Almost anyone who has undesirable hair is a candidate for laser hair removal. Typically, however, grey, white, blonde and red hairs are difficult to treat. Certain conditions such as Lupus, uncontrolled diabetes or immunosuppressive diseases may prohibit you from receiving this treatment. There are a variety of medications, such as anticoagulants and Accutaine that are also contraindications. A full medical history will be taken to ensure this is a safe treatment for you. If you are pregnant or nursing you are not a candidate for laser hair removal. It is also important that you avoid sun exposure anywhere from 1-4 weeks prior to your treatment, depending on the type of laser being used.

To eliminate hair, the laser emits gentle pulses of energy that pass through the skin to the hair follicle. This energy is then absorbed into the hair follicle to destroy it so that hair can never grow there again. After your first treatment the first portion of hair we’ve disabled will be pushed out of the follicle. This can take 4-7 days and during that time it may appear as if the hair is growing. Only hair that is in the anagen (active) growth stage will be destroyed. During your next stage of active growth we will repeat the treatment. The time interval required between treatments will depend upon the growth cycle of the area being treated. Each time you come in you will see less hair growth.

You will need to avoid sun exposure, tanning beds and sunless tanning lotions anywhere from a few days to 4 weeks prior to your treatment, depending on the type of laser being used. Any hair in the treatment area will need to have been shaved within 24 hours prior to your appointment. If you do not shave, the laser energy will target the external hair rather than the hair follicle and reduce the effectiveness of your treatment. Any makeup, lotion or creams must be cleaned from the treated area to avoid burning. If you have a history of Herpes or fever blister outbreaks you will need to be pretreated two days prior to your hair removal. Finally, you may want to take two or three plain Tylenol or Advil two hours before coming in for your appointment.

Most people feel this treatment causes only minimal pain. Clients often say it feels similar to the snap of a rubber band. Depending on the treatment best suited for you, a cooling device may be utilized at the same time. This will minimize the discomfort of certain treatments. You will be asked to wear protective goggles during your treatment. Expect your treatment to last anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour depending on the size of the area being treated. Every effort will be made to ensure that you are as comfortable as possible during this experience.

Typically clients will see results in 4-6 treatments, though this number will vary based upon skin tone, hair color and several other factors. It is also very important that the client come in at the scheduled treatment intervals. Your treatments must coincide with your next phase of active hair growth. If you do not return at the appropriate time the treatment will not be effective.

Within several minutes after the treatment your skin will become slightly red. You may experience a sensation similar to mild sunburn. This reaction will subside within a few minutes to a few hours. You can apply cold packs or aloe vera gel to the treated site to ease any discomfort. Your skin may also be temperature sensitive so a hot bath or hot tub/Jacuzzi should be avoided until any redness resolves. You should also avoid shaving or waxing the area until any post treatment symptoms have disappeared. It is VERY important that you avoid direct sun exposure (natural or artificial) to the treated area for two weeks after your treatment. If sun cannot be avoided be sure to use a broad spectrum high factor sunscreen. On a rare occasion blistering or scaling may occur. If this were to happen you should avoid picking or scratching at the site and contact our staff for treatment recommendations.

The lasers we use are FDA approved for "permanent hair reduction". The hair follicle that is in the active growth stage during your treatment will have the blood supply that feeds it permanently destroyed and hair will not grow back in that follicle. That is why it is so important that you get your treatments done in the recommended time frame to reach as many follicles as possible during the active growing stage.

However, not all hair follicles in our body are active and as we get older, inactive hair follicles may become active. For example many men will have a hair-free back during their youth. As they age, however, they may develop hair in this area. Over time the amount of hair may increase. If they were to seek treatment in their forties for this there is no guarantee that additional hair follicles will not become active as they age. Women also tend to develop more facial hair as they age due to hormonal changes. We realize this is a fact of life and thus after your initial hair removal regimen is completed you may come back at anytime for touch up treatments to the treated site at a discounted maintenance fee. Our goal is to keep you hair-free for life!