I need advice on whether I should try Vaniqa

[mary1]

I have been more desperate lately than ever because of my facial hair. I am 47 years old and as I am getting closer to menopause it is getting simply uncontrollable. I tweeze every day for more than an hour sometimes and there still remains hair that I have to shave. My chin is never smooth and my skin is ruined: bumpy, uneven, irritated and sore.
Laser isn't available in my area and even if it were, I can't afford it.
Vaniqa isn't available in our pharmacies either ( I live in eastern Europe) but after doing a lot of research, I've found an online pharmacy (goldpharma) and I thought I could try to purchase it from them even though it's very pricey. I'll try to save some money and order it because I can not bear this any more. It has become a nightmare, I must do something to slow down this hair. MY eyes, my skin and now even my right hand are ruined. I strained my hand so much with plucking that a tendon got inflamed. Please, help!

[joyblack]

I have been more desperate lately than ever because of my facial hair. I am 47 years old and as I am getting closer to menopause it is getting simply uncontrollable. I tweeze every day for more than an hour sometimes and there still remains hair that I have to shave. My chin is never smooth and my skin is ruined: bumpy, uneven, irritated and sore.
Laser isn't available in my area and even if it were, I can't afford it.
Vaniqa isn't available in our pharmacies either ( I live in eastern Europe) but after doing a lot of research, I've found an online pharmacy (goldpharma) and I thought I could try to purchase it from them even though it's very pricey. I'll try to save some money and order it because I can not bear this any more. It has become a nightmare, I must do something to slow down this hair. MY eyes, my skin and now even my right hand are ruined. I strained my hand so much with plucking that a tendon got inflamed. Please, help!

Vaniqa can help some women, but I doubt whether it's the answer to all your problems.

Vaniqa slows down moustache and beard growth -- but it doesn't claim to stop it.

Have you tried a good-quality men's-type electric razor? That gets the beard growth under control quickly and easily.

You say your skin is bumpy, irritated and sore. The men's-type electric razors from Philips (often referred to in Europe as "Philishave" are as non-irritant a way of shaving as exists.

Vaniqa is good for women who have to shave more than once a day -- it cuts down the need to shave quite so often so may help them go all day without shaving more than once.

For myself, though I had to shave my moustache from the time I was 13 and every day from the time I was 15, it wasn't until I was about 40 that my beard growth really came in. So yes, for some women menopause does bring a considerable increase in facial hair. However, shaving takes less time in the morning than brushing my teeth does and even though I've got a very sensitive skin my electric razor doesn't irritate it.

[mary1]

Thank you Joy for your reply. I have read many of your posts and I know that the man-type electric razor from Philips is the solution that suits you best and that you recommend. I have never used this kind of razor. I have a Braun silk epil epilator that also has a shaving head but this one doesn't give me a clean shave. I can still see the roots of the hairs in the follicles. The bumpy look of my skin is due in fact to the hairs which haven't emerged,yet from the follicles. They look like goose bumps even after I have freshly shaved. This is what annoys me most, I can never get a close enough shave. I put make up on but it's still obvious, although nobody has ever commented anything.

The thing that I admire you most for is that you can be so open about this problem, in your family at least. The only place where I can talk about these issues is this board, neither my husband, nor my teenage-daughter know about them. My husband might have noticed something, but he has never made any comments.
Unfortunately I can't change my attitude. As a result, on one hand I am stressed because of the fact that I have a beard I have to deal with, on the other hand because I try to hide it from everybody.
I don't think I would be able to use an electric razor every morning because of the buzz which would make it obvious that I'm shaving. I need a more silent way of dealing with my facial hair.

[joyblack]

Thank you Joy for your reply. I have read many of your posts and I know that the man-type electric razor from Philips is the solution that suits you best and that you recommend.

I've tried the others, but this is the type that suits me best. I do recognise that my moustache and beard growth is heavier than most women and into the range typical of males, but I think that in terms of quietness, closeness of shave and practical usefulness it's better than any other types I've tried. I realise that for women with softer growth mens-type razors aren't the most suitable.

I have never used this kind of razor. I have a Braun silk epil epilator that also has a shaving head but this one doesn't give me a clean shave. I can still see the roots of the hairs in the follicles. The bumpy look of my skin is due in fact to the hairs which haven't emerged,yet from the follicles. They look like goose bumps even after I have freshly shaved. This is what annoys me most, I can never get a close enough shave. I put make up on but it's still obvious, although nobody has ever commented anything.

The way that the Philips rotary-head mens razors use to cut the hair under gentle traction means that they cut the hair at a level which is normally under the surface of the skin.

The thing that I admire you most for is that you can be so open about this problem, in your family at least. The only place where I can talk about these issues is this board, neither my husband, nor my teenage-daughter know about them. My husband might have noticed something, but he has never made any comments.
Unfortunately I can't change my attitude. As a result, on one hand I am stressed because of the fact that I have a beard I have to deal with, on the other hand because I try to hide it from everybody.

