I’m a type II or III, and three weeks ago I underwent my first laser treatment (Candela GentleLase, 12 Joules) to underams and bikini. They told me that they start everyone out at 12 Joules and gradually increase it – fine. It wasn’t very painful, and I experienced no problems.
I was told to expect shedding at three weeks. This is not happening. Also, there is very little regrowth at all – just some sparse hairs here and there.
Is this typical or atypical? Any comments or suggestions? I’m scheduled for second treatment in one week.
-if you didn’t shave and there is no regrowth, where did the hair go? it either shed or it’s stuck as pepperspots, which are dead hairs anyway and will fall out later.
12 joules is a bit low even on 18mm. what was the spot size? joules alone are not very meaningful. the fact that it wasn’t very painful can be a sign of undertreatment also.
Hmmm, I don’t know the spot size, but I can find out. It’s about the size of a quarter.
No, I haven’t shaved at all. However, review of the instruction sheet they gave me says that what looks like “new growth” isn’t new growth at all but shedding of surface hair. Well, if that’s the case, then I guess technically I am “shedding.” (When I think “shedding” I expected to have some hairs falling out.) Initially I had the pepper spot look, but those have grown out. Seriously, I only have a few sparse hairs here and there in both places, underarms and bikini. So, I guess I’ll shave these the night before and go for my second treatment as scheduled.
I’m aware that 12 Joules is considered low, but they’re supposed to increase it gradually so I anticipate 14 Joules or so at this next visit.
you shouldn’t go in for another treatment until you see NEW growth. there is no point of going with just a few sparse hairs. that’s basically a touchup, not a full treatment, and you shouldn’t be counting it as one or paying for it as a full treatment.
Okay… I don’t know if the bikini and underarms are supposed to have a much higher sucess rate or something… but if all you have left are a few sparse hairs then I’m jealous… I’m 13 days post-laser on my face for the 5th treatment, and I still have over 100 hairs remaining… probably more like 200. granted i have some white hairs, but it’s definetly not just a couple sparse hairs
i was talking about 3 weeks post treatment when all hair is supposed to have shed. if you’re not experiencing almost complete shedding at 3 weeks, you should be going in for a touchup at that point since that means the remaining hairs were missed. it’s not a big deal if it’s a few hairs, but if it’s a bunch, you should be asking them to touch them up.
and yes, bikini and underarms are easier to treat because the hair is very coarse. the more coarse the hair and lighter the skin, the better the results given high settings.
