I have been having electrolysis for about 6 months now on my face. By way of galvanic at the start and have recently moved to thermolysis. My skin heavily flakes mainly on my cheeckbones, nose and between my eyebrows and has caused my skin to go a redish color. This redish color on my skin has stayed for a while now, mainly where the skin flaked alot and on some parts of my face that I did not even have electrolysis on.
Can anyone please explain if they have ever heard or seen permanent discoloration of the skin (going red for example) or if anyone has heard of this happening, how long does it last and what is a good cream to bring the skin to its natural color again. Just a reminder that the skin is red even weeks after having electrolysis even after the top layer of skin is fully healed.
Because you say this also happens on areas that were not treated, it is probably not related to the actual treatment. Are you prone to allergies or eczema? Is it wintertime where you are, and do you tend to get drier skin at this time?
Again I agree with the opinion of Christine. The symptoms are more characteristic of seborrheic dermatitis caused by the fungus Pitirosporun Ovale. It occurs in fairly well-defined areas. Are those where there is a greater density of sebaceous glands, ie, seborrheic areas:
Face (midface region).
Scalp.
Center chest.
Auricles.
A few minutes a day of sunbathing are the best therapy.
For my post care treatment I am using a hydrocortisone cream, which was proscribed to me by my dermatolgist as after my 3rd consultation my skin had flaked beyond believe. It is winter where I am at the moment but I do not believe this to be the problem as this redness and flaking has only started to occur after I started electrolysis, so I dont think there is a connection to seborrheic dermatitis.
I am not sure whether to continue my electrolysis now in fear that it could make the problem worst. Have any of you electrolgist seen a case like this and if you could recommend any post care treatments that may help.
Just one more question depilacionelectr, you recommended sun bathing a few minutes a day. Could you please tell me how this method helps and if you have had similiar clients with good results from sunbathing.
Be careful with creams containing hydrocortisone. One side effect is the appearance of stretch marks on the skin. Another side effect is the transformation of fine hair to terminal hair or hair lanugo.
Treatment with this substance should not be prolonged more than a couple of weeks.
I witnessed the consequences of these side effects irreversible.
I understand that some dermatologists recommend the prevention of these skin lesions using creams that contain some form of low concentration acid (no side effects). This prevents the spread of P. Ovale. And let this fungus that naturally protects us when it is in for good measure, developing properly its role in our skin.
It might be more appropriate to receive heat from an infrared lamp. This would avoid, the risk of hyperpigmentation by recent Electrolysis.
Confirmation that Christine and I are both correct, is that hydrocortisone is the specific treatment prescribed by your dermatologist, for seborrheic dermatitis.
One should only use hydrocortisone for itching and burning that would cause the person to scratch at the skin. Once that passes, it should not be used anymore. For most people, this would only be a day or so. If the skin is only tingling or throbbing, but no urge to scratch, hydrocortisone is not needed.
Most people do just fine with Tea Tree Oil overnight, and Aloe Vera, and/or Which Hazel during the day.
Just another question depilacionelectr, when you say that vellus hair can be turned into terminal hair due to the use of hydrocortisone cream and the consequences of these side effects are irreversible, are you saying that this hair that has gone from vellus to terminal cannot be removed ever again even by way of electrolysis. Are you saying that this hair would not respond to electrolysis in the future?
Thanks again for all you responses, I hope this redness will fade over time.
No, not at all.
What is irreversible skin is broken by the effect of cortisone.
Stimulation of the hairs produced by the drugs, not always permanent. It’s like for pregnant women, once the hormonal stimulus stops, the hair is again the same pre-pregnant.
Hair that has been stimulated, can be successfully treated with Electrolysis. Like all the other hairs.
You should change your aftercare. All you need is witch hazel during the day and some tea tree oil at night. That’s it. And avoid anything with chemicals until your skin heals each time, i.e. no facewashes, makeup etc.
