Laser triggered facial hair growth-beware

Since I have had such a horrible experience, I wanted to post in case I can help anyone else before they make the same mistakes I did. I started LHR through my dermatologist’s office 1 1/2 years ago with the gentleLASE. After 9 treatments on my sideburn area (which was not a major issue, just something that bothered me so I thought why not take advantage of this great technology?)I now have significantly more hair growing further down than ever before. I was tested for hormone problems by an endocrinologist and am fine. I am a 28 y/o female, type II, dark, fine hair. I am starting electrology next week after having to go on xanax for panic attacks about all of this facial hair I NEVER had before laser. Oh, and of course the derm. and his tech still deny this is a possibility. I wish I had found this site before I ever did laser. I think it can work for body, but please be careful and beware of your face! Now I am reading that it can even cause damage to the collagen and fat layers in your face! Does anyone know if this is really true? What have I done?!!?

Since I have had such a horrible experience, I wanted to post in case I can help anyone else before they make the same mistakes I did. I started LHR through my dermatologist’s office 1 1/2 years ago with the gentleLASE. After 9 treatments on my sideburn area (which was not a major issue, just something that bothered me so I thought why not take advantage of this great technology?)I now have significantly more hair growing further down than ever before. I was tested for hormone problems by an endocrinologist and am fine. I am a 28 y/o female, type II, dark, fine hair. I am starting electrology next week after having to go on xanax for panic attacks about all of this facial hair I NEVER had before laser. Oh, and of course the derm. and his tech still deny this is a possibility. I wish I had found this site before I ever did laser. I think it can work for body, but please be careful and beware of your face! Now I am reading that it can even cause damage to the collagen and fat layers in your face! Does anyone know if this is really true? What have I done?!!?

To answer your question, no. That is an urban legend. Hair removal lasers cannot penetrate deep enough to reach the fat layer.

As far as laser triggering new hair growth, that is rare but possible. Undertreatment is usually to blame. People on the forum that report this occurrence have often been treated with the Gentlelase alexandrite laser. Whether there is a correlation I don’t know. But if the 18mm spot size is used, the maximum fluence available is only 20J and that is very low.

If your hair is very fine, electrolysis would be preferable to laser anyways.

RJC2001

agree with RJC2001 here. This is usually caused by undertreatment and fine hair shouldn’t have been treated with laser anyways. electrolysis is the way to go there.

and yes, laser doesn’t penetrate deep enough to cause fat layer damage.

This kinda scares me, I know my face is being treated with 20-21 joules. The machine used is the lightsheer. I’m a male though (black hair, medium skin), so maybe that makes it fine?

This kinda scares me, I know my face is being treated with 20-21 joules. The machine used is the lightsheer. I’m a male though (black hair, medium skin), so maybe that makes it fine?

Lower fluences are used on the male beard due to the coarseness of the hair and its density. Beard hair is usually thicker than the hair in other areas. So it is normal to start at lower fluences there. Usually the beard area is very painful to treat with laser.

So if it hurts like hell at 20J you are probably OK there.

RJC2001

Thanks for the reassurance on the fat layer. I have been making myself sick obsessing on it. It’s such a relief that’s just an urban legend. The lady who did the laser is also an electrologist. She recommended the laser for my fine hair. I guess she just wanted more money and to spend less time. Isn’t it a shame you can’t trust people?

I’m actually suprised at that because she would probably make a lot more money with electrolysis if you did have a lot of hair. Maybe she just didn’t want to deal with it. Laser sounds like a quicker solution, but you need to be experienced to know in what case it’s actually more effective and efficient. Sounds like she didn’t know much about laser when she did it.

And James, this usually only happens on women’s faces and rarely from what I’ve seen.

I found in between my 7-8th laser treatment on my face, that suddenly I had hair growing on my cheeks!!! There had been none before. I mentioned it at the 9th treatment, and they did something. Now I am about to go for my 9th treatment, and there is almost no hair, the maybe one or two very thin hairs now. I am hoping that one day I will almost be hair free on the face, ,and that no more hair growth will occur. I am using a Lightsheer diode laser, with light skin with dark coarse black body hair…

I hope the electrolysis works. I am planning that after I am done with laser, I will use that too.