I know that when treating with Alexandrite, the higher the joules setting, the higher the efficacy. Does this mean that lower settings require more treatments to get rid of the hair, or does it mean that lower settings don’t work at all?
both, but mostly because lower settings don’t kill all the hair
In threads from this site I’ve read that setting too low can cause the dark coarse hairs to grow back thinner and lighter making them harder to be completely removed later with a high setting.
This is my experience:
I had two treatments with the Candela GentleLase at 10J (18mm). My hair was softer, but I don’t think much hair quit growing. Luckily my hair is very dark, thick and coarse, so I think it can still be easily treated.
At 12J (still low) I saw a little bit of a decrease. BUT I had spot treatments at 14J and saw a significant decrease in hair growth. I just had my 4th treatment at 16J and hope to see a lot less hair growth.
– Overall, I would follow the advice in this forum, and ask for higher settings. It seems to me to lower settings are a waste of time and maybe clinics use them just to keep you paying more, or to make sure you can handle higher settings, (make sure you don’t burn) so you can’t sue.
or to make sure you can handle higher settings, (make sure you don’t burn) so you can’t sue.
I would guess that this is the major reason. One lawsuit can ruin your entire day, not to mention your entire life.