCALP and LASHES. Even then it is not dense. I HAVE NO QUALMS ABOUT SUGGESTING THEY SEE A DOCTOR. WHY DO YOU?

#16

Chinese girls have low leg hair. That’s normal hair to have for all. Your post basically says there is something abnormal about it. There is nothing hormonally abnormal about having lower leg hair. No need to see an endocrinologist. You’re scaring people unnecessarily. It’s lower leg hair, not a full beard.

#17

This is getting ridiculous.

#18

Low leg hair is NOT NORMAL IN CHINESE WOMEN AND ALL OTHER ASIANS. Even their men can not grow a full beard in normal men. Hair on the extremities for these women is NOT NORMAL, therefore, I ask a few questions to see if there are any other symptoms of extra male hormone. I had a 26 year old Portugese woman who had no periods for 3 years and she thought it was convenient. I was able to get her to a doctor by informing her that when the problem was corrected she MIGHT NOT GET MORE HAIR IN OTHER AREAS. That was enough to get her to go. I was more concerned about the possibility of endometrial cancer but I could not say that.

We see many women who have more hair than others due to ethnicity but you have to consider there are ethnic groups that have LESS hair than the mostly Caucasians we see most often.

#19

I anticipated the possibility that the leg was normal and specifically mentioned that the camera angle and close-up might DISTORT the picture and make it look “heavy”. If you read it carefully you will see that.

It is NOT NORMAL for ASIANS to have hair on the EXTREMITIES. That means lower legs and forearms.

#20

Yes, this is true.