London - Depicool, anyone tried it?

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#21

Katie,

I am a Brit living in Florida with a Medical Spa - this is a facility where we have doctors and nurses offering Botox, weightloss etc. and Laser Hair Removal etc. (www.coastlasercenter.com)

We use a Diode Laser from Lumenis and it is great, I have looked at IPL and it is OK. Some of the opinions here from people are a little one sided. IPL is not as efficient as Diode, however it does work but it will take longer and more treatments but is a LOT cheaper. The real benefit is you can do other services such as skin rejuvenation with an IPL.
Hair grows in a 6 week cycle and as long as you are getting the shedding of the follicle, this will not come back for a long time.

ALL laser hair removal is NOT permanent! The body can always grow a new follicle, maybe in years ahead, and new hair will grow. What happens with IPL or Diode is that you kill your existing follicle. Both methods are better than Waxing!

I think the DepiCool model is a good one for the UK, the requirements in the US vary from State to State. In Florida you need a Nurse Practitioner or Doctor to run a laser for hair removal, in Texas any idiot can use one - and because they are more powerful you can burn holes in people and scar them!

I believe for 49 per visit that the DepiCool model is great value at “permanent hair reduction” and 8-10 treatments on a 6-8 week visit cycle with give you very good results.

I hope this help?

Steve
Owner.

#22

That’s a bit misleading… laser is permanent on the hairs treated. If your body produces new hair in the future, that has nothing to do with laser not working. If you didn’t go for laser treatment in the first place, then you’d have that hair PLUS the new hair your body develops. It’s not the hair that was treated coming back.

#23

Your body does NOT ever grow new follicles. Your follicle number is determined by your genes in advance. However, dormant follicles can become stimulated and start growing hair. If this is going to happen, it would happen regardless of the laser. However, this usually doesn’t happen very much unless you go through hormonal changes (like puberty, menopause, or for men they are undergoing hormonal development well into their twenties and can have spurts of growth in certain areas around middle age as well).

This has nothing to do with laser being permanent. Laser is permanent. The hairs that are treated properly are killed permanently. Future hair can’t be treated ahead of time (of course), because it doesn’t exist yet. You can’t laser a hair that doesn’t even exist yet since the hair pigment is what makes laser work.

For the most part, if new hair growth is seen, it’s only a couple hairs a year, here or there based on anecdotes I’ve heard. These can be killed off with $15 of electrolysis every couple of years, and are not even worth thinking about when discussing pros and cons of laser.

The important factor is if you’re a good enough candidate to achieve 90-95% removal in the first place.

#24

If you think LHR is not permanent, it’s probably for the same reason that you think IPL is good. With good treatments with a good machine, LHR is permanent. New follicles can become active later, but that has nothing to do with effectiveness of treatments.

IPL treatments are also not necessarily cheaper. The machines are cheaper, but most clinics charge the same for IPL treatments as for laser treatments since most consumers don’t know the difference.

#25

I have just completed treatment number 6 with DepiCool and am really pleased with the results! :slight_smile: As far as I understand DepiCool do do a franchise, but the store I attend isnt, and my therapist (Andrea) is lovely!

I really didnt have a lot of spare cash so the options for me were a bit few and far between for this - I suppose you´d consider a bit of a luxury? I know they´re cheap, but my hair hasn´t grown back “after a few months” even when I missed a session coz I went on hols.

Before I went for my treatment with them I called them and asked ALOT of questions on anything I wasnt sure about and seemed a bit unclear. So why don´t u call them and see how u feel?

#26

Can you remember to check back in a year after you have done nothing to remove the hair?

#27

how long has it been since your last treatment? What areas did you treat? What is the % reduction you see now?

And yes, please come back and let us know what you actually see still gone 1 year later.

#28

Hey, as I said just completed my 6th session - which was now just 2 weeks ago. Prior to that I waited the recommended guidelines from Depicool which was 8 weeks since my last session, but I did move my appointment back by 2 weeks as I still had minimal hair regrowth at the 8 week time when my appt was originally scheduled. (So 10 weeks in all between my last treatment and this one)

I think overall if your looking at a % difference to when I went in having never had any type of permanent hair removal before and just using a razor or veet on the area, now I would say there is about a 90% hair reduction. There are the odd one or two which grow back quicker than the bulk - but they do tend to just break off or at least be alot thinner than from the start. (Its my bikini so I really notice the coarseness being reduced too)

I would be happy to check back with you in a years time and let you know how I´m getting on… I hope its as good as I´ve found it so far… :wink:

#29

What do you mean that you “notice the coarseness of the bikini line being reduced”? After 6 true laser treatments, you would have less than 5% hair remaining there. Just random few hairs.

Yes, 2 weeks is really too early to jugde permanency of anything. If you waxed 2 weeks ago, you’d also have little growth. Hair needs time to develop due to growth cycles.

You should check back in 6 months. That’s about the time when you can start judging, i.e. 6 months of no treatments.

It also sounds like you got treated a bit too often to tell anything. You should technically wait for good growth before heading in for treatment.

#30

I have just joined this site today, to tell my story so far and what results I have had so far from LHR and some info direct from the Depicool office.

I had LHR at Skin Oasis, 4 weeks ago on bikini line - my first time ever. It was painful, but I used a numbing cream (Emla) an hour prior to treatment which helped ease it a little - about 85% of my hairs have fallen out on their own over the past few days, usually after a shower. The ones closest to the lips and start of the “slit” sorry to be so graphic but we all have to be helpful here - have not fallen out yet, i am hoping they will before my next treatment in 2 weeks time.

Depicool are going to be doing my full legs and underarms. The patch test went well, no pain at all and they used a cooling gel which meant i didnt feel the heat too much. I would really like to know the exact machine they use before I commit to getting my legs done and wasting £112 on them and £49 on underarms.

Sadly, this is all the information they were willing to email me:

Some more info, cannot provide you more than that, sorry…

Our equipment has the same architecture as the IPL quantum from Lumenis

It is one of the best machines with an integrated cooling system to make the treatment more comfortable.

It has an energy power meter in order to ensure constant and appropriate energy output.

Our machines for administering Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) treatment, use the latest technology to ensure safe and effective IPL sessions. We also carry out regular checks and maintenance on the machines, to ensure they are working to their best ability.

Our machines have integrated thermo-electric coolers for the light guide. This means that the temperature of the skin can be kept cool to reduce the sensation and discomfort of heat during the pulses. In addition to this, each machine has an integrated energy power meter to ensure a constant and steady energy output for effective and safe treatment.

The pulses of light are produced by a Xenon lamp. The light rays are focused very precisely by the operator on the area to be treated. This accuracy means that hair removal can be highly targeted to each customer’s requirements.

In addition, our machines have a high energy output (maximum energy 48J/cm2) and a large spot size (8x34mm), which ranks them among the strongest and fastest available in the market.

The equipment that DepiCool uses is certified to the strict quality standards of ISO 9001. It is also CE 0197 certified, which is a certification of medical quality set according to European Union directives, which is similar to FDA certification in the United States of America.

#31

They’re using an IPL on you. Everything else is marketing speak. IPLs do get results, but true lasers at good settings usually provide better and faster, and often more permanent results.

Shedding completes at 3 weeks. It’s unlikely you’ll see more of it at this point.

Treatment spacing should be 8-12 weeks apart. It’s unlikely you’ll have enough new hair to treat at 6 weeks.