Thanks!
Well, going on a month and a half, I am still super happy I bought this thing. I am no longer using it regularly - I pull it out if I feel a stubbly hair, or if I see a dark on in the bathroom mirror, but that’s maybe once a week and only 1-2 hairs at a time. If I look at myself using a magnifying mirror, I can see some longer, dark hairs, but I can’t see them in regular light in a regular mirror, so I am not too fussed about them right now.
Ceasing most of the electrolysis has also given the opportunity to keep a better eye on the healing process. On intensity level 10, I get a scab which I usually pick off (can’t help it), followed by some darker pigmentation. This is common for me following any cut or scratch and historically these marks fade over a few months. As it is now, I can’t see them in the regular mirror, and that’s good enough for me.
There is no pitting.
Overall, I am really happy with the progress. If any of the hairs are growing back, they are taking their sweet time. In comparison, when I used to pluck these hairs (years ago), I would have to do so every day. So, while I know 6 weeks in is not proof of efficacy, I do believe it is working and I highly recommend it.
Yep, you will get some scabbing and you will probably have some marks that fade over time. But for me, it is way better than the hair.
So - it’s been almost a month since I used it. I bent my last probe and it took me a while to get around to order more. There has been some regrowth (or cycled growth) but it is pretty minimal compared to how it used to be!
Unfortunately, my machine is kind of broken. It only works when I turn it all the way up to the highest setting which hurts a lot more than it needs to. May get DH to try to fix it, or just order a new one.
Noooooo, my unit finally died. Battery started to smoked! Yuck.
Time to buy a replacement unit. I’ve definitely been slacking a bit because the ones I can feel are pretty much gone, and I’ve turned a blind eye to the ones I can see. Oh well, all in good time.
I finally received my replacement units (I got two) a couple weeks ago. I definitely had some regrowth, but much less than when I first started. I was pleased to note that the regrowth is MUCH easier to treat than the original hairs - less time, almost no scabbing, and they almost all come out easily on the first try.
At first I was afraid that I had as much grow back as I had originally, but it took only a couple of short sessions to return to “tolerable” whereas when I first started treating it took a lot longer than that.
So yeah, still quite pleased with the One Touch, especially considering I’m in for a grand total of about a hundred bucks.
Just for comparison’s sake, I have about $300 invested at this point which includes:
$150 for a silouette tone SB2 machine
$40 for shipping on above
$32 for probes
$60 for an circle lamp/ magifying loop
$25 for tweezerman tweezers.
So yes, buying a used pro machine will cost you a little more than wht you are spending now, but honestly not alot more. You still may want to consider that path if you intend to do this alot.
As for the irritation, have you tried tea tree oil on thescabs and swelling? I’ve seen that recommended here several times.You would also probably do well to take a little longer per hair with a lower setting, but you already seem like you should know that.
Seana
… and when one is finished with all the professional equipment, one can resell it, whereas a broken or even working used one touch is not likely to get many buyers.
HEY SEANA! Potential Electrolysis Partner, wassup! 
Well, the only area I ever intended to treat with the one touch is my chin/throat. If I wanted to do my legs as well I would definitely branch out beyond the one touch, but I am honestly really happy with everything and have no regrets. It’s slow to use, but it’s cheap ($300 is still $200 more than $100!), and it’s working.
Tea tree oil really upsets my skin - I usually use aloe if I think of it, but mostly I just wait and it goes away on its own. I am not self conscious about it anyway, although obviously I’d rather not have swelling!
Yeah, I know, I should use a lower setting I also shouldn’t pick at my scabs (all scabs, not just electrolysis-related), but it’s a powerful force that I cannot resist! I like to “feel” the electricity, I guess, and I’m already waiting 20-30 seconds on level 9. Couldn’t imagine waiting much longer on a lower setting. At any rate, it’s a lot better now on the second round. I am still using level 8-9, but it only takes 10-15 seconds and almost always on the first try.
I found re-inserting the probe more than once into the same follicle caused a lot of damage.
I do have some pigmentation and scarring from the first round which was more damaging (highest setting, long wait times, sometimes 2-3 tries in a follicle), but it’s VERY minor, under my chin, and I can only see it when I’m front of the magnifying mirror with the light on, so it’s really not a big deal to me.
Other thing I noticed was that sometimes the hair would come out but leave the root thingy behind, which would harden in the pore. Often these were easy to squeeze out like a whitehead, but a couple of them caused bumps that I picked at. Not a big deal, but now I am careful to push out any that don’t come out with the hair.
No intention of selling the one-touch. I consider the $100 money well spent!
I maintain that it’s not for everyone, but if you want to spend like $30 you can get a one-touch, some extra probes, and some batteries and you’re good. The only thing is, wipe down the metal thingy on the probe with a damp cloth and then wipe it dry. Leaving salt water on it will cause is to rust.
The only other downside I see to this (which doesn’t apply to me) is that it sucks for fine hair and small pores. The probes are just too thick, I guess.
This is too funny. For those not in the know, I posted a while ago locally for potential electrolysis partners , and Zoe was one of the people who replied to my kijiji Ad.It’s total coincidence, but we’ve also posted back and forth here.I should pay more attention to names, if I didnt have names-ymers.
I bought a bunch fo f-shank probes Zoe from a retired electrysist. Many of them are the insulated type and size f2. We may want to give those a try once we get going to help reduce potential scarring.I’m pretty much equipped at this point, everything EXCEPT the machine which I had to return because it proved defective when I tested it. Anyway the f2 probes should be fine for use on your finer hair, but it may take me a bit to learn to do really good insertions on them.
