newbie wondering where to start

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

hi, i was referred to this board by someone that recommended laser hair removal for the bikini area to me. i’ve been looking around a bit and i see that i am way out of my element… i had no idea there were so many different types of lasers. basically i was hoping someone could tell me which type would be best for me. i have very light skin and dark hair (so i guess i’m a good candidate), and as i said before i’m looking to get my bikini area done… almost all of it. i checked my derm’s website and he uses the Cutera CoolGlide™ laser and ProWave™ 770… is anyone familiar with either of these? also, what is the hair like between treatments? is it gone completely or just reduced? i’m also a little nervous of the commitment… if i change my mind, i can’t go back, can i? or would it eventually all grow back in if i stopped going for touch-ups? anyway, sorry for the long post, but any help would be greatly appreciated…

thanks,
sarah

#2

Hair in the bikini area is usually coarse so it will respond fine to the Coolglide if a high enough fluence is used. The Prowave 770 is a new IPL system that Cutera (maker of the Coolglide) recently introduced. It has an advantage over other IPLs in that it provides a wider range of wavelengths for different hair and skin types. I have had no experience with the Prowave 770 but I may get to try it next month.

You can find more information about these devices at <a href=“www.cutera.com” target="_blank">Cutera Hair Removal Devices</a>.

RJC2001

#3

Coolglide is made for darker skins (it’s Yag type laser), which means that it will still work on you since bikini area has coarse hair and all lasers work best on coarse hair. For absolute best and fastest results, you might want to find someone with either a diode (like LightSheer) or an alexandrite (like GentleLASE, Apogee, etc) type laser instead, which are more powerful. These lasers are made for light skin and dark hair. Laser is attracted to dark pigment, so if you have light skin, more powerful lasers/settings can be used that will more likely kill the hair (and not burn your skin since it’s light)

Everyone’s results are a bit different, but you should go into it assuming that the hair will never grow back. That’s the point of the treatment anyways and the goal. If you think you might want some of that hair back later, don’t get it removed with laser now. There is a good chance it won’t come back. I’m getting my bikini done as well and none of the hair that was treated ont he first treatment came back yet (it’s been 8 months). And I don’t expect it to. Touch-ups are usually for new hairs that grow in as you get older, which is normal and there shouldn’t be much. You probably won’t need more than 1 a year, 2 tops.

The treatment works like this. You shave the area, get it treated, then wait 2-3 weeks for the treated hair to shed. Once it has shed, the area is hairless for about 4-6 weeks. Then the hair in the next growth phase comes in, and you go in to treat that. You repeat this cycle 4-6 times and you should be done with most of the hair.

Read the FAQs sticky post at the top of this forum for basic information.