I have fair skin and brown hair, am having my neck treated due to severe irritation when shaving. I am going to a highly recommended certified electrologist. After reading some threads on this forum I feel that their technique is top notch. They are using the Thermolysis? method because blend/galvanic was taking way too long to clear my dense growth. My hairs are extremely coarse and the machine has to be cranked up higher than “most” people in order to get the hair out smoothly. Sometimes a few hairs will come out and it will be a bloody mess as if the hairs were stopping up a well of blood. They said this was not common but also not unheard of. Usually these will scab over so I will have minimal scabbing the next day, gone after 24-48 hours.
It was no surprise that electrolysis irritated my skin, but im wondering if there is more I can be doing about it. I currently take Advil before each session (1 hour a week) and apply PFB Vanish twice daily. I tried tend skin but it dried my skin out to the point of looking like a zombie if used more than every other day.
Even with using Advil and PFB, the area on my neck is raised / swollen, and red for 2-3 days after treatment. I get a few ingrown hairs, lots of red spots and some areas of patchy red irritation that can last 1+1/2 to 2 weeks after treatment. My electrologist says they have never seen irritation last this long before.
It is so bad the first two days after treatment, that I refuse to leave the house except to go to work, due to how embarrassing it looks. Its worse than any shaving razor burn that you could imagine, which is ironic because thats the entire reason I’m having it done, so I don’t get shaving related irritation.
Is there anything else I can do to reduce it? I have seen a dermatologist but they didn’t have any advice other than stop going to the electrologist.
PS. After reading some threads on here, I found that using a moisturizer the next day is a bad idea… (I guess the “next day” for me is about 15-24 hours after treatment) but if I dont then my skin will be so dry it will flake and look even worse(I forgot to use it one time) a red bumpy flaky mess instead of just red bumps. I have got some witch hazel from the drugstore to try and I would like to try some tea tree oil. Would a brand like this be okay: Walgreens: Pharmacy, Health & Wellness, Photo & More for You ?
Is it probably going to be too much on my skin to use the PFB vanish, witch hazle AND tea tree oil? I’m guessing yes. I just cant see dropping the PFB vanish from my regime though, its what really helps me feel like I can actually leave the house to go to work in the morning. Without PFB… I’d call in sick!