growing/resting phase (hair) question - anyone know???

RunnerDuck · 05-31-2004, 01:44 AM

When I had electrolosis done on my chin eons ago, I was told that it only works on hair that is in the active growing phase. Fair enough... but I swear, I recall the lady telling me as each hair was zapped and yanked "Oh, it has a black root bulb, it's growing, this one's not coming back" or "Oh, no root bulb, this one will have to be retreated..."

So I took this to mean that hair can be present, but not active growing.

Then I got smart, found out I had PCOS, started getting laser... and I asked if laser only works on hair that is active growing, and was told that if hair is present, it is active growing.

Hmmmm.

So. I am about to embark on laser on my LEGS. Whoopee!!! Found a place that does it for a very reasonable price - 5 sessions, whole legs, $1150. Granted, that's a big price tag for something as simple as looking like a normal woman but... having nasty man legs has been the bane of my existance for so long... and DH said for my Christmas gift I could spend $1000 on laser... (He got a laptop...)

So here's the problem. Post-partum, you lose hair like mad. All that hair that grew and grew while pregnant... stops growing and starts falling out. Apparently, this applies to body hair as well as head hair... either that, or pregnancy has cured me of my PCOS... and that's a nice dilusion, but I'm not gonna fall for it...

So right now, my leg hair is growing really slow. I can go three days between shaves... this is UNHEARD of. It's the first summer since I was 14 or so that I don't feel like a total freak because of my hairy legs.

The hair is present, but it is slow growing.

So I am wondering... if it is growing so slow... does that mean it is not in the active phase, and I shouldn't waste the money on laser at this point?

Or, since the hair, slow growing though it is, is still present, does that mean it is active, and laser will work?

I had laser on my chin while pregnant and I think it was the most effective laser treatment ever, since my hair was so very active. I am wondering if the reverse will be true, post partum.

jennlen · 05-31-2004, 05:16 PM

Hmmm...good question...I'd ask the aesthetician her advice (or maybe your gyn?). I really don't see why it would matter....women who don't have problems with being hairier than others go in to have the procedure done to avoid shaving so I can't see why it would matter? If anything I think maybe it'd be MORE effective now since there isn't as much hair as there would be. But, I'd hate to think you'd be losing out on $1150 because of timing.

RunnerDuck · 05-31-2004, 06:12 PM

Problem is, I can't see them telling me "Oh, you should wait" or "Oh, don't bother" when it means an extra grand in their pocket... I need an unbiased opinion here.

Julieben · 06-01-2004, 01:14 AM

Okay, so I worked for an m.d. for a year and a half who dabbled in aesthetics, he had an office dedicated just to that in a more populated area than his main offices and I worked in the aesthetics office whenever the R.N. wasn't able to be there. I was trained to do the hair laser and consultations to explain them, so here goes:

Most (not all) lasers focus the energy (and different people can tolerate different levels...I could handle a "29" on our machine)on pigmentation, so unless you have dark hair/complexion, this is a COMPLETE waste of money. Make sure you are consulting with whomever is actually doing the removal so that they can see your worst areas, but plan on shaving before coming in, as you can imagine any long hairs above the surface would snap and pop and possibly cause your skin to burn. Regardless of what you are feeling your hairs are doing, there will always be some in active phase...this is why they recommend 5 or 6 sessions because that gets MOST of the hair growth.....however even if your hair was growing like it was pre pregnancy and you had all sessions completed, new hair shafts can grow later down the road so it is a half truth to say permanent hair removal but it is permanent hair reduction/slowing. I only did my armpits once (without topical anesthetic-ouch!) and it was 3 months before I even grew a few stragglers, so space out your treatments if you can, it is more effective. As far as electrolysis goes, it is just as effective, but slower and more uncomfortable (I've performed it) and it required a very thin cautery line to be poked into the pore to zap the hair so you can see how tedious that would be. I'm curious about what type of laser is being used on you because there are a few new ones out but few docs have them yet....well I don't know if I helped at all, but I would say go ahead and start treating it but go slowly until (if and when) you get more agressive growth) Feel free to ask me any questions and maybe I'll have the answers.

RunnerDuck · 06-01-2004, 04:41 PM

I'm confused... it's a waste if you don't have dark hair/complexion? I thought the laser worked best on dark hair and fair skin? And I thought that, to an extent, all shades of hair except white will respond somewhat to laser - of course, the darker the hair, the better the results.

I can't remember what laser they use at this new place... but I am having serious second thoughts about it and think I might just get my chin done and see how that goes, before forking over the money for my legs.

I know it's a laser I haven't used before and she said it's new and is the least painful but most effective one - but um, of course she'll say that.

I have had alexandrite and lightsheer on my chin in the past - three sessions of each. I think the alexandrite works better, and I would love to have that on my legs, since I think it is so effective, but the place that does alexandrite here just charges soooo much for legs...

I really do think the laser has reduced my chin hair. It's definately not gone, but now I just shave every few days and it looks/feels good. I used to have so much stubble, and I was a plucker, so I was always red, rashy, broken out looking... ugh. It was awful. Now, even with a few days growth, it doesn't look too bad.

I didn't use numbing gel with I had my chin done. Call me sick, but I enjoy the pain... I feel like I'm getting back at my hair follicles for betraying me so.

What do you mean by new hair shafts can form? Do you mean the same follicle with form a new shaft, or will a new follicle form in your skin?

I'll post again tomorrow, when I find out the name of the laser...

Julieben · 06-02-2004, 03:57 AM

Yeah, you can develop new follicles and shafts, it is not great but they occur less than what you've already dealt with but it does happen (well at least from what the R.N. who trained me said, so I guess my word is only as good as her training lol!) So anywho! Generally speaking the light to medium hairs have a far less result than say dark brown or black hairs and in those who have darker complexions you'll have more of a chance of getting stronger results cause you have to remember the laser is attaching its heat to dark pigment UNDER skin so it has to be pretty dark to "find" its way there (like a heat seeking missile lol) people with less fair skin also tolerate treatment better (now all of this is "clinically" speaking from a general study) because skin is supposedly less sensitive to pain and to light burns. So it of course varies person to person, I can always remember lots of old ladies saying red heads and blondes have more pain tolerance issues, so part of it may be old maid stories! well anyway, good luck just the same