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Congrats and well done for managing all that!
Everything looks great and 100% normal.
Those whiteheads will go away on their own. The scabbing is very small and it should be allowed to fall off on its own. Any hyperpigmentation you may get will just take time but will fade.
I think once your areas become a bit clearer you should consider bleaching. Your hairs are short and fine and once the density is reduced I think the remaining would be almost invisible once bleached. Have you ever tried it? For now, Mairi is able to see the hairs more easily but you may want to try it just once later on down the line to see if it works for you.
“To pop or not to pop,” that is the question! Whether is be … (never mind!)
One’s natural instinct is to pop, squeeze or wash away the pustules. Guess what? Your natural instinct is correct!
Post-treatment pustules, like the ones you have depicted, are largely DEAD “white cells,” other fluids and the remainder of defunct tissue. Get rid of it.
In the long run, I suppose, you could just leave the things … but why? The body prefers fresh blood full of active cells and nutrients. If you don’t remove the dead stuff, the body has to first clear the junk and then go ahead with the “full speed ahead” healing process.
Use a nice clean washcloth, soap and warm water and just push ‘em out. A dab of witch hazel afterward won’t hurt. If you need to pop them, that’s fine too … just wash well afterward.
When (young oily) guys come here for major back treatment they always get “hundreds” of post-treatment pustules. I supply them with a brand new “back brush” and, at the appropriate time, have them gently scrub them off (usually with a little Hibiclens too). If you see a little blood, don’t panic. The body loves blood … hates dead tissue.
So the answer to the question is … “POP!”
Stoppit - Thanks!
I do occasionally bleach but don’t too often as my hair looks yellowy so I only do it at events etc.
Michael - I don’t think I’ll be popping them
Question: My swelling on the forehead hasn’t gone down infact it’s worse I think, any ideas?!
Michael - I’m glad you replied about the whiteheads. I had written the same thing but then deleted that comment because I wasn’t sure.
HCD - I think you should follow the advise about using a washcloth to get rid of them.
The swelling is normal. You had a lot of work done on the forehead. It can take two or three days to really die down. During my first trip to Josefa, I had about 5 hours on the sides of my face and I looked like a chipmunk for 3 days.
Also, I’m not sure which bleach you use but Boots Smooth Care Hair Lightener is by far the best. You have such similar hair to mine that I’m sure that provided you leave it on for long enough (30 - 40 mins) I feel it will make them fully blonde.
Oh yeh, if you agree, can I post your before/after of the forehead side by side?
It will help for suggestions about from where hair should be removed.
Josefa made a very important point regarding my sister’s hairline; that our faces and natural hairlines are not symmetrical. You want to work with what is there for a natural look rather than forcing it to follow a perfect line.
Well done HCD. Right now, you probably can not fully appreciate this major achievement, while your skin is recovering from a very intensive treatment. However, in a few days time (up to a week),you will be thrilled and delighted to have made such huge progress, from a single visit. Very soon, you will be enjoying your beautiful skin, nothing will distract from its’ perfection.
Sure … those are your “whiteheads” after all!
It is funny, however, because we have all been told to “never remove a whitehead.” It’s common thinking that you might cause an infection. You won’t. (Actually, you already have an infection … very inconsequential, of course.) You’ll be fine in any case.
Although extremely “overstated,” the operative word for this is “debridement” of a wound. I wonder if “micro-debridement” is a commonly used word? Maybe “we electrologists” could start using this term? Maybe I can nudge this term into the “strategy” book?) Yeah, this sounds WAY better than “go pop your zits!” … Sure, we could say: "Oh, at this point I would like to do a little “micro-debridement.” Could we add this to our nomenclature?
My writing was really for general understanding and for other patients that might be (unreasonably) horrified by post-treatment pustules. They happen! In nearly all cases, nothing went wrong. Just a bunch of dead stuff.
More explanation about “zits.”
See, what happens, in this case, is the epidermis bridges the wound gap too quickly … and so the dead junk is “trapped.” You get a “whitehead.”
The epidermis is my SECOND favorite thing in the whole world!
Stoppit, I’m a bit wary of popping them yet because of the swelling.
I use jolen, and usually leave it on for about 10 mins as it starts to sting.
Yes please do!
Jolen is horrible and I had the same problem with hairs being a bit orange. Anyway, just a suggestion for later!
Yup that was the first thing I thought, so if I “popped” them will the swelling go down quicker?
And there was me thinking all bleaches would be the same! Lol
Here’s a thread I created when I thought they had discontinued the Boots one (they were just rebranding). From the comments, you can see it’s popular and better than other bleaches.
http://www.hairtell.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/82931/Boots_Expert_Hair_Lightener_Di.html#Post82931
Before and After of HCD’s hairline, electrolysis performed by Mairi Hawkes of Argyll Electrolysis:
If you look at the before, ignoring the baby hairs, it is naturally a bit higher on the left hand side. I would say, wait for regrowth (which will have happened by March) and also consider how the hair falls.
Thanks stoppit! You are right my right side is lower, seeing the photos next to each other helps a lot… Btw how do u do that?!
Hi Stoppit … you work is just BEAUTIFUL! BRAVO!
Will “micro-debridement” cause the swelling to go down faster? I don’t know! It might. Why not do an experiment and tell us?
You are REALLY looking GREAT!
I used Photoshop to make a single image.
Imageshack and other image hosting websites generate the code to embed a thumbnail, which I just modify a bit to link directly to the full size image.
Michael - Sorry to cause confusion. HCD’s hairline and work done by Mairi Hawkes. I will edit the post to make this clearer.
Epilating a leg hair is a big achievement for me.
I’m so pleased that HCD considered my suggestion to see Mairi. Many people are just so put off by the idea of travelling that they forego the opportunity to have such wonderful work performed.