Pain- Waxing vs Laser

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

This is my first post and firstly, this is a great site, so pleased I’m not the only hairy bloke looking for solutions!

I’m a 29 year old UK guy with chest, shoulder and back hair. I’d say the coverage is pretty thick but I have seen worse. I’ve been contemplating laser for nearly 2 years now as I like many I hate summer time, pools and any occassion where I might have to strip off, obviously I dont as the embarrasment is too great.

I feel I am ready now financially to book my first appointment and this site has provided many answers to my questions, however I would like to know peoples views on what is more painful, laser or waxing? I’ve had waxing on my back and shoulders a few times and whilst painful, I can cope fairly well. If readers views are that laser pain is comparable then this will certainly give me the last bit of copurage I need to go ahead!

We have a clinic in London called Bare Necessity which specialise only in LHR and they have reasonable prices £199 back & shoulders per session using Lightsheer Diode.

Sure would appreciate readers views, if all goes well I can only describe the feeling would be one of ecstactic liberation!

Thanks.

#2

Hairy bloke,
Ive had both waxing and laser done on my body. Laser does not hurt much at all. Although I dont think waxing hurts much either though. You can definitely live with the pain of laser. By the way GO MANCHESTER UNITED!!! BECKHAM IS MY FAVORITE

#3

Thanks mad hairy, yep beckham sure is a legend around here!

How long do you think it would take to one session of upper arms, shoulders and back?

I’m at the point now I just have to do something, I feel this is holding me back from enjoying life as it should be enjoyed!

#4

Hairy bloke,
I would seriously tell you to just deal with your hair problem. I got that test patch done with no results. I also work for a dermatologist that siad that laser hair removal is not yet perfected, so dont waste your money yet. It has no guarantees. Just be proud of who you are. Robin Williams didnt sell out and get his cut, why should you. Also Ron Jeremy the famous porn star never got rid of his body hair […]. I say just leave your body hair. At least until laser is perfected.

[ May 06, 2003, 08:01 PM: Message edited by: Andrea ]

#5

Hi Hairy Bloke,

Your situation is very similar to mine around a year ago. I’m a 28 year old male from London who decided to go for laser treatment in an attempt to reduce hair coverage on my upper body (excl. face/arms)

I have had 5 treatments at Bare Necessity with their Lightsheer XC on my abdomen/chest (I had another company do my back and shoulders with a Coolglide laser - not at all successfully) and have had average results. Regrowth starts for me at around the 6/7 week mark, it’s a lot finer than before with some reduction (especially versus the Coolglide) but my experience with back and shoulders suggests that for me, over time, it returns almost as thick as before.

I’ve started going for electrolysis on my shoulders with a trusted practitioner - this is going well at the moment, but is time consuming and would be onerous to perform on large areas like back/chest. She is also waxing my back - this is the most impressive of all for me, obviously it’s not permanent, but the time I stay hairless along with the reduced pain (I find electrolysis painful and laser VERY painful, even with cream - waxing is a doddle in comparison) makes it worthwhile in combination with other methods in order to stay human.

I’d be very happy to discuss any of this in further detail with you, and to hear your experiences.

#6

Hi Hairy Bloke,
If you have dark hair and light skin, the lightsheer should hopefully give you good results. I have had my legs done with it, and I am a true fan of this machine. I have already had marvellous results after just 3 treatments.
It kind of feels like a bee sting each time they zap you, but it is only a very short instant of pain with each zap - I would say a little more painful than waxing simply because it is continual whereas with waxing a whole stip comes off at once, then you have a rest. Having said that, i have tolerated it just fine with no painkillers or anything, so it isn’t THAT bad. And it is psychologically a wonderful pain, as you just know that with each zap some of those damned hairs that you hate soooooooo much are being blown up for GOOD!! Hold that thought while you are being treated and you will have a sadistic little smile on your face the whole time… :wink:
Best of luck,
Fleabag

#7

Hey Scorpio, thanks for replying and sharing your experiences. Hope you dont mind me barraging you with questions, I’m glad I’ve found someone whose in the same boat and same town and whose used the same company I’m looking at using!

You mention you’ve had 5 treatments at Bare Necessity, what percentage reduction would you say you’ve achieved from the 5 sessions? I think BN’s guarantee allows you free treatments after 6 sessions for touch ups is this right?

How did you find the staff, were they professional, I would probably cringe if the staff were all very young women!

How many tubes of cream did you use and do you think they actually help reduce pain?

I am looking to book myself in for a test patch etc in the next 2 weeks, I’d be happy to stay in contact and share my experiences with you also.

Thanks again, look forward to your reply.

#8

Hi Fleabag, thanks for taking the time to post a reply. Where abouts in England are you from and what clinic did you use?

