lasering the clean zone

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1 
Let me start by saying that I have lasered pretty much every part of my body except for the hair on my head and the genitalia.  I have done some with apogee but mostly with Alexandrite (Candela), and had pretty satisfactory results for the most part.  
Legs were imediately pleasing as from the first treatment all the hair fell out and stayed out for 12 weeks.  Arms, underarms, full buttocks, hands, feet, chest and abs were quite similar.  The face sucked as it took up until my fourth treatement to actually have a significant hair free period which has lasted for 8 weeks so far.  Well technically its not hair free because the entire mustache didn't completely fall out although it did thin greatly and the few hairs that are left grow quite slowly.
 But now for the concern at hand.  The "clean zone" as they call it or the ring around the anus, has been by far the most painful area to treat.  The first time it was three of four zaps OUCH, OUCH, OUCH, and one more OUCH for good measure, after she was done.  The second time the technician didn't do the greatest job there and it was not very painful but the hair didn't really fall out.  So this last time I stated how much I really wanted this area hair free and went a little further to request that they go deep perhaps a couple of inches forward of the clean zone and make that hair free as well.  She did as I requested but it hurt more than I can possibly describe.  
   Don't get me wrong if it makes me hair free there, then by all means don't worry about me crying like a little girl during and/or after the treatment or even in the week following.  But what I wonder about is why it hurts so much there.  Could it be because the skin tone in that area is significantly darker than the skin tone in the rest of my body.  And if so could this make the laser less effective.  That is could it be hurting so much because my skin is what was burning and not the hair follicles in that area. I can only hope that not be the case.  
 Anyhow to simplify my question, will this pain be worth it?  Given that everythere else laser has worked  well, is it likely that it will work here to.  The thought of getting electrolysis there seems to expensive and embarassing.  And besides if I understand correctly, electrolysis hurts more than laser.  That ofcourse is a guess or assumption from what I have heard others say, as I have never had electrolysis.

thanks in advance for replies,
Julie

#2

Clean zone . . . hmmm

Are you in Dallas?

Yes it works well there but sometimes is a little more difficult to treat because of the color of the area (called the perineum and perianal) compared to the rest of the skin. It normally doesn’t hurt any more or less than other areas.

If it hurt that bad, then you should discuss it with the person responsible for determining your settings.

#3

it shouldn’t hurt any more than other more sensitive areas. upper lip is supposed to hurt a lot. yes, you are correct that this area is darker, so basically it would burn easier. so in this case, if the pain persists after the treatment is over for more than a day or two, you might have been burned. i would go in and show them the situation.

btw, electrolysis doesn’t hurt “more” than laser. it’s a completely different feeling and procedure that really can’t be compared. the advatange to electrolysis is that is can treat any hair, coarse or fine, any any skin color. laser is limited in terms of that. plus, anyone looking for 100% permanent hair removal needs a combination of both, and that’s what most of us are doing. then, for some areas, like upper lip on a woman etc where the hair can be fine and not that abundant, it’s a more simple option without the possibility of inducing more hair to grow. you can read more on the electrolysis part of this forum.

it’d be helpful for others if you can also provide where you’re getting your treatments done and how long it has been since your last treatment on the areas you talked about. also, how many treatments did you have on each area.

thanks!

#4

Don’t misunderstand, the pain was not unbearable and did not drastically persist for more than a day or two, lessening all the time. It was just a shock to me that it was so much more painful than all the other areas treated, and I was looking for an explanation. I certainly wouldn’t want to lower the settings if I get the results I’m looking for from this one.

Thank you for your response!

#5

I thought that area was very painful also, but not as painful as the center of my pubic mound. I also haven’t found the perianal treatment effective, and after paying $600 for it I’m hoping that changes. I’ve only had two treatments on that area. I’ve had three treatments every where else, so maybe it is just my mind playing tricks on me.

#6

Hello Jewly25,

I too had everything done from the edge of my beard down to the toes. The area from the lower part of my pubic area to the tailbone area was treated. I ensured that the tech consistently used the same laser setting that was not leaving a solid bruise spot. Secondly, either the tech or I gently stretch out the folds in the skin around the anal area. This helped diminish the darkness of the skin slightly and exposed the hairs hidden in the folds. I have had some finer re-growth. I became very tired of all the hair. So, I have been more dedicated than most to remove it all or reduce it to ultra fine vellus hair. I will say, it required me to have more than 4 treatments. I will have to check my records on the actual number of treatments. So far, I have over 95% of the permanently removed over my body. The genital area I would have to say was in the 99% range. The re-growth seems to be either missed hair from the past or poorly treated hair. Please keep in mind this is what help me achieve high level of permanent hair removal.

Oh, I forgot that many years ago I had electrolysis done in the same area. I prefer the laser if it is performed correctly.

Good luck!
Zanrico