I recently (3 weeks ago) had electrolysis on some 60-70 course hairs on my face (excluding upper lip). I thought my treatment was great and I hardly had any swelling on my face 10 minutes after the treatment, 4-5 tiny tiny scabs that fell off in 2-3 days. Even now after 3 weeks, I can see only 6-7 hairs growing back. Is this for real - that the other 50 hairs are never going to grow back?
The only reason I cannot continue with this particular electrologist is that there was significant crackling/sizzling sound during my treatment. I emailed the electrologist regarding this and she said that it was a very damp day that day and the crackling sound was more audible to me because we were working so close to the ear. She did say that she adjusted the intensity a couple of times, but, had to bring the heat back to the original level as the lower setting was not effective. She was using a 1IB probe and microflash.
She was a great electrologist and I would have continued with her had I not had other options available.
Also, I was reading on the forums here that 80% of the hair on the upperlip is in the anagen growth phase. I also read that upper lip hair are the hardest to kill. Why is that?
The hairs that you are seeing now are new hairs, not the ones that were treated. It will take longer for any regrowth to appear.
It’s a good idea to shop around and compare, and you may end up with your original electrologist after all
“Hardest to kill” may refer to the upper lip being more sensitive, or that the hairs are sometimes very fine and harder for the electrologist to treat. Otherwise, they die just like any other hair.
Coarse hair usually needs a larger diameter probe than .001. I am assuming that 1IB means a .001. THAT would be one reason that you heard crackling. Moisture on the skin can also be a reason to hear the sizzle.
I hope that the electrologist provided a consultation that explained that not all of the hair you SEE is all of the hair you HAVE. That your hair grows in cycles that are un-synchronized… etc., etc., etc.
The description that you provided does not really indicate that you had improper treatment. Yes, we want to avoid the noise, however, too small of needle and surface moisture would result in this.
I must confess that I become annoyed when blanket statements are made such as “upper lip hair are the hardest to kill.”
Good skills, good equipment, and good communication with the client will provide permanent removal of all unwanted hair. period
I am a bit confused trying to get my head around the concept of “permanent” hair removal.
Please correct me if my understanding is wrong:
Once electrolysis permanently kills hair, the hair in that particular follicle will never grow back.
Since some hairs can’t be seen at the time of any given treatment, several treatments are needed to permanently get rid of them all?
So…here the $64 question - can you still develop more follicles in which new hairs can grow in the future? in other words, how can you really rid yourself of all hair in a particular part of the body?
I had started a book for consumers, but with the internet such a book is not necessary. The following is a copy and paste from said book. Hope this answers your question:
Hairs develop — about 5 million of them — during the third to fourth month of pregnancy and cover the fetus evenly. Because the fetus’s head is huge and the body tiny, we end up with more hair concentrated on our head (as the body grows, hairs get separated). These fluffy hairs are called lanugo [Latin: downy] hairs and are shed at the time of birth; then quickly replaced. Excessive lanugo hair, seen after delivery, is not a concern; it falls out within a few days. Surprisingly, all of us are born with a predetermined amount of hair that we will have for life. We cannot develop new hair follicles.
…usually only some portion of these potential hairs participate in the growth cycle, and only a fraction of those is visible at a given time. So it is actually possible that some follicles which had never been part of any cycle of hair growth awake some day and contribute to the concert.
This is potentially significant for facial hair growth of woman, because we all have the potential of a full male beard (something that trans-men impressively demonstrate). But luckily a really massive change in the hormonal balance of a woman is required to awake them. Much more massive than our mid life hormonal change.
I think that no forum and Internet will replace a good book.
To get full information in internet, one needs spend sometimes many hours searching for th right answers. But in a book, everything is collected already.
BFG, it’s really difficult when even after having months of treatment you see new hairs popping out. I’ve been there, and had those feelings. Be persistent, have faith in your electrologist, and do not pluck or tweeze.
The short answer: There are a finite number of follicles, present from birth. However, there are two ‘types’ of follicle, one type grows lanugo/vellus hairs and the other type grows terminal hairs. Hormones, genetics, and other factors can cause follicles to be converted into the terminal type, this makes it appear to be a new follicle since the vellus hair that was present before was so tiny as to be unnoticable.
As women age, estrogen levels fall which means higher levels of androgens are available in the body (because estrogen normally blocks/inhibits the effects of androgen). Higher levels of androgens mean higher likelihood of follicles becoming terminal, especially in those who are genetically predisposed.
I agree with Barbara that the treatment was definitely not bad, I was the one who said that I could feel the needle alot, so she had to go with the 1IB probe. I’m kicking myself for not letting her do what she obviously knew more about than me. She was a 3 and a half hour drive away and for me flying is easier ( and actually cheaper because of frequent flyer free tickets ) than driving. So, I have a great hairtell electrologist who agreed to treat me and I will be seeing her over the next weekend.
Barbara - Thanks for clarifying about the statement “upperlip hair is the hardest to kill” - I will soon have a skilled electrologist and know she will do her best. I should have asked " does the upperlip take more time than other parts of the face to be hair-free??"
t4ngent - how’s it going? you are sounding like an electrologist scientist now. Are you considering getting into electrolysis as a profession, you will be great based on what I can tell.
