Hello all,
I was wondering what are the advantages/ disadvantages of the different types of electrolysis (galvanic, thermolysis, blend) and what is the best option for someone wanting to remove thick hair on the face and chest area?
Much more information on this subject is availalbe in the past posts here in the electrolysis section, and on www.HairTell.com and Transgender Map – by Andrea James
The sound bite version is galvanic is slowest, but is the easiest form of electrolysis to find good treatment in. Blend is next up with being a little faster, but a little harder to find good treatment in, and lastly, Thermolysis is the fastest (and what I would recommend for chest work at the very least) but it is also the hardest to find someone doing good work, let alone good work fast.
Please read more past posts to fill in that reasons why these things are true.
In the end all electrolysis is permanent hair removal when performed well.
I have read than blend is often times more effective than thermolysis because of the lye that is created, is there any truth to this?
Does anyone know the risk factors for scarring in each type. I have olive colored skin (indian).
also the level of pain associated with each. Is one less painfull than the other?
Galvanic and Blend both use creation of lye to effect permanent hair removal. This is why it is easier to find someone doing good work in these types, as there is a part of the treatment that continues working even after the treatment probe has been removed. It would be wrong however to say that they are MORE EFFECTIVE, as the effectiveness of any type of electrolysis is based on the skill of the person performing the work, and the equipment being used. Well performed Thermolysis will work just as well as Blend and Galvanic, and if the skill levels are all equal, only post treatment care will make any difference to how the skin looks when one is through.
Depending on your skin, you could have temporary scabbing and or discoloration. These will go away shortly, leaving nothing but even colored carefree and hairfree skin.
Treatment sensation is a very relative thing, and there are so many variables, that it is not possible to tell you how YOU will feel during treatment. We can offer that if you drink 2 - 4 liters of water a day (like you should every day) for 3 days prior to your appointment, you will feel more comfortable in treatment. We can also say that if you avoid caffeine for 3 days prior to treatment, you will feel better during your treatment as well.
For most hair, thermolysis (and especially faster types like microflash and picoflash) are usually best in terms of speed. A good electrologist can easily remove 5-10 hairs per minute with it. And it works on most type of hair in good hands. So you should concentrate on finding someone good using it. Not sure about other cities, but in Los Angeles, most electrologists are now using the new computerized epilators (like Apilus) which offer both thermolysis (including microflash) and blend.
I’ve personally had most of my hair treated with microflash type of thermolysis. There were a few deeper hairs that needed blend, so that may be a possibility for your deeper hairs too. Blend is slower, i.e. 2-3 hairs per minute.
Galvanic is slowest as it removes only 1 hair per minute or so. I personally wouldn’t use it for anything other than VERY small amount of hair.
In terms of side effects, they can usually be completely avoided with proper aftercare and a skilled electrologists. Scarring is definitely only an issue with someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. On darker skin, pigmentation can be an issue if your skin is very sensitive. If your skin is that sensitive even with a good electrologist using a good machine, you can still minimize it with proper aftercare; and it goes away after a while, it’s not permanent.
Yes to James and lagirl’s posts.
I want to emphasize that there are so many differences in all the electrologist’s techniques - that you might receive treatments that appear the same in description, but that your skin will react differently to.