I have a lead on a few machines to replace the broken one, and am aiming to buy around the 20th so we should be set to go in another week or so.
Seana
Zoe,
If you are concerned with speed, then you should take Louise’s offer ( the pro I had work done by a week or two ago) to have a hour or two of professional work done. She uses thermolysis, and is able to clear hair VERY quickly. She’ll likely be around or available at least some of the time I practise, so setting up for her to work on you shouldnt be an issue.I havent heard back from her as to costs, but I suspect she’ll be about $30 or so an hour. She can clear quite a bit of hair in an hour let me tell you, she cleared my entire upper lip in that much time and I had quite a bit remaining. She’s been a licensed pro and teaching the trade for over 10 years.I’m still willing to work on you, but you could make much faster and better progress with Louise.
Seana
Hi All
Apologies for bumping such an old thread!
I recently bought the one-touch unit, and wasn’t able to find much info about it; Google brought me here. I have a few questions for those of you who have experience using it.
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When I touch the needle to my skin it feels like it starts ‘frying’ even before I get it inside the follicle! Is there any risk of scarring with this? I didn’t trust it so I used a gloved hand with the pen and made the circuit by touching my other hand to the plate, only once the needle was inside the follicle.
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Is the saline completely necessary? Can I just use plain tap water?
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Are there any needles I could buy which can fit in place of the supplied ones, which are finer and more suited to finer/vellus hair?
It seemed to work well, I was seeing the white exudate from each follicle as I applied the charge, they then came up like mosquito bites for a few hours. However 10 days later I still have dark red marks on my legs on each follicle I treated, and they look like they might be starting to form little black dots/ingrown hairs beneath the surface. Is this normal?!
Many thanks in advance for reading!
well gosh, that was a trip down memory lane. And to think I still see Zoe!
In order of your questions:
It’s entirely possible that you are touching the metal band somewhere as you insert or the current is being conducted by the salt water. You feel the current on insertion because it’s flowing.These things arent well made and poorly designed . Ergonomically they are a fail.
The salt in the water is necessary as it assists in conducting the current between the metal band and your finger.
No, the needles you get with the one touch dont come in any other sizes. They are too large for fine hairs . Some have modified the one touch to use a proper probeholder, but it’s not really worth the effort.
If you are going to try to do electrolysis I recommend using professional equipment. Used epilators come up frequently on places like craigslist, kijiji, ebay .
If you are working on your face, (as your name suggests) then you would do well to see a professional electrologist. I say this from personal experience . Doing it yourself you cannot reach those all important areas like the neck.
If you want to mess around with the one touch for kicks and giggles anyway, then by all means do so, but it is what it is,a cheaply made appliance that most people get frustrated with and throw away .
Seana
Hi Seana
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond! I see your point about getting a professional machine, I’ve actually been watching a few Sterex on ebay just to get an idea of what they sell for. My intention was to play around with the One Touch on my legs just to see if I could get the hang of it, but yes it is a very fiddly frustrating thing :eek:
From reading about the 3 different methods, I’m not sure which machine would be best to get? From what I can gather, galvanic would be best as I have no experience, but will also take forever (30 seconds per hair?!), there are a few long vellus hairs on my face which I want to get too, and for that it seems like thermolysis is the best method… only I’m also seeing that thermolysis isn’t something to play around with if you’re not experienced!
Would I be right in assuming that you are the same ‘SeanaTG’ from earlier in the thread and that you are self-taught in electrolysis? It would be good to hear from someone who went down that route as to whether I would be wise to jump straight in and buy a thermolysis machine? I suppose a blend machine would be ideal but they are selling for double the price (£700+ in the UK!) I am aware of 2-piece and insulated needles for minimising scarring, but I suppose there must be much more to it than that.
I am one in the same person, although I went on to learn professional electrolysis from some of the great advice from some of the other pro’s here.I did all of my own facial work, here as a DIY’er.
what machine you choose may depend a lot on what part of the world you are in.I would look at a machine capable of blend. I’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of my apilus kit but there are lots of great machines made by sterex, fischer schientific, silouette tone, instantron, claireblend, to name a few. I feel the low intensity rf used in blend makes it safer for DIY than thermolysis alone. Blend works extremely well and it is the modality I learned first. I still go back to it often.
Seana
Thanks Seana, looks like I’d better get saving then! I’m in the UK where it seems like the only machines available are the Sterex ones, so looks like this is going to set me back about £600 if I’m lucky enough to find a second hand blend on ebay. What would you say is the main risk/most likely user error with thermolysis alone?
An incorrectly adjusted thermolysis machine is literally capable of slicing like a scalpel. Heed Seana’s warning VERY seriously.
this
OK that’s pretty terrifying… by incorrectly adjusted, do you mean on too high a setting/for too long? It actually looks like I may have done something like this with the one-touch, there is a long line-shaped ‘burn’ where perhaps I was pulling the needle up against my skin from inside the follicle, from all the faffing about and leaning over to touch the touch-plate on the unit…
Meaning that even standard thermolysis current can and will cut flesh if the insertion is inaccurate and there is pressure against the skin with the probe. I’ve done it to myself , with an eyebrow setting which should have been low.
galvanic currents from a one touch wont do that but if a probe is against flesh the resulting lye will cause burns of sorts.
If when you learn to do electrolysis properly you can try practising on a piece of pork. this will give you a good feel for what the energy can do
I have been doing galvanic and blend on myself with a professional machine. I wouldn’t consider doing thermolysis on myself for all reasons explained above. Before you even buy a professional electrolysis machine, get a textbook and learn the basics. One Touch is a toy compared to power of professional machines, so be cautious and learn the theory.