Hi! I found this forum while waiting for a return call from my electrolysist.
I’ve recently started, having two one hour+ treatments of blended method on my chin which recovered just fine. She uses witchhazel and then cools things down with lavender gel and this (ultraviolet?) light wand,which is soothing.
I’ve been using aloe vera straight from a plant when I come home, ice, and then some anti-biotic cream and tea tree gel at night.
Because things were going so good, we decided to do two hours yesterday. Again all on the chin (I’m a transwoman doing beard removal). Same aftercare.
Today half my chin is really swollen and stiff. It’s all quite red and inflamed still.
Is this to be expected? Is this because I did two hours? (I’ve been going a week between appointments but did this one four days after my last one)
Should I be worried about infection?
I had to work after my appointment and I can’t look after things properly at work. My work is also physically strenuous, but I never had this problem before.
Also, hate to admit this, but it’s important, I did use a bit of foundation lightly over the area because it was so red before work. Was this like a really really stupid thing to do?
I’m supposed to be reading in front of an audience on Friday night! Please tell me the swelling and redness will go down!
Thanks for any help of support you can give. 
Is this to be expected? Not usually, but because you did 2 hours (in a smaller area) and only 4 days after the last one, it could be expected.
Swelling and redness from too much treatment should not indicate that infection will occur, but it is an after effect that you want to avoid. If your job results in your getting sweaty and/or dirty, then infection “could” occur from that, so taking care of your skin immediately after a treatment is very important.
Most electrologist recommend keeping the area free of cosmetics immediately after a treatment…(but people apply it all the time without problems)…if cosmetics are applied, then it would help if it were fresh product (less than 3 months old).
I’m curious about which “half” of your chin is swollen and stiff…could THAT indicate an infection? (I’m thinking perhaps a few inflamed follicles???)
I hope that you will let us know what your electrologist says…
Thanks Barbara. My electrologist (that’s the word I was looking for the first time!) hasn’t called back yet.
The swelling has subsided a bit and now I have a lot of red spots on that one side. She did accidently nick me a couple of times on that side of my face, which I didn’t feel but she apologized for and immediately put something on (?). And it felt like she did more work on that side. The other side is pretty much what I expected from the first two treatments, so I’m not sure why that one side (the left)…except… last night at work I saw that where I had applied cover-up lightly over it looked worse and I wiped the coverup (it was fresh) off on that side, which may have inflamed it more?
I know I really did a crappy job of looking after myself afterward. I usually am very meticulous about what comes in contact with it and yesterday I was tired and in a rush to get to work and made some bad decisions. And of course I just had to try and sabotage the important reading I am to do on Friday night. I really hope this calms down by then. I’ll let you know what my electrologist says when she calls back.
I’ve been taking ibuprofen and using aloe and then tea tree gel to calm it down and I called in sick because I just don’t want this to get worse. This way I can look after it and not stress it further. sigh.
Thank you for replying so soon Barbara.
Don’t forget to avoid anything with chemicals until it heals, i.e. no lotions etc.
Thanks!
My electrologist felt terrible about it because she was thinking it was a lot for me at once, so she helped me soothe it today and it’s starting to look a lot better. She thinks it’s not infected, just very irritated, so she’s given me a clay mask and some witchhazel for using at home tonight.
The good thing is because of this we found this site! 
James and I do even longer sessions on our clients - two hours isn’t the problem if many things are done correctly. I never work on the same area sooner than seven days after the first treatment. It’s hard to know what was done. Probe size? equipment used? energy levels? Take good care of it. Let it heal thoroughly.
Somehow, I suspect that James will chime in on this. I’ll give my personal experience.
I have experienced the redness and swelling you are describing, and most likely it is normal. If she did 2 hours on the chin alone, and the hair there is dense, it is not surprising it is so red and swollen. After the first 6 full clearances or so of my chin, and it ended up huge and red (I looked like Jay Leno on chin steroids.) It took me 5 days or so for mine to get back to normal, but hopefully you will get there faster.
Don’t apply makeup to it unless you absolutely have to (nothing can hide the swelling anyway.) Proper aftercare with tea tree oil and aloe vera gel will also help speed healing.
One word of caution: Have you had your upper and lower lips cleared yet. If your chin really swells up, your lips may also swell and make you look like a duck and it is impossible to hide. I learned this the hard way!
Hi Kez:
It is possible to get swelling after sessions like that where a lot of work was done in one area, especially when one is just starting out as you are and the hair hasn’t been treated before.
It might be best to spread the work around the entire face, rather than do an intense clearing in the one area as you did when the swelling occured. Usually ice will help bring the swelling down quite a bit though.
I initially had laser done and then went 2 hours per week in a single session, before switching to 2 hours every second week.
Whatever you do avoid looking like a duck as Vickie mentioned.
I had to laugh at that one.
Alicia
The problem is not the length of treatment, but overtreatment…i.e. treating too many follicles that are close together and retreating an area that hasn’t healed yet.
Thanks everyone!
The swelling did go down considerably with a LOT of TLC over the 48 hours after treatment and I was able to read without feeling too self conscious about my face. (just self conscious about everything else.)
There is still a bit of tenderness and pitting but overall I’m relieved it seems to be settling down and healing up okay.
Lesson learned. Not too much too soon in one area.
And I will be careful when we do the upper lip (I’m so sensitive there anyway I don’t want her to do it all at once). I’m not sure I can rock the duck look, lol!
