Pock marks and red scarring on cheeks from Blend

Hair Removal Methods Professional Electrolysis
#1

I have been undergoing electrolysis from 3 different technicians for a year. Two technicians used thermalytic and one used blend. Prior to receiving the pockmarks I had received six treatments on facial hair above the beard on cheeks, facial hair on the neck line, eyebrows, and earlobes with no issues or scarring.
2 months ago I had blend electrolysis treatment done above the male beard line on my prominent cheek areas. This was the third session with a 16 year experienced-Licensed Electrolysist. During the treatment I experienced residual stinging pain on my cheek area and blood being wiped from the bleeding as treatment continued. Scabbing ensued on my cheek area with the scabs lasting for over a month.
I’m desiring feedback from electrolysis professional’s and those who have had this electrolysis scarring happen/occur to them. To learn if/how they successfully treated the deep pitted pockmarks with hyper pigmentation from electrolysis.

qwerty Attachments

Initial scabbing one week after treatment.
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Seven weeks after treatment.
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#2

Looks to me like you had hairs that were very close together treated with slightly to much intensity which gave it a bit of a ‘splash damage’ effect on your skin. IF what you’re saying is true that scabbing lasted about a month, then yes it will leave a mark. But don’t be to scared, the skin is remarkable in the way it repairs itself… You’ll probably hardly notice it after it has fully healed!

I’m curious as to what others think!

#3

That is EXTREME overtreatment. NEVER let that person work on you again. Unfortunately they have scarred your face. I shudder to think of the other “work” they’ve turned in that 16 years.

#4

Or not!

The first couple photos look more like a micro-hemorrhage than a post-electrolysis burn. Could be? I’m not sure what I’m looking at, but I would not immediately jump to conclusions. (The last photo does cause me some apprehension. However, I don’t know the time-frame of the healing … so, I can’t comment.)

Yeah, we do lots of “armchair consultations” here on Hairtell, and I’m just being the person saying … “not so fast. Don’t jump to conclusions.” Remember, you are looking at a photograph.

A few weeks ago, Dee Dee posted a photo of her work that looked like intense post-treatment swelling and redness. But, it was only the way the camera pumped-up the color density/gain. The skin was fine, the photo made it look like hell!

I’m not defending anybody, or saying anything … except, perhaps, get more data before saying, “Never let that person work on you again!”

#5

Erm, well, Michael - what would you say about the comment that blood was being wiped away during treatment? I agree that it doesn’t look like a post-electrolysis burn but the hemorrhaging could have been caused by an incompetent electrologist nonetheless. That’s just not acceptable if that’s the case.

sevee, this is just my opinion - I think if you want this to resolve “well” you should think about seeing a dermatologist for treatments to reduce the possibility of permanent indentation/scar. Now is the time to take some measures.

#6

I’m, as usual, speaking to a larger issue than this particular case.

Whenever a client presents anything, the observer (my opinion) should go through a checklist in his/her mind. The reaction of, “Oh my God, this is horrible; never go to this person again,” should be the very last in the series of thoughts. (Not that it’s not appropriate in this particular case, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make. And, I’m not “picking on you” … far from it; I’m super happy for your comments so that I may voice an opinion. And yes, I was waiting for such an opportunity!)

Our questions should be in this order:

  1. WHAT IS the lesion?
    (Photos can deceive, so questioning the patient is in order. I would ask when the injury took place: how long ago it happened? I would also ask the duration of the treatment. Perhaps what the patient did afterward or what was put on the skin. There’s a big difference in, say, a bruise or a burn.)

  2. What remedies can be taken to minimize the immediate difficulty and the long-term outcome?
    (I would not instantly recommend products to slather on the skin, until I was fairly certain of “what the lesion is!” There are instances when aloe would suffice, and other times when actual medication is appropriate. If there’s a serious infection, you need more than simple remedies.)

In this "declared case of the bleeding,” (and I don’t doubt the guy) we do not know the frequency of this occurrence. Was this happening all the time, over-and-over? Did she have to wipe away blood from a missed insertion, or maybe she simply removed a pimple in the area? Did the patient have a conversation with the operator? What did she say?

