Ready to Start Electrolysis, Need Help

Hair Removal Methods Professional Electrolysis
#1

Hi Everyone,

I’m finally ready to start electrolysis and I’ve read about it but I have some questions. But, I’ll give some background info on myself. I’m a 22 years old black female from Toronto, Ontario and I’ve been dealing with dark chin hair for the last two years and finally ready to do something permanent about it. Based on what I’ve read it seems like electrolysis shouldn’t be a major issue for dark skin, but I’m still apprehensive about it. I have some questions

  1. Is there a specific type of electrolysis that’s better for my skin? Blend? Thermolysis? etc?
  2. Should I ask my electrologist if he/she’s worked on dark skinned/curly haired people?
  3. What can I ask my electrologist to ensure he/she knows what they’re doing?
  4. Is there a specific machine she should be using?
  5. Any recommendations for Toronto electrologists?
  6. Oh, and I tend to wax my chin will that make electrolysis harder/impossible?
  7. And, I have a mix of coarse and fine hair on my chin. I read in another post that fine hair needs a skilled electrologist or is that only for the upper lip and it’s safe to remove fine hair on the chin?

Ultimately I just really don’t want to damage my skin and I would appreciate any further information. Thanks for reading !

#2

If you don’t want to damage your skin, DO NOT WAX HAIR ON YOUR FACE!

#3

Hi James,

Thanks for your response. I know I’m not supposed to wax it, but I ultimately didn’t see any other option that won’t make me feel uncomfortable in public and in general. I’ve only recently been able to figure out a way to pay for a more permanent solution. If you have any time, would it be possible for your to address some of my questions? Thanks.

#4

Hi lala. Although you direct your question to James, I will respond.
We are all volunteers here and it is not always easy to find the time
to respond quickly. We do not always have the same suggestions but here are mine:

YOUR QUESTION:

  1. Is there a specific type of electrolysis that’s better for my skin? Blend? Thermolysis? etc?
    RESPONSE:
    People who produce lots of pigment have a real concern about hair removal. Have you had accelerated pigment activity - resulting in darkened skin - from repeated waxing? Do you develop hyperpigmentation easity? You might or might not experience some hyperpigmentation from electrolysis. Generally, I avoid or minimize hyperpigmentation by using the thickest IBProbes that slide into follicles. I am giving you this much detail so that you can use it as a guide when you look for your electrologists in your country. This is not to say that my way is the only way but with such a huge population of dark skinned people as my clientelle, this is what I have found to work beautifully. In this situation, using the IBprobe, I suggest Thermolysis using very fast timing and high intensity. Blend and Galvanic are also great modalities but force us to work a bit slower. If the modality changes, then my probe choice changes. My greatest concern would be finding an electrologist who has the ability to administer various techniques of Thermolysis and Blend and in that way, make modifications to treatment as you both take the journey together for permanent hair removal.

YOUR QUESTION
2. Should I ask my electrologist if he/she’s worked on dark skinned/curly haired people?
RESPONSE:
A thinking electrologist can treat any situation but there might be a little bit of an exploratory learning curve for a tech. who is not experienced with dark curly hair. Interview as many electrologists as you can and start with sample treatments or minimum sessions.

YOUR QUESTION:
3. What can I ask my electrologist to ensure he/she knows what they’re doing?
RESPONSE:
Read through the informational parts of this website and educate yourself. Then, ask questions that you already know the answers to. Then, if you feel comfortable with the responses to your questions, get a sample/short treatment. During treatment, you do not want to feel consistently tweezed. If you feel like you are being tweezed, ask about it.

YOUR QUESTION:
4. Is there a specific machine she should be using?
RESPONSE:
I have my favorite machines but the question makes me feel very uncomfortable as the operator’s skill - technique - knowledge - is a very big deal and trumps the brand/manufacturer. I say, again, interview as many electrologists as you can and take it from there.

YOUR QUESTION:
5. Any recommendations for Toronto electrologists?
RESPONSE:
Maybe some Canadians can help you out here.

YOUR QUESTION:
6. Oh, and I tend to wax my chin will that make electrolysis harder/impossible?
RESPONSE:
Waxing those thick facial hairs is bad for your skin and I suggest you stop.

YOUR QUESTION:
7. And, I have a mix of coarse and fine hair on my chin. I read in another post that fine hair needs a skilled electrologist or is that only for the upper lip and it’s safe to remove fine hair on the chin?
RESPONSE:
The skilled electrologist usually has the ability to see the follicle openings more easily and this is less challenging with quality lighting and optics. This means that the magnification lamp is not enough. Fine hairs or thick hairs, locations of these hairs is not an issue for the skilled electrologist with good lighting and optics.

Keep us posted.

