LHR Full Body Experience

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

OK…figured that it was time that I posted a quick note on my experiences thus far in LHR (with more to come over time).

First, a bit of background:

I’m white, type II-III skin with substantial dark brown hair.

Throughout most of my adult life, I’ve had problems (increasing with age) of cystic acne caused by ingrowns. After being convinced by my wife a couple of years ago to try shaving, I found that many of the ingrowns were caused by the plethora of multiple hairs that I have coming out of follicles. The laser tech that I’m seeing was amazed at the number (I probably average 2-5 hairs per follicle).

That is a big part of my interest in LHR – a dermatologist explained that I could either go on and remain on an antibiotic treatment for the folliculitis or I could have the hairs removed (or just continue to deal with the problem and the scarring).

I started out shaving (getting used to the look). Loved the look…loved the feeling (MUCH more comfortable)…hated the daily (or more) maintenance (my hair grows very fast). Tried (briefly) epilating – big mistake, as ingrowns (and the folliculitis) went through the roof.

Finally, about two months ago, I started in on LHR. I found a very good tech in my area who uses a Candela GentleLase.

Currently running an 18mm spot size on me at 16-18J/cm2

I finished the first round (everything from the neck down to the toes) about two weeks ago. My legs are still shedding, but the results everywhere are great so far – extremely smooth.

The treatments hurt. A lot. Mainly my own fault, as I hate the thought of using any sort of anaesthetic (if I’m going to burn, I want to feel it so that I know and can let the tech know). Fingers (of all things) were by far the worst. Chest was none too pleasant, but bearable. Legs weren’t bad at all. Surprisingly, bikini, genitals, and perianal were a breeze (and showed the best results the fastest).

From what I understand, I’m currently in that “honeymoon” period where I have lost most all of the hair on my body (below the neck). Great results across the board. I’m figuring that my next round will be starting in a couple of weeks (the chest/abs – the first to be treated – are starting to show signs of new growth).

More as I have it…

#2

great to hear. please keep us updated. sounds like you’ve done your research and you’re on your way. good luck.

#3

Thanks for the post. This is the exact kind of treatment that I am looking to do (Type III skin, dark hairs, full body neck to toes, GentleLase machine).

I’d really like to hear about your procedure, since it’s kind of daunting to drop that much cash for a procedure with so few long term results available.

I’d also be really interested to know how much you’re paying (if you don’t mind me asking). When you get such a large area done, are you able to negotiate the price down? Could I PM you for details on this?

#4

I’m probably not the best one to ask about the price – I’m working on a barter arrangement (I’m doing a fair bit of web development for the clinic in exchange for the treatments). Basically, she’s paying for any out-of-pocket expenses that are needed on the site (very few, since I run my own server) and I’m paying for any out-of-pocket expenses on her side (running the machine, consumables, etc.). A bit more costly than I had anticipated, but still well worth it.

The good news is that she’s also extremely knowledgable and skilled in LHR and a genuinely good person…so doing the work for her is something that I actively enjoy.

For the moment, I’ve been working on updating her website (dressing it up a bit and making it look a little bit more “professional”). If folks are interested in rendering opinions, you can find the beginnings of the test site at: http://www.compnetco.com/personalTouch

The content still needs some work, but the design is likely approaching the final version (she wanted to keep it clean and relatively simple).

I just scheduled the beginning of my second round of treatments for a week and a half from now (starting to show regrowth on the chest/abs – just about dead on schedule).

#5

I should also mention that I suspect the reason you don’t see too many folks posting about long-term results is that most people use forums like this because they have (in their/our minds, at least) a problem. Remove the problem, and they don’t “need” to post anymore. Some may even be trying to put it all behind them.

You don’t normally hear people talking about their nose job/face lift/whatever either <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

You see a lot of posts from people considering treatment, or going through treatment, or having had treatment but run into problems (bad practitioners, etc.). Not so much from folks that have successfully put it all behind them.

#6

I remember how smug I was during my treatments. I truly believe all your hair will grow back (probably patchy) and you will have gone through all this for nothing.

#7

Gone through all what? I enjoy what I do, so the barter arrangement works out great for me.

