I used to live in CT and you’re right there aren’t that many places to go for LHR. If you’re willing to travel, there are places in NYC that will do treatments for much cheaper, about half that price, although they are usually done by technicians and not Drs. Basically, what I did was pay the money to see a doctor for the first few treatments, then ask for what settings he used, and then go to a cheaper place and make sure the tech used settings close to what I had used previously. Although there are other things to consider, like technique, since I have received a few burns that took a few months to go away from pulses that were not pressed firmly on my skin.
How did your gentlase treatment go today? Ive made my decision to not go with the coolglide treatment. After more researching i found a place that gave gentlase treatments for the chest at 375 per treatment and a package at 1500 for 5 treatments. So i guess im gonna do that eventually. Was your treatment today painful more painful then the YAG and what were the settings of used on you?
Lee
I understand what your saying. I think im going to pay by treatment, that way i wont have the pressure of paying all at once. I thought about the idea of a test patch, but since i found a reasonably priced gentlase clinic, im gonna go through with a treatment and skip the test patch becuase this type of laser is the best suited for my skin type.
bmm - do NOT skip the test patch. When you go for your initial consultation (which should be free) ask them to zap you about 6 times in a small square (which should also be free). Not only do you want to see how your skin reacts, but you want to see if you can handle the sensation/pain. The technician really should be doing this anyways - as they should be analysing what setting to use on you for treatment. If they refuse a small testpatch, it’s a little suss. Also - get the patch on an applicable area. I had my test patch on my tricep - and 18J felt fine. Turns out that’s a very non-sensatve bodypart and when treatment time came, I couldn’t even handle 16J on the rest of my arms. I recommend over the pec muscle or close to the collarbone for a good test of what it will feel like - those were my worst areas.
The Coolglide on my neck several years ago was very painful - at least for the first few treatments. As the amount of hair was reduced, it hurt less to get treated.
The GentleLase yesterday was very painful. Like grit the teeth, clench the fists, try to think of my happy place kinda painful. I found listening to an iPod during the treatment to help a bit.
Keep in mind that I have very sensative skin. Don’t assume that you don’t unless you’ve tested it. I’ve played contact sports at a competitive level most of my life - I have a good pain threshold for blunt trauma - but when it comes to laser/waxing/eletrolysis I have a lower threshold and my skin reacts strongly. That’s why I urge you to test your skin. You will probably react much better than I do and not have problems - but you don’t want to get halfway into a treatment and realise you can’t handle the pain. Even if you don’t start treatment immediately, get the test patch now so that you know for the future what you are in for - online anicdotes are great but in the end it depends on how it works on you.
I had my arms and underarms treated in the morning and my chest/abs treated in the afternoon. I started my arms at 18mm with 16J and couldn’t handle it - had her drop it to 14J.
I treated my chest and abs with Emla cream and wrapped myself in plastic wrap an hour before my afternoon treatment. I had my treatment at 16J. The area where the Emla hadn’t covered enough was very painful. The rest was only minor to moderate pain.
The skin on my chest and abs is a mess, even a day later. My arms are doing well, but my torso is covered in red dots and is still tender - I have lots of areas when the skin is “red and raised”, and the skin itself is bumpy like chicken skin.
I am scheduled for the lower body later this week, and am not looking forward to it. I bought a lot more Emla.
Some tips I’ve picked up:
Make sure you are very well hydrated, and well rested.
Make sure your skin is cleaned. Don’t shave immediately before the treatment as your skin will already be agitated before the laser starts. Shave a while in advance.
Don’t have alcohol in your system (taking a swig of booze beforehand to try to numb the pain will apparently do the opposite.)
I usually pop a couple Tylonol beforehand - but watch out for aspirin or advil as they will thin your blood (like alcohol will)
Hope that helps
bmm - you were asking about a comparison of pain between the Coolglide and the GentleLase. It’s very hard for me to give because I had different body areas treated.
