So I’ve done some extensive reading and researching on this and other forums, and I am finally calling electrologists in my area. I live in Cambridge, MA so there are a lot of electrologists in the area. Most of them are working with the Apilus Senior and standard overhead magnification lamp. I would like to find someone who uses the Apilus Platinum and custom magnification, but more importantly, I want someone who is really results oriented and wants to kill my hair as quickly as I do.
Maybe it’s just the canned line, but everyone says how results vary when I ask for approximate treatment time projections. Dee has said someone seeking consistent treatment with her will usually see clearance in about a year with her. I’ve also read here that you usually should be able to kill the hair on the first try and subsequent hairs aren’t the same ones, but new hair growth on a different cycle. However, several of the people I talk to just talk about weakening the hair, especially the course hairs, and that it takes several treatments for them to go away. I’ve read through comments and reviews for places, and they mostly talk about professional demeanor. Some say they’ve been doing electrolysis for 4-7 years at the place. This is a bit alarming to me (unless they are going from one area to another, which I totally understand and getting hormonal fluctuation touchups). I am trying to ask the right questions, but do you have tips for really separating the good electrologists from the great? Oh that Harvey Grove were still around!
There are many variables to this hair removal business. Hair is mysterious in some ways and very predictable in other ways. Yes, some hairs need to be broken down, but we are not talking about treating the same hair 6 -8 times! At least, that’s not been my experience.
Just a slight correction as to what I said. First, full clearance is achieved faster than one year. That comes in the first appointment or the 6th appointment??? depending on an individuals unique hair problem. What I was saying, in general, most of my average facial clients are cleared, maintained and are finished in about a year if they stay on a good schedule and they don’t sneak a tweezing session in here and there. Severe tweezing or shaving cases may take up to 13?, 14?, 14?, 15?, 16?, 17?, 18? months. Some people are 95% finished in 12 months, but need to make a quick stop in appointment from 1-6 times for the next six months to get a few hairs that pop up here and there, now and then. When the hair pops out, get it.
If someone takes 4-7 years, something is not being done correctly. You will never get a beard removed if you lay on the table for 15-30 minutes a week!
There are many great electrologists where you live. People retire and life goes on. We are all replaceable. Get as many consults as possible. See how it feels and heals. Know as much as you can about PROPER ELECTROLYSIS CARE before you start this and you will be successful. Oh…and put a little trust in your heart. You live in a great state for electrolysis.
If I remember correctly, the Mary Evangelista School of Electrolysis is now an Apilus Academy and teaches on the Platinum, Platinum Pure and SX-500’s. You could get good work at school rates, and maybe even become a student’s first full clearance project in exchange for helping the student get the stereo microscope.
So I called the electrology instistitute (Mary Evangelista’s school) and set up my first appointment! I know I am having student work done, so we’ll see how it goes because the student probably won’t be particularly fast, but at $10/30 min. and $20/hour I can at least start getting the hairs treated. I have about 30-40 hairs on my chest that pop in about 10 at a time on cycles, 10 hairs on my neck that come about 3 at a time, and 10 or less on the sides of my face that come about 4 at a time, so I figure a half hour is all I need. At this rate, I can do a little more, since I plan to go every week or at least every other week if there is not enough hair to work on every week. I’ll start a new thread tracking my experience. I am having my chest done first (the woman said that way they can prove themselves to me and show that they don’t cause scarring before we move to the face).