I freely admit that the reason I can be confident nowadays is largely because of my husband and family. Though I was absolutely mortified and embarrassed beyond words at the time, I'm so glad now that my DH knew from the day he first saw me that I had moustache growth like a guy and that I was flat-chested. If I'd known that I was going to meet him that evening I would most certainly have shaved before going out and would most certainly have worn padding to make it look as if I had a reasonably normal figure. But it worked out in a way that I would never have imagined -- he couldn't help but notice that I was flat-chested, but was very glad when he saw the coarse black moustache stubble, because he reckoned it was obvious I must have been shaving it for years and so must be much older than my flat chest suggested. If it hadn't been for my moustache he wouldn't have bothered investigating how old I really was. It's never been a negative thing with him and that's given me tremendous encouragement and confidence. Although I'm always clean-shaven when I go outside the house when we're at home, I think he quietly enjoys the fact that he has a wife who's a little different. On vacation at our cabin in the backwoods, he usually encourages me to let my moustache and beard grow in. It's usually a passionate three weeks in summer and another two in fall. And by the end of three weeks I've usually got a beard that most people would consider quite presentable on a male. Our kids, as you're probably aware, are totally accepting. And it's that family acceptance that has made me so much stronger.

However, I think it's also worth noting that the male family friends who occasionally overnight with us and who we decided to tell about the fact that I shave (to make life easier for me, so I wouldn't have to be hiding away from them until I'd shaved) have all been extremely nice and accepting about it. Interested. Curious. But not in any nasty way. Yes, they've seen me with stubble. I've even shaved in their presence on occasion. But it hasn't spoiled our relationship. Just the opposite in fact.

I don't think I would be able to use an electric razor every morning because of the buzz which would make it obvious that I'm shaving. I need a more silent way of dealing with my facial hair.

Whilst the Philips men's razors are, I think, the quietest on the market by a long way, I take your point. I think it's such a pity that you can't share this with your husband and your daughter. It really is my DH and family who have given me the measure of confidence I have.

[lindseylovesnyc]

joyblack, I've seen you post a few times that you use a Philips Norelco shaver. Can you tell me what model you use? I'm thinking about getting one, but there are so many different models that I'm not sure which one to get!

[joyblack]

joyblack, I've seen you post a few times that you use a Philips Norelco shaver. Can you tell me what model you use? I'm thinking about getting one, but there are so many different models that I'm not sure which one to get!

You're right about the number of different models, and when I tell you my current one is a 6894 that won't help you much, because model numbers change very frequently and some of their model numbers are exclusive to certain stores. Philips Norelco are actually a Dutch company and they're in the process of harmonizing their range worldwide under the name Philips. The more expensive models are still made in Holland, the cheaper ones in China.

Nowadays I tend to by at or very near the top of their range -- either the top or the next-to-top model. I do find it extremely useful to have an indication of the actual number of minutes of shaving time left rather than just LED indicators.

As far as I can make out the differences as the price goes up are

1. Cheapest ones are battery only (from about $15)
2. Next level up are electric (corded) only
3. Above that come cheap rechargeable ones with older-style cutting heads -- when the batteries go flat the razor can't be used until recharged
4. Next level up can be used via the cord even when the batteries are flat
5. Above that, as the price increases you can expect to get
i) More recent designs of cutter head
ii) More recent designs of rechargeable battery
iii) Better indication of what's happening -- more
informative displays (much more useful than you might think)
iv) More expensive designs of storage case -- though
I usually carry my current razor, when I put it in my
purse, in the pouch that came with the previous
model because the pouch is much nicer and more discreet.

By the time you get to the top of the range the price is into several hundred $$.

Hope this helps some in cutting your way through the jungle of current models. I've had my current one for about ten years, I think.

[MustangGurl]

Mary,

I have been using Vaniqa for several years now. I use it on my chin as thats where i have the crazy hair growth. I still have crazy hair growth BUT its slowed it down. How do I know? Hubby and I went out of town for a week vacation. I forgot to bring my tube of vaniqa. My chin hair went CRAZY. It was growing much faster then it usually does with my twice daily vaniqa treatment. So while it wont make it go away completley and you are still going to have to pluck it will be less than if you werent using the cream. Btw they say it takes a while for it to actually kick in and for you to see a difference. Im not sure when i noticed a change or how much of a change as ive been on this for a long time. But i can tell you that if i dont use it i do see a change and its a negative one.


Ps. go to the vaniqa site for a rebate. $25 off one tube $60 off two. You can either mail in the rebate form to them ( with your pharm receipt) or redeem at the pharmacy though i dont know if the latter will work if you are doing mail order.

[mary1]

Thank you Mustang Gurl. If Vaniqa worked at least to slow down my hair, I would be satisfied. I know that it doesn't get rid of it completely but if I had to spend less time with maintenance that would be a great result for me. The problem is that it isn't available in the pharmacies from our country. I've found an online pharmacy that has it, but I haven't ordered, yet. On one hand I am cautious, on the other hand I have to save some money because it isn't cheap at all.

[Frannie69]

I used Vaniqa when it first came out. I thought it stunk so I quit using it. I heard they changed it so it wouldn't smell as bad. I'm in the same boat with the facial hair.

[MustangGurl]

Thank you Mustang Gurl. If Vaniqa worked at least to slow down my hair, I would be satisfied. I know that it doesn't get rid of it completely but if I had to spend less time with maintenance that would be a great result for me. The problem is that it isn't available in the pharmacies from our country. I've found an online pharmacy that has it, but I haven't ordered, yet. On one hand I am cautious, on the other hand I have to save some money because it isn't cheap at all.

Maybe see if you can use the rebate from the manufacturer of vaniqa at the online pharmacy? You can save between 30 and 60 dollars. Also keep in mind you wont see results right away, it takes a while to start working.