My neck was very sensative. Also denser hair than my chest. For the first couple of treatments the tech had to periodically stop so I could apply ice packs. The muscles in my neck would involuntarily clench when I was zapped near my Adam’s Apple (which was by far the most painful area).
But also - the area treated was much smaller. I find that the pain involved escalates during treatment - the first couple dozen shots aren’t too bad - but it gets worse as your skin gets more tender and you wear down.
Keep in mind that a number of people who post on the internet (and a number of women who give “testimonials” on laser clinic sites) only have small regions done - underarms, snail-trail etc … they may have 20 or 30 zaps. You will have a couple hundred.
And for the testimonial givers (which almost always seem to be women - tough for us guys to find info by other guys) who have larger areas (such as full legs) - well, no women will have hair as course or dark as a hairy man’s chest or beard. And the courser, darker the hair, the more it will hurt. Which is why the pain decreases dramatically after a few treatments as you have less hair to treat (at least that’s what I found on my beard)
I’m not trying to scare you off - give it a test and see how you find it. As for the Coolglide - I don’t know how I would react if the pain I experienced from my neck was extended to an area 4 times the size. I think it would be worse that what I experienced yesterday. And yesterday sucked.
Sorry I can’t give a clearer answer - hopefully this gives you some help. But really - there’s nothing stopping you from getting a free consultation at both clinics and getting a small test patch with each. Sure - you’ll have a weird-looking hairless square on your body, but for the investment you’re about to make, it’s worth it. I’ve had test patches done at a number of clinics. If they see you are serious about treatment, they should absolutely be willing to do this - I’ve never had a clinic say no.
Last note - as for doctors vs techs … I personally wouldn’t pay extra for a doctor. I find in most clinics that have a doctor - you don’t end up being treated by them, you get their tech. A tech does this for a living, so they should be fairly experienced and competent (but ask them some questions to make sure they didn’t start yesterday). How many doctors go to med school for laser hair removal? I really don’t think you need to be a full blown dermatologist to set a machine to X joules, then hold a handpiece over some skin and pull a trigger.
Hope that helps
bmm - one more thing. I am actually now looking into the Soprano XL diode laser.
I’m going to try to find more info about it, and go into a clinic that uses it and get a test patch. If I can find a way to reduce the pain of these treatments, I think I might go for it (even though around here it seems hard to find and more expensive).
Don’t want to influece you against GentleLase now - but that’s another reason I urge you to get a test patch. All of my research told me to go with a GentleLase as well (and it could very well give me the most effective treatments) but man did it hurt - don’t know if I want to go through 2 hours of that every 2 months. So now I’m looking into this other option. But your reaction could be totally different from mine - so try it out before you commit to a specific plan.
Monkeyman-
Thank you for all the advice you have given me…serioulsy. I feel as if i have learned alot from your advice which now makes me more educated on this whole process. When the day comes (sooner hopfully then later) i will be asking for a test patch before i sign any checks. Hopfully you will have better luck with the Soprano XL…pain wise that is. From what i know, and im sure you do to, is that the pain during the first treatment will be the most painful. Maybe try and sweating it out for one more treatment before you switch laser types, since it is…supposivly the best suited for you. Try and think of it this way…all those days you have spent thinking about losing that hair…all those times you’ve had to shave only for the hair to grow back a day later…will be over…its just two hours you gotta hang with it… and then your that much closer…use that as motivation and focus to take your mind off the pain during your treatment. But then again, im not in your shoes, so i really do not know what it feels like…but i hope that helps!
Keep me posted with your shedding results from your gentlase treatment! im eager to find out how it ends up going for you…and you future treatments as well.
Once again thank you for all your advice. Im glad there are people in this forum that truely can relate to others problems and are willing to guide them towards there solution
Pain depends a LOT on the type of hair you’re treating. The most DENSE COARSE hair will hurt most.
You have several options when it comes to pain: icing, painkiller, numbing cream, or a combination of the above.