I have been doing extensive research and I have come to the conclusion that LightSheer is the way to go…That being said…I am trying to determine if my skin color is a detriment or not. I am Puerto Rican and my color is not DARK DARK, but it is not pale either. I look like I have a moderate tan all year round. My hair is very black so that is a plus I know. So is my skin color OK?
I also looked into another Laser Hair place and they use the Cool Glide. Any input on that laser?
From my course of treatments (so far I’ve had three with LightSheer), I know that you should definitely wait until your tan fades and wear sunblock every single day (regardless of the conditions outside) on the part that you get treated . . . Maybe even start the sunblock a couple of months before your first treatment if your tan is really dark right now. That may be extreme, but remember that it’s all about your health.
I know some people are like “That’s impractical. How are you supposed to avoid the sun and remember to wear sunblock every day?”. . . .
I don’t mean to sound brash, but if somebody doesn’t do all they can to get out the sun and prevent their skin from tanning during the course of laser treatments, they are STUPID . . . It is a question of YOUR HEALTH . . . and while many side effects can subside after a few months, some might be permanent and can have some pretty devastating results on a person’s life.
So yeah, especially if your skin is dark (I’m a type IV), just be careful and start out at a setting that is right for your skin . . . And after the treatment, be careful about not irritating your skin . . . Use icepacks to get the swelling to go down before it becomes something worse . . . And tell your doctor about any side effects . . . For me it helps to sit in front of the AC or a fan for a couple hours after the treatment, and only to wash my face with cold water and a gentle cleanser . . . But then again, it’s my FACE . . . Wouldn’t you?
That being said, I know that I am being treated at fairly aggressive fluences for my dark skin . . . The only reason that I haven’t had any side effects is that I have been wearing SPF 35 on my face every day for the last 6 months (since I started my treatment). I also started in the winter when my skin was as its absolute lightest.
This is just my personal experience. Yours may vary.
By the way, I don’t know if I made it clear . . .But I’m a type IV skin person . . . So my skin is kinda dark but not “dark dark” . . . That’s why I replied to your question.
. . . You might be a type IV or even V from your description . . . .
Also, what areas are you having treated?
Chelle,
You’ve made the wrong choice. If you use an 810nm Lightsheer you will end up with a very narrow “therapeutic window” and oscillate between ineffective treatment and epidermal burning.
With your skin type, try a 1064nm laser such as the Coolglide or a superlong pulse diode (Palomar) - though the lack of publications on the latter system (laser companies like to trumpet their success) is a little worrying.
I am interested in getting my entire body in the long run, but in the immediate future I am going to start with my entire face.
</font><blockquote><font size=“1” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>quote:</font><hr /><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>I know that you should definitely wait until your tan fades and wear sunblock every single day (regardless of the conditions outside) on the part that you get treated . . . Maybe even start the sunblock a couple of months before your first treatment if your tan is really dark right now. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>I hope you didn’t misunderstand when I said I LOOK like I have a year round tan. Not that I HAVE a year round tan.
Does anyone have any input regarding the CoolGlide?
'Chelle . . . I misunderstood you a little bit, but I also think I understood you . . .
I’ve got a feeling you got type V skin (I think many hispanics do).
After talking to a couple of people, I think that my skin (aftre using the sunblock and staying out of the sun) is on the mid or even “light” side of type IV. So for me, the LightSheer has worked well so far. No hyper/hypo pigmentation problems . . . . What I thought was scabbing from the last treatment was either very superficial scabbing, or more likely, just burnt up hair.
That being said, Derm1’s comments have gotten my attention and I would like to hear some input on the CoolGlide . . . I haven’t had any side effects that would make me stop with the LightSheer, and my (short term) results have been pretty amazing. I have never had such a smooth face since I was a little kid.
But I don’t know how much higher I can go with the LightSheer . . . My doc is gonna be cautious and increase the fluence little by little (and I’m staying out of the sun, etc.). I haven’t had to have him turn it down yet, and I don’t think I will for at least a few more treatments.
But for type V skin, LightSheer (especially at the higher fluences necessary to get good results and get the fine hairs) may not be the best choice.
There are a few people who have used the CoolGlide that have posted on this forum, and I’m sure there are quite a few more that are just reading and haven’t posted yet (hint, hint).
In the future, I might consider treating some parts of my body, and for that I might consider using the CoolGlide if I can get enough feedback on it (especially on long-term effectiveness and side effects compared to the LightSheer).
Even though I’m not a V or VI, I’m still concerned about my skin. I also know that there are some places around here that can give good deals on CoolGlide treatments (slightly better than the LightSheer treatments that I have been getting), and that can really add up when you start doing large areas like chest and back . . . or whole body. 
