It’s almost been 2 weeks since I had my first electrolysis appointment and my skin still looks terrible, so I decided to go to the Dermatologist. He said that my face had been over treated and gave me some cream. I was trying so hard not to start crying that I forgot to ask him how long before my skin will go back to normal. ( or will it? )
Could someone help me out.
Thanks
Sandra
Oh yes it will be normal again. I was overtreated a bit myself in the beginning (because I had so much new growth on cheeks from laser) and had to go to the derm. I got a corticosteroid cream that did help. It wasn’t overnight but my skin did go back to normal, and I am very fair and sensitive. The most important thing for you to do is keep it very clean and protected from sun. I also use derm. quality skincare to promote skin regeneration. I cried a lot myself and swore my skin would never heal, but it does regenerate itself amazingly. You will be completely normal again, and hopefully one step closer to being hair free.
How long did it take to get back to normal after using the corticosteroid cream?
It’s hard for me to remember specifically, the texture didn’t take as long to recover, but the redness hung around for a month or more, but did ALL go away within 6 weeks or so. I could cover it with make-up much sooner AND remember I am a major skin perfectionist. Here is a link to my experience so you can read what I went through. . .
http://www.hairtell.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/26550/page//fpart/2/vc/1
Sandra, did you ever call and ask your electrologist to take a look at your healing. Honestly, if a skilled electrologist had done your work, there would be no need to run to a dermatologist.
After you heal, if you think you want to continue treatments, are there other electrologists for you to sample? This point cannot be stressed enough. I would implore you, though, to let the person who did the work know what happened and maybe she will clean up her act and do better.
This IS NOT a normal picture for post electrolysis healing.
Dee
I totally agree with Dee. And I forgot to mention that the only time this happened to me this severely my electrologist used an insulated probe, something different from our usual routine that my skin did not agree with. I did communicate to my electrologist how bad my skin was and how upset I was. I even had to cancel an appt. to allow my skin to heal more, getting me off schedule a bit in the beginning. She was VERY caring and helpful. We made the proper adjustments and it has been smooth sailing since.
Please let your Electrologist know about your skin!!
I call my clients the day after the first appt.If all is well great if not I want to see them right away.
I had a lady tell me she had a little bit of redness a couple of days after and I told her to come in or I could come to her home or work. All was well false alarm.
If she really would of had a problem I wanted to be the first to know. If you tell your Electrologist and she isn’t concerned, settings aren’t changed etc…
Visit a new Electrologist.
can you describe exactly what’s wrong with your skin after the treatment?
Thanks everybody for answering my post.
To answer lagirl’s question:
“can you describe exactly what’s wrong with your skin after the treatment?”
My Dermatologist said it had been over treated and gave me some hydrocortisone cream.
My first appointment was July 20th. It will be two weeks tomorrow since I had my first appointment. What a nightmare! As of today my face is still pink/red and it looks like a have small mosquito bites along the side of my face. It looks bad, but I have hope that it will heal after seeing my dermatologist and reading your posts.
Last week I did call the electrologist and explained to her how I looked and felt, she said I could come in and see her, but this was the normal healing process and not to worry.
Yesterday, I was so upset at 4:10 I jumped into my car and went to see the dermatologist. I didn’t have an appointment and he closes at 4:30. I was almost in tears when I was talking to the receptionist, I explained my story and showed her the sides of my face and she took me right away. I didn’t even wait 5 minutes. The dermatologist didn’t seem to concerned which made me feel so much better. He said “it looks like you’ve been over treated, I’ll give you some cream to clear that up”
I did check out three places before I finally pick this electrologist. A girl I had worked with had gone to her, so thought I’d try her too. I not sure what to do now, maybe it’s just my skin?
Thanks for all your input
Sandra
everyone’s skin reacts differently. now that your electrologist will know, she will avoid overtreating the area. how long of a treatment did you have on one area?
Ten minutes on both sides. (I think her level was to high)
Yes, the level could have been too high, or the insertions were too shallow or close to the surface of the skin, or the timing might have been wrong, etc., etc. I don’t know what kind of equipment she uses, but that can cause problems, too. I don’t agree that what you are experiencing is normal healing. I would have wished to hear that she was more concerned.
IT IS HIGHLY PROBABLE TO HAVE ELECTROLYSIS ON YOUR FACE AND NOT BE ASHAMED TO SHOW YOUR FACE TO PEOPLE WITHIN HOURS AFTER HAVING A TREATMENT! It takes skill and caring on the practitioners part. If she has modern equipment and quality magnification and lighting, all the better. This is not what a electrolysis consumer has to put up with!
I am frustrated for you, Sandra. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />
Dee
I agree with Dee. Of course, you don’t know the amount of vitriol I have had poured in my direction for saying such things. It doesn’t matter that I have had exotic dancers as clients who were so confident in their treatment results that they regularly scheduled treatments from 3pm to 6pm (legs, bikini and face) and went to work at 8pm or 9pm that same night.
Of course, this is a great illustration of why we say, see as many providers in you area as you can, because only by sampling what is available, can you find out who will give you the best results in your area. If you have to drive a little bit further, then you should be glad to. Some people have to hop a plane to get the level of treatment they desire.
Did you have to wait until your face completely healed before you went for your next appointment?
Sandra
There was still a bit of discoloration, but no scabs. I think I waited about 3-4 weeks. I really did not want to get too far off schedule and I knew that overtreatment would not happen again so I went for it a little early. How is your skin doing now?
Tomorrow it will be 4 weeks. The healing process seems to be slow. I have no scabs, just bumpy pinkish spots on the sides of my face. I thought by putting on the hydrocortisone cream it would be gone within a week. Not so, everyday I look in the mirror and it doesn’t seem to have changed, but it must be, just very slow. The doctor said not to wear make-up on it, but if I don’t it looks bad. Did you wear make-up? I’m wondering if it will ever heal completely? I want to go for another treatment, but I’m not sure if this would make it worse, even if she turns down the intensity level.
Any comment or suggestions would be great and uplifting
Thanks
Sandra
Yes, I absolutely did wear make-up once the wounds had closed, that is not to say the discoloration or bumpiness was all gone though. I always used a new disposable sponge each time and was very careful to be clean and not cross-contaminate. Make-up helped me cover the evidence of a bad treatment while it faded, and it and gave me the confidence to not hide all day (like I used to because of the laser stimulated hair). At your point in treatments, I did continue treatments and did not have another bad reaction. Since we were treating different follicles, the discoloration did not get worse and I was able to continue my path of hair removal. I was at the point where you were and now I can wear ponytails and get many compliments on my hair-free, clear skin. You WILL heal, it just takes time and dilligence on your skincare routine. Stay the course, this is not an easy or quick process, but it is one that works.
Sandra,
Not to go all “James Walker” on you <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> but if you post your location in your profile, maybe someone here can personally recommend a good electrologist from their own positive experiences.
Thanks for all your help. Every time I get down, I read your post that it will heal. On a earlier post you had said around 6 weeks, so 2 more to go.
Thanks again
Sandra
Sandra,
Not to go all “James Walker” on you <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> but if you post your location in your profile, maybe someone here can personally recommend a good electrologist from their own positive experiences.
I think it’s working though <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> It’s nice to see more people are adding that. It really helps and it’s really for their benefit anyways. I really don’t know what would be the reason some refuse to do it. These are annonymous anyways. It’s not like anyone would know who you are in a city of millions.