#9

Hi Hairy bloke,

I used Boots, but unfortunately they have recently (last week actually!!) closed most of their laser clinics. Not sure about the london ones - some of those may still be open? Might be worth a look, as they use the Lightsheer (up here anyways). I’m in Yorkshire, and the closest one remaining open to me is in Bolton, but that’s about an hour and a half drive, so a bit out of the way really. I’m a bit gutted about that I have to say, as I was half way through a course… Oh well… that’s life I guess…

I have heard that Advanced Laser Clinics are very good - my clinician at Boots told me that last time I saw her. She now has a job there, as have many of the local Boots gals. Apparently Advanced Laser Clinics have just bought out all the Hairaway clinics around the country, so I’m not sure that many options are left now. As far as I know (up here anyway), the three of these were the only ones apart from the odd beauty salon (but you get treated by beauticians, not nurses and doctors, so that’s a bit dodgy) so the Advanced Laser clinics must be laughing all the way to the bank now Boots have closed their doors. I wonder if the Hairaway group knew that was happening before they sold out? Anyway…

Up here the Advanced laser clinics use the Aurora machines, and they reckon they are pretty good. I really liked the Lightsheer which was used on me, but they don’t use them.

Dunno what else I can tell you really. The Boots staff up here were all very well trained, very professional, and very knowledgable, so I guess the same would be true down your way. Getting a good practitioner is over half the battle IMHO. if you get a good one, you are laughing - get a bad one, and bits start dropping off…!! (well… maybe a slight exaggeration there…???).

Good luck anyway, and ask lots of questions on your first consultation. When you read lots of posts on this forum, you will get to know what sort of questions to ask to ensure you get a good practitioner who knows what they are doing.

I have read on here a few people who have gone in for the test patch, and were treated straight away - in the same session. My practitioner advised me to go away for a few weeks following my initial test patch and see what happened to the area, which seemed like a sensible idea really. Everyone reacts differently, so if they try to treat you following straight on from your test, I would ask around a bit more and just make sure they really are “experts” at what they do. It’s a lot of money to outlay - you want the best.

Good luck,

Fleabag. :wink:

#10

fleabag

i’m looking at having coolglide - i’m dark skinned and figure that coolglide would be the safest bet.(i have had problems with other lasers before)

where did you have your coolglide experience?

did the company explain why it failed on you? was it because (i assume) you are light skinned?

did you get any post laser marks?

grateful for any feedback

#11

Hey unhappy,

Eerrrm, I think you have me confused with Scorpio on this page. I have never used the coolglide, but I notice he has (with poor results as you said).

So Scorpio, if you are still out there, maybe you can field this one?

Fleabag.

#12

fleabag

oops sorry! hope scorpio scuttles back

Ps. Your experience - excellent notes and pics

[ May 29, 2003, 04:41 PM: Message edited by: unhappy ]

#13

Thanks Fleabag for your long post, much appreciated. I will post back on here with results of how I get on.

Thanks again!

#14

Hi folks,

I’m still out here. Sorry for the length of time taken to reply, been locked away studying for a while. Back on the loose now though.

Hairy Bloke - you’re right about the guarantee from BN, I believe it used to be 5 treatments but they increased it to 6 around the time I started having it done. Regarding %age reduction, I would estimate about 10-15% reduction after 5 sessions, it’s kind of tricky to tell because the regrown hairs are not as thick or as long as they were when I started, but seem to show the same behavior as my back hair, that is, getting thicker over time.

I guess you have already been for a test patch (did it go well?) so you’ll know that the staff are indeed almost exclusively young women (In a way it’s not a bad thing :wink: ). I have had a different practitioner each time and have broadly found consistancy in terms of professionalism, although I did get the impression that I was being rushed out of the door one occasion.

I use 3 tubes of Emla cream to reduce the pain and have had a mixed bag of results, one session was much reduced, the other four have varied from painful to excruciating. I would certainly get some of the Australian tea tree oil cream they sell though - it’s great for cooling things down over the next few days and really helps the skin recover.

Unhappy - I don’t have an explanation yet as it is probably too early to say it has failed, although I am sceptical. I will have my sixth treatment in a couple of weeks when I get back from holiday (must wax before going!), I guess it’ll be time to revisit this question a few months after that.

I do not have any post laser skin marks, unlike the coolglide which produced hyperpigmentation on my back. My skin recovers very well from the lightsheer.

Once again, sorry for the time taken to reply. I’ll keep a close watch in case you want to ask anything further.

#15

scorpio

thanks - shame about the hyperpigmentation

but i’ve dedcided that i’m going to opt for the coolglide at the Boston clinic (they seem to be the only ones with it)

fingers crossed i’ll come out unscathed and with less hair - matching fleabags success would be nice!

will post results either way

#16

unhappy,

Yeah, I had my back done at Boston Clinic with the Coolglide laser. It was far less painful than the lightsheer for me, but then my result was not too good so maybe the power was too low. At the time I was far less informed than now so didn’t really know questions to ask or what to look for.

Hope it goes well for you!