Does Laser Hair Removal Need Multiple Sessions?
Regularly waxing, shaving, or threading your unwanted body and facial hair can cause you to develop rashes, ingrown hairs, and other uncomfortable skin issues. If you’re looking for a better way to remove your unwanted hair, you might benefit from receiving laser hair removal treatments. At Bel Viso Medical Spa in East Greenwich, RI we can use a sophisticated laser system to give you smooth, hair-free skin.
How Many Sessions Are Needed for Laser Hair Removal?
This type of treatment is best done in a series of sessions. Each person is different, so it’s difficult to tell exactly how many sessions will be needed without an initial consultation. Generally, people need between six and eight sessions to remove the hair fully. That’s because our hair goes through different growth phases. The location where you want the hair removed also factors in. Our expert team will assess your specific situation and give you a timeline of what you can expect.
If you’re having hair removed from your face, you can schedule appointments once every four weeks. If you want to remove hair from your body, aim for every month and a half. We will work with you to craft a treatment schedule that works for you and your body and takes your existing appointments into account.
Growth Cycle of Hair
The effectiveness of your laser treatments is impacted by the growth cycle of your hair. Each of your individual hairs grows in a three-stage cycle.
During the anagen stage, your hair will actively grow. During the catagen stage, your hair follicle will begin to shrink. During the telogen stage, your hair will fall out and the cycle will begin again.
Reducing Your Unwanted Hair
Each of your hairs will enter different stages of this growth cycle at different times. Laser treatments fix your unwanted hair by using energy to target the melanin in your hair follicles. This laser energy will reduce your hair growth by destroying or damaging these follicles.
Laser energy is only able to treat the individual hairs that are in the anagen stage of your growth cycle. Receiving multiple treatment sessions over a period of several months will allow you to target a larger number of hairs when they are actively growing. As you continue to receive laser treatments, the thickness and visibility of your unwanted hair will gradually decrease.
It Can Soften Your Skin
Waxing, shaving, and even plucking can leave hair behind, giving you a subtle stubble that appears a few days after your treatment is done. You don’t have to worry about that happening with laser treatments. Lasers get deep into your hair follicle and remove it from the root, so you can experience smooth, silky skin that lasts for the long run after one of these treatments.
How Long Will I Have to Wait to See Results?
Many people see a thinning of their hair right after the treatment, although everyone is different, and the results will depend on how your body reacts to the laser and what kind of hair you have. Since it takes several sessions to eradicate hair in a specific area completely, you should expect that your hair will grow back a little bit. Generally speaking, the new hair is a lot finer and lighter than the removed hair.
Your existing hair should start to shed after the treatment. The best way to get rid of it is to wipe it away with a warm washcloth gently. Resist the urge to scrub too hard because you might irritate the skin.
Is There Any Downtime?
One of the biggest perks of this treatment is that there’s really no downtime and the sessions themselves are virtually pain-free. Most people find this treatment preferable to other options, such as waxing, which tends to be rougher on the skin.
What to Expect During a Session
The targeted area will be treated to several laser pulses that will seek out the hair root and follicle. The lasers kill the follicle, so it can’t produce additional hair. Since hair grows at different times, the treatment must be done in a few different sessions to fully address all of the follicles in any given area. Most people find the treatment to be fairly pain-free.
Protect Your Health
If your unwanted hair is related to a medical issue, you should have an endocrinologist or dermatologist treat this problem before you consider using laser hair removal treatments or other cosmetic methods. Treating your medical issues will decrease your excessive hair growth and improve your general health.
Shave Your Hair
Since this treatment targets actively growing hairs, you cannot completely remove your unwanted hair before your appointment. Accordingly, you should not wax or pluck the hair in your target area for several weeks.
You can shave your unwanted hair during this time, however. In fact, to enable our laser to effectively target your hair follicles, you should shave your treatment area about twenty-four hours before your appointment.
Avoid the Sun
Since our laser will target pigmentation, you do not want to develop a tan or a sunburn before your treatment. To protect your skin, you should avoid exposure to the sun’s harmful ultra-violet rays while you are preparing for your laser treatment. You also should not use tanning beds for several weeks.
Where Can I Get This Treatment Done?
You can get this treatment done virtually anywhere on your body. Many people opt for the face, specifically areas of your eyebrows, upper lip, and nose, or underarms, bikini line, legs, chest, and arms. You can certainly get it done on more than one body part, and many people who have experienced laser hair removal firsthand like to continue treating other areas of their body.
Will I Have a Long Recovery Period After I Receive My Laser Session?
Since we will adapt your laser session to suit individual needs, you will not have a lengthy period of downtime. Instead, you will immediately be able to resume performing your normal duties at home and at work.
To ensure that you achieve good results from your treatment, you should follow all of our aftercare instructions. For example, we may tell you to apply a moisturizer to your skin. Further, if you treated unwanted hairs on your chin or upper lip, you might not be able to wear makeup for about twenty-four hours. You will also need to avoid tweezing or waxing your hair as you complete the rest of your laser sessions.
How Long Does a Session Take?
This may vary depending on the area or areas you wish to have treated. On average, the session will take around 30 minutes to an hour. More time will be needed to treated larger areas or if you plan to have more than one area treated during a session.
Get Smooth, Hairless Skin Today
If you want to have smooth, hairless skin without the constant need to shave, or the pain of having your hair waxed, we can help. Our team works with men and women just like you who want to look their best in an affordable and practical manner. We prioritize your care, treat you like the individual that you are, and make sure that you are handled with kindness and total transparency every step of the way. Our goal is to help you look and feel your very best through personalized consultation and an effective treatment plan.
If you’re ready to enjoy gorgeous, hairless skin today, get in touch with our team. We can explain exactly what laser hair removal entails and see if it’s right for you. Contact us today at Bel Viso Medical Spa in East Greenwich, RI to schedule your consultation.
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