I have been contemplating electrolysis and laser hair removal and browsing their respective forums for many months now. That said, it is my awful experience with epilators that has prompted me to finally create a user name just so I could make sure everyone was aware of the worst case scenario. Afterall, I didn’t think I would be posting such a thing.
I have the Opti Max Emoji and used it for about a year and a half. I loved it. It was convenient, not that painful once you got used to it, and it left my legs both looking and feeling smooth (something razors have not done for me in ages, as I have dark coarse hair). I cannot remember how far into it my epilator began giving me trouble but what I do know is that I looked at my legs a few months ago and realized they were a complete disaster. They were covered in ingrowns, and scars from the ingrowns, which had become infected, and dark spots where particularly deep ingrowns had grown too far below the skin to ever surface. Mind you, I use tendskin, I exfoliate, I moisturize, and I don’t recall ingrowns having been a serious problem before this even though I did occasionally wax. My epilator, which I thought had saved me, had absolutely butchered my legs. I could not wear dresses or shorts because my legs were so marked up that it was truly unsightly. They simply grew worse with ever hair growth cycle. The hairs could not, and are still struggling to, grow out normally!
It has been almost three months since I have used the epilator on my legs and they look remarkably better. However, I spent the first part of my summer, in pants while I let all the hair grow out and the scars fade. The scars are not gone and I still have ingrowns, but its getting better. The epilator wreaked particular havoc on my bikini line, which I still mourn over. Did I mention that I have some fine hairs which have grown completely under my skin, fully extended, not even curled! It is just absurd.
Perhaps my experience was unusually bad, but is it really a risk you want to take? If you are at all prone to ingrowns stop using it now. If you have sensitive skin, scar easily and are prone to hyperpigmentation. Stop. Its really not worth it. Sure, it reduced the hair from my shaving days, but I’d give it up in a second to get rid of the scars on my legs & bikini, and the horrible hair growth that keeps resulting in more of them. Its been both embarrassing and inconvenient and I hope nobody finds themselves in such a predicament.