My skin does tend to flake alot in my recovery after electrolysis, could you please advise if this is normal for skin to flake? Or if you do have clients whos skin does flake and what they use as I asked my dermatololgist today about if my flaking and redness was linked to seborrheic dermatitis, he said it wasnt and it was a skin reaction to the electrolysis, which makes sense as I have never had symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis or any skin flaking at all until I had electrolysis.
It may or may not be a reaction to electrolysis (I’ve heard of a dry, tight feeling, but I don’t know anyone specifically who had flaking, especially on areas that weren’t even treated). It could be an allergic reaction, or a million other things. My mom got flaky red cheeks one morning and the doctor’s could never figure out what it was. They gave her tons of cortisone-type cream and did dozens of tests and then finally gave up trying to fix it. It was so bizarre. Two years later it suddenly disappeared overnight. Nothing had changed, just one morning it was gone. Skin is just verrrry finicky. It does annoying things.
If it IS a reaction, then it shouldn’t be permanent; it should go away once you completely stop treatment (unless it caused additional scarring or something). You can’t really expect to do thousands of mini-surgeries in the same area without some reaction. For most people, the side-effect is small and lasts hours or days, but for others it’s a little different (for example I get long-lasting hyperpigmentation).
Change your aftercare as earlier posters suggested. Continue treatment if you think it’s bearable. Stop treatment if it’s not bearable and then see if you get better. It’s up to you, since you’re the one who has to live with that face
It could be Winter dryness, that will clear up ehen Spring comes. I had several Winters when this happened to me. The fact that it happens in areas that were not treated, leads me to beleive it is unrelated to your treatment,as electrolysis only affects the immediate area where epilation has occured.
Just a note on this…I was taught that lanugo hair was hair that we see on newborn babies…and while long at birth, will shed soon after birth.
Do you perhaps mean accelerated vellus? Long, possibly with some pigment change, but not yet coarse. That hair that transitions between vellus and terminal?
Nathalie can you upload a photo? not need to appear all over your face. A small piece for us to see the area affected by the mysterious alteration of your skin.
The conclusions to defend your dermatologist, are based on false premises.
1st Premise: A patient has an alteration in the skin.
2nd: This patient has never suffered from this condition.
3rd: The patient has had to Electrolysis.
Conclusion:
The Electrolysis is the cause of this condition.
Inductive thinking is the process in which reasoning from the particular to reach the general.
The problem is that your case is unique. Thus the conclusion of your dermatologist does not have much basis on which to rely.
All observed swans are white in Europe.
Conclusion: All swans are white.
This conclusion was valid until …they found black swans in Australia.
They would have to match a few patients (about hundreds of thousands around the Planet) so that this reasoning was valid. And even then, science could ensure that there is a black swan, by the way … extraordinarily beautiful.
Quote of the Day:
“Life is the art of drawing sufficient conclusions from insufficient premises.” Samuel Butler
What your describing does make sense as it has never been heard before, but in what you said also works on both sides as flaking could occur which you havent heard of before. I have read flaking is also a side effect of electrolysis on this website:
But I guess you’s are the experts and your opinions are most welcome and appreciated at the same time.
I’ll get a photo up in the next couple of days for you.
The information in this page is very useful. Something really amazing to me, given the lack of information that exists in my native language. Thanks for putting the link.
I’ve seen those flakes that are described in the text, but I think that is not the same as you experience. I think that this person refers to what appears when many follicles are treated together in a given area. The scaling occurs in the 10 0 12 days of Electrolysis in the area. And it lasts about 10 days on the face (in the body can take up to 30 days).
The scaling is limited only to the treated areas, NEVER extends to other areas.
It is a result of localized damage within the follicle. Unless there is a secondary infection resulting from the primary lesion (in this case your dermatologist had prescribed an antibiotic).
Electrolysis crusts are so clearly recognized by the electrologist, as the crust produced by the thorns of a rose are to the gardener. If proper hygiene and nails is not involved in the game, the skin will make its paper, and the scab will fall off within days.