All the best,

#5

Hi Arlene,

Thanks so much for responding ! Luckily enough, I haven’t incurred any major skin damage from waxing my chin (but, obviously it’s not something I want to do forever). I’ve had random bouts of hyperpigmentation on my chin but that always resolves itself in a week or so and it hasn’t been anything worrisome.

You mentioned that it’s possible to develop hyperpigmentation from electrolysis, in your experience/based on what you know, is this temporary or permanent?

#6

Since you have not experienced hyperpigmentation from waxing, then maybe you will not experience any from electrolysis. From my experience, any hyperpigmentation from electrolysis fades with normal cell turnover.

With dark skinned clients especially, I like to provide cold compresses to the area, following electrolysis, to immediately address inflammation.

#7

lala005:

In relation to your request for electrologist suggestions I went and searched in my transgender forums.I’m in ottawa not Toronto so dont often have call to see the Toronto folks. A really strange thing happened, I’ve got recommendations for every small town in every province in this country, but my results for Toronto: Nada. Zilch. Nothin This is really odd to me because it’s such a huge area population wise, with a huge TG community. You would think one of those folks would have had a good experience and posted about it.
That said, safety wise Toronto has something called the “Body-safe” program.This means that all establishments are inspected by the health department on a regular basis. So safety wise, you SHOULD get a better experience.

There is one electrologist who infrequently posts here, she’s just north of toronto in orangeville. Her site is at:
www.offbroadwaysalon.ca
I cant speak to her expertise never having been treated by her.

My search expanded in more general terms and there does appear to be a large number of electrologists in toronto. What you may have to do is what we generally suggest around here for everyone: try out a large number of electrologists for very short sessions . ( sometimes these come as free consultations) then pick the one you feel most comfortable with their abilities. Dont go by price, it’s really meaningless as sometimes more expensive electrologists are more efficient, but not always.

In answer to your other questions:

  1. Is there a specific type of electrolysis that’s better for my skin? Blend? Thermolysis? etc?

No. It all depends on the skill of the practitioner and how efficient they are at killing hair in their chosen modality.

  1. Should I ask my electrologist if he/she’s worked on dark skinned/curly haired people?
    Mostly irrelavant as Arlene pointed out very well.I’m not sure I can answer any better than she has.

  2. What can I ask my electrologist to ensure he/she knows what they’re doing?
    You could look at their qualifications. Sometimes a CPE designation would mean they have been doing this for quite a while to earn that qualification, but as in all things, this isnt universally true.

  3. Is there a specific machine she should be using?
    No. More advanced computerized epilators give more tools to the toolbox of the electrologist, but it doesnt make them better or worse in any way.

  4. Any recommendations for Toronto electrologists?
    I already covered this.

  5. Oh, and I tend to wax my chin will that make electrolysis harder/impossible?
    No , but if you wax it can make those hairs unavailable for electrolysis for up to 12 weeks. Generally , as a rule of thumb, you should cease all waxing and pplucking before treatment.

  6. And, I have a mix of coarse and fine hair on my chin. I read in another post that fine hair needs a skilled electrologist or is that only for the upper lip and it’s safe to remove fine hair on the chin?

Your chin will be fine, but some electrologists, myself included (I’m a DIY’er and not a pro), will take out the larger hairs first then start with the more fussy job of dealing with the finer hairs. The upper lip is a special case because the depth of the hairs can be quite shallow and removing them can endanger the “perilous zone” an area of flesh very close to the surface that if damaged can affect the texture of the skin quite a bit and it’s appearance.As you probably read in the other thread if it’s the one I’m thinking of, 2-3 of the pros said they wont even attempt to remove these hairs. Chin hairs are usually quite a bit deeper.

I cant speak for Arlene, but what I think she was getting at is some people are more prone to hyperpigmentation than are others. A few weeks ago a girl posted here with a really nasty case under her chin. In such cases it CAN take up to 1 1/2 to 2 years for this issue to resolve itself. But it always resolves itself,. it just takes more time than many folks would like. Again this is in severe cases, and if you arent prone to hyperpigmentation ( it sounds like you arent) then dont let it bother you.

Seana

#8

Hi lala005,

I too reside in Toronto and saw myself in the exact same predicament as yourself a little over two years ago. Now that the hairs have been treated, I literally find myself going in to treat two or three hairs in addition to other areas to fill up the time, which is great. I am also dark skinned, I hope this helps.

Please personal message me, being that I haven’t consulted my electrologist about giving out her information.
But please fellow Torontonians lets help post referrals if we can!

#9

Hey Start2Finish7,

Thanks for the response ! I PM’d you.

#10

Hi Seana,

Thanks so much for responding ! I found this to be really helpful.