My very last comment would be condemnation of the operator (not that that’s not necessary at times). However, overall I see this “rush to judgment” WAY too often here on Hairtell … and that may be one good reason why few practitioners are willing to post anything here or showcase their work. (And I WANT to see more photos of all of it … from everybody! The good, the bad, the ugly and the successful.)

BTW the same goes for laser work too. Post-treatment photos do not necessarily indicate bad work and do not therefore warrant denunciation.

Well, I’m going to (attempt) to change all that. Now, I’m going to post all my “horror stories” and how the skin looks immediately after a treatment! So, hold onto your butts! (I might do this clandestinely to “throw you off.”)

Why do I care?

Well, from my perspective, “overtreatment” is not the problem with electrolysis in general; it’s UNDER-treatment! Yeah, a patient that spends hundreds of wasted hours on electrolysis, or spend “decades” doing electrolysis … and gets minimal results. My belief is that FEAR of overtreating the skin causes sub-standard treatment.

Not to put too fine a point on all this, but I have to wonder why I get virtually no clients from Southern California … but MANY clients willing to make the trip “over the pond” to see me!

#7

One of the photos says ‘seven weeks’ post-tx.

I think it’s safe to assume there’s permanent scarring here unfortunately.

I think common sense applies here too: you didn’t have these marks before the tx. Now you do. What happened to cause this?

Give it some time to heal up. I think the pinpoint red marks will fill in a bit.

The big one might too, but not all the way back.

2 of the marks look like icepick scars.

I would switch to a different electrologist if I were you. This is your face, so don’t overthink this - it’s a simple cost-benefit assessment.

#8

We dont have any before pictures. Therefore we cant rule out already inflamed skin from a mole, a ingrown hair, we just simply dont have any context.
Having performed blend on this part of the face myself, I can tell you it sure can sting. And often its helpful to wipe away lye from the follicle after, so just wiping doesnt tell us much.Another thing about this part of the face is the skin is shallower and the depth of the follicle can be unpredictable so one must tread lightly or you will have a bleeder.One just wipes up and continues.It wouldnt necessarily create pock parks as you have and usually doesnt unless the area is already inflamed.

As Michael is fond of saying “What is the thing”

Seana

#9

Just for the sake of constructive feedback, it is not “thermalytic” electrolysis , it is Thermolysis. I think the word “thermalytic” sounds really cool, but that is not the term for what we do. Thank you.

We ALWAYS appreciate pictures, but your pictures made me so dizzy that I had to hold on to the arms of my chair and I kind of felt nauseous, as if someone had spinned me around on a Merry-go-round for about 10 minutes, with the sun shining in my eyes, after drinking a beer and eating baloney pudding. It’s okay, the pictures were still somewhat helpful.

All of Michael’s points were carefully laid out and explained well. I can understand what he was saying and found myself shaking my head in agreement with some of the details, however, my opinion is… and no one will be surprised… because I am always consistent in my belief that this kind of reaction is too rough looking for too long of time (7 weeks)…ouch

We all know this will heal eventually, but this prolonged, angry looking kind of outcome perpetuates what we as electrologists have to constantly defend and “fight” against when it comes to what the media, the doctors and the laser companies report when they try to discourage people from getting electrolysis. Pictures like yours are ammunition for the naysayers. Not helpful for promoting the only gold standard of hair removal on earth.

Most importantly, this kind of prolonged, rough reaction is on your [b]FACE[/b]. This raises the anxiety level because it is so noticeable on a daily basis as you live and work face to face with your family, friends and co-workers. We, as electrologists, don’t want you to suffer and it is not our aim to leave marks on your face. Ideally, skin manifestations should be short-lived - gone within days to a week or two. Some cases are very challenging because some hairs are very tough to budge out of the skin and we get over zealous in our attempt to “kill” the hair. We don’t have an easy job when we fight hair and some electrologists may not be comfortable experts when it comes to disabling tough beard hair on the face.

I don’t know what happened in your case, but your last picture shows improvement. Personally, I know that this kind of reaction does not have to be so rough and it doesn’t have to last so long. You had three electrologists work on you over a year? Were you trying to compare different modalities or level of skill for this kind of hair?