And, just FYI, I’ve done my research (I’ve got a large number of family members in the medical field – makes checking out some actual facts rather easy) – LHR works. If it didn’t work for you, look to the tech that worked on you and the machine used. There are any number of folks out there for whom it has worked and worked well.

#8

Yeah - absolutely. I would wager that most people who have had a successful LHR experience wouldn’t be bothered to hop back on the web and post about it - they would just want to move on with their new hairfree bodies.

I’m guilty of this myself - I didn’t post anything about my treatment (almost 3 years ago) until recently … and that’s because I’m considering more treatments.

#9

thanks Gryffin and MonkeyMan for pointing out this obvious fact, which for some reason doesn’t register with most who come here. those are precisely the reasons for the way things are here. There are a few people like myself, RC2001, hairlessinla, NoHair etc who come back to help others, but that’s very rare. And it gets tiring typing the same thing over and over again, which is why I wrote the FAQs. But even then, people still want personalized answers to the same questions. You definitely get worn out after a while.

#10

The GentleLase will give much better results than the equipment that jimmyjames had the misfortune to experience. Don’t expect perfection though. For me it worked great on my back, but not so well in the pubic area, and this was 6 years ago. Wish I could have afforded a full body treatment. Please let us know how it turns out in the long run (which will probably be a year from now).

#11

Yup…I’m figuring that the results across the body will be mixed. The main thing that I’m looking for is a general reduction in hair (particularly the multiple hairs, which cause me no ends of problems). The shaving I can handle…particularly when the hair is thinner.

I’m curious to see which areas “take” better than others.

#12

areas with the most coarse hair will see the best results. yes, please update us. and i should say it’s very important to have realistic expectations going into this. it’s not a miracle treatment, but you can be pretty happy with some research and good treatments.

#13

NoHair - I am surprised to hear it didn’t work well for your pubic hair. I was hoping that area would have the best results.

#14

it usually does IF it’s dark and coarse and the skin is light

#15

I’m sure you read as much as you could and talked with people who’ve had it done. but that is anecdotal information.

the long term clinical data has not been done. There are very few studies to begin with and even less longitudinal ones tracking longer than 6 months - 2 years. And none after two years.

all studies show diminishing results as time goes by.

#16

Now who hasn’t done their research and is quoting anecdotal evidence, hmmm?

There has been research into the long-term effects, focusing on the biological effects of the laser treatments. They have been shown to work.

Sorry you had such a crappy practitioner and didn’t do your due dilligence before blowing your money – don’t take it out on those of us who have, ok?

#17

I think Jimmy James has a point. I know several people who were ideal candidates for laser, went to the best practioners, and had little to no results. It’s not fair to blame those who it didn’t work on as though they somehow had it coming. Some people do really well with laser and experience dramatic reduction. Other people waste huge sums of money, and get nothing in return. There doesn’t seem to be any way to tell who will and won’t get good results.

If you have the money to spend, I say go for it. If you’re on a tight budget, I wouldn’t spend my money on something that has no guarantee of working.

#18

That is, and always has been one of my biggest problems with Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. It is like high stakes gambling at a roulette wheel. Maybe you get what you paid for, maybe you don’t. Maybe you get a burn, maybe you don’t, and so on.

If you don’t have money to waste, that is, if you can’t afford to experiment with something that may not work for you, or may cost you more money by adding your need for other services (medical and or cosmetic) then electrolysis is tried and true.

#19

when people don’t get results, there is usually a reason for it. the biggest problem with laser is that people are sold too easily on the hype and don’t do enough research BEFORE they start the procedure. trying to figure things out after the fact is always frustrating and people are wary of spending MORE money to fix the problem they ended up with.

#20

I have to disagree. I researched a LOT before I had any laser done, and went to several different people, and still didn’t do very well. I don’t deny that some people do great, but a lot of people also don’t get any results. I’m always sad when I talk to other transsexuals who wasted 5K+ on laser hair removal, only to have it grow all back. They ended up having to have it all re-done with electrolysis.

If you have plenty of money to burn and can afford the risk that it won’t work, I say go for laser (for body work only, NEVER on the face.) If you are on a budget, though, and really need permanent hair removal, go with electrolysis.