Hey there- I recently had a consultation with medspa and they quoted me $595 for 5 lazer treatments. The unwanted hair on my body is found on my right arm in a patch about 3" x 3", so maybe 50+ hairs.
Anyway my question is this… is electrolysis cheaper then $595 for an area this size? Thanks, any suggestions are welcome.
Oh and if you could recommend a place that does electrolysis in the Philadelphia area, that would be great.
Is the hair coarse? What part of your arms? Is it just one spot with hair and no hair on the other arm in the same place? If so, do you know why?
First, the answer is that electrolysis is probably going to be cheaper.
$120 per treatment on such a small area for 50 hairs is really too expensive in my opinion. Also, you mention anothing about the type of laser being used, which is very important. There is a place in Allentown, Pennsylvania using GentleLASE run by someone who used to be a consumer on these forums. Their site is http://www.gethairless.com/
Either way, for 50 hairs I wouldn’t bother with laser, especially if the hair is not dense and coarse, which it doesn’t seem to be for an area of this size.
You have to understand hair growth cycles. You’ll need multiple treatments with electrolysis and will likely need to come in more often for electrolysis treatments as you need to treat the hair as soon as it comes out. On average, an electrologist removes 5-10 hairs per minute and charges $65 or so per hour. So Your area can be treated for around $20 per treatment. Even if you have to go in more often than with laser, it will likely still be cheaper than $600 overall. And most importantly, it will be effective on finer hair.
Doing the math, electrolysis would be cheaper for such a small amount of hair. A good electrologist should be able to zap away 50 hairs in minutes. Just remember it will take many treatments over time (with a full clearance each time) for 9-12 months until all of the hairs in that spot cycle in and are treated.
I know of a place outside of Philly in Doylestown called the Papillon Center which does electrolysis for $65 an hour. I know people who have had work done there and recommend them but I don’t have any personal experience with them.
Thanks for the responses. Just to clarify, the area on my upper arm consists of course dark hair, and does not exist on the opposite arm. The consultation at the medspa indicated that this area would be treatable by the lazer (not sure what lazer however). I will be doing some additional research and will post about my experience with a electrologist.