Also, my doc used a 30ms pulse width for all treatments so far, not the long 100ms pulse width on the LightSheer . . . Which means he didn’t think my skin was dark enough to warrant using the longer pulse width setting . . .
So I’m glad with my choice so far. . . .
But that damn CoolGlide is really making me think I should at least do some more research on it if I should decide to get the rest of my body done.
The Coolglide is supposed to be a good laser too. My practitioner has the Sciton which is also a 1064 nm long pulse ND:Yag laser. They use it on very dark skin such as African Americans and other lighter types that have to much redness with test spots with the other lasers.
I am a type IV and have been successfully treated with the Lightsheer on my upper body. I do not get laser treatments in the summer once I start tanning. It takes about 3 months for my tan to fade enough for laser treatments. I stay out of the sun for 2 weeks after my last treatment of the season and then use sunscreens for a few weeks in descending SPF #'s. I go from SPF15 to 8 to 6 to 4 going to a lower SPF level every week or so.
If your skin is medium dark as opposed to just tanned you may be able to tolerate laser better than a person with a dark tan. The best way to tell is to have some test spots done with each laser.
With those people that can tolerate it the Lightsheer is said to be more effective and require fewer treatments then a Nd:YAG.
I thought about using the Nd:YAG in the summmer while tan, but I have progressed enough that I don’t think it is necessary at this point.
I am getting Aurora IPL/RF treatments now and I am impressed with the lack of redness and scabbing on darker skin areas on the arms and shoulders. So far so good.
My plan is to have one more Aurora treatment for the season on my back and shoulders and maybe some touch up electrolysis treatments during the summer.
RJC2001
I wish I could go trust the practitioner to tell me yes or no that their machine is not good for my skin…but a sale is a sale.
I was wondering if I could post a pic here with my skin color and someone tell me what “type” I am?
With all the research, this is what I have come up with as far as the “best” ones for certain skin types:
Light skin - LightSheer
Dark Skin - Cool Glide.
Anything in between is a judgement call.
IS THIS A CORRECT ASSUMPTION???
[ May 08, 2003, 10:18 PM: Message edited by: 'Chelle ]
I have 4 questions:
I have very light skin, and I finally saved up some money to get this laser surgery on my chin, but now I am reading about not tanning. I plan to go to the beach every weekend from June 30th to September.
2)Should I just wait until the winter to do this so I won’t have any problems?
3)Does anyone out there have experience doing this while tanning?
4)Do I have time to get a few treatments in before June 30th?
Thank you for sharing.
</font><blockquote><font size=“1” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>quote:</font><hr /><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>Originally posted by can’twait2bfree:
<strong>I have 4 questions:
I have very light skin, and I finally saved up some money to get this laser surgery on my chin, but now I am reading about not tanning. I plan to go to the beach every weekend from June 30th to September.
2)Should I just wait until the winter to do this so I won’t have any problems?
3)Does anyone out there have experience doing this while tanning?
4)Do I have time to get a few treatments in before June 30th?
Thank you for sharing.</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size=“2” face=“Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif”>I’ve been told that someone with dark skin and no tan (i.e. they have stayed out of the sun) will have lesser chance of side effects than someone with lighter skin that has a tan (even if the darker skin person without a tan is “darker” than the light skinned person with a tan).
Going to the beach during the course of laser treatments (especially regularly) is not the greatest idea, no matter how light your skin.
My practitioner told me that he has never had any major side effects except for people that “went to the beach during the course of their treatments.” And some of those picture can be pretty frightening (hyperpigmentation looks much worse than any “unwanted hair” that I’ve ever seen).
I live in sunny southern California, just a few minutes away from the beach, but I have avoided the temptation and will continue to do so until I am COMPLETELY done with treatments. Even when I’m inside I wear a thick layer of SPF 30+ sunscreen on my face to prevent my skin from getting darker from the sunlight coming in my windows and through the big double glass sliding doors in my place.
I can’t make your decision for you, but I know in your position I would either not go to the beach, or wait until later on to get the laser treatments! For me, the risk would not be worth it, because my face is way too important to take that kind of chance. My line of work places a great deal of importance in human interaction and walking around with hypo/hyper pigmentation or scars on my face would totally ruin my career (not to mention self-esteem).
Remember that it’s your FACE that we’re talking about.
I’m actually considering ordering a skin lightening agent (hydroquinone or other kind of formulation) before either my next treatment or the one after that. I actually spent a couple of hours in the sun (with heavy sunblock) because I had to walk around the LA streets a few days ago, and I can tell my skin darkened a SLIGHT bit, and because of that I’m staying out of the sun until my next treatment (for real, no outside time at all for me except when in the car, and you can bet the sunblock is gonna be on in piles!).
Zap
[ May 16, 2003, 01:51 AM: Message edited by: Zap ]