Hi,
its been more than 2 weeks since my first laser session took place. Ive got the full body done and results are mixed.There’s been a lot of shedding and a lot of areas are clean of hair with just of a few single hairs growing, but there are also a lot of places that were obviously missed and I look like a tiger with stripes of hair growing or even like a chess board. Is it normal to have some hair missed, considering that it was my first treatment and it took 2 and half hours.The practitioner was very nice and the price a bargain, but should I ask for a free top up session for at least the large missed areas?
Share some experience pls?
Tnx
I’ve had the same issue with the stripes. I’m only getting brazilian and I am coming up on my 4th treatment this week. There have been obvious missed areas after each visit. I can say that each missed area has been lessened after each visit, but I still have stripes along with some new hair growth. I sure hope my next visit will at least get those spots that have been missed. My laser tech says that it’s normal, but I hate the strips of hair, it’s quite annoying. Like you, I bought my treatments at a bargain on Groupon and since this is the first laser experience for me I am not sure what to expect, I just have to trust my technician. Thursday will be my next treatment and I will let you know my results.
As a consumer, I would ask and expect that those missed areas be treated.
Stripes should be treated shortly after the other hair sheds. Just like electrolysis, if you do not completely clear an area, total completion time will take longer.
Maybe that’s their plan. A tech that I had at one of my appointments said that I might need extra treatments. That was after I mentioned that I noticed stripes that were obvious missed areas. In the long run, will it matter as long as those missed areas get treated at my next appointment or another appointment?
Yes it will matter. Anytime you leave even a small portion of hair behind with each treatment it will increase the total number of treatments required to achieve your goal. Not all laser centers realize this (or care) and do not offer “re-shoots” or “touch-ups” to treat stripes. Another important factor is proper treatment spacing. It would be of great benefit if you could find a laser trained electrologist (they understand hair growth cycles), but most states confine laser hair removal to physicians. The reason? Doctors do not like competition!
I am going for my 4th treatment on Thursday and I will ask that she make an effort to treat those strips that were left at the previous 3 visits. Hopefully she will take extra care to do so. When I mentioned it at an earlier visit it was dismissed as normal and ok and we would just get it next time.
Of course stripes are normal, but that does not mean these areas should remain untreated until the next primary treatment weeks away.
Had my 4th treatment today and mentioned the missed strips. She said that it is ok, and that after the 6th and final treatment, 80% of the hair would be gone. It seems like she treated all of the strips that were missed the last 3 treatments, we’ll see. I’ll post the results after the shedding is done.
Now it has been almost 2 weeks since my 4th treatment and I believe the shedding has finished for the most part. I have strips still, although they are thinner. I am frustrated because each time I am so hopeful that all areas were touched with the laser and clearly that hasn’t happened. The strips left now are all concentrated on the outer lips area, which I could tell the technician was not paying attention to hitting every area. ugh. I suppose those areas will be hard to miss next time, with all the hair around it being gone.
Technically speaking stripes should be treated as soon as they appear. This “re-shoot” to clear stripes should always follow the primary treatment to insure that all active hair follicles are targeted. Most laser operators are just button-pushers, they know very little about hair growth.
Should I call and ask them to treat those areas now before my 5th treatment coming up October 25th? I have a feeling they will not like this request. What should I do if they try to minimize the situation?
Tell them you have “events” (make up something) coming up and you cannot have stripes. See if they are willing to re-shoot these areas about two weeks before your “events” (to allow the hair time to shed).
Thanks 
I am trying to imagine what “events” I would need my brazilian hair removal for. I sent an email last night to ask about a touch up treatment. Have not heard anything back yet. Now I am curious about how the technician can make sure she/he gets all of the areas, especially lower, where there are folds. Does the technician usually have the patient pull skin taut to reach those areas? It seems that there’s no way the laser could touch some areas without doing that.
Tell them you are going to the Bahamas for a few days and cannot have stripes. The technician should position the client and stretch the skin in such a way that all hair can be targeted.
Thank you. I haven’t heard back from my email. No extra effort was ever made to target the hair that is hard to reach. I guess considering that, my results have not been too bad. I just worry that when those strips are finally treated, won’t another crop of hair grow in eventually within those strips?
Yes … you will require multiple treatments and might need electrolysis to finish the job at some point.