I really hate shaving my face. I can't get a clean shave with an electric razor. I can get a clean shave with a blade, but not without a bunch of nicks and cuts. I've tried a couple of depilatories that are supposedly meant for facial hair, but they didn't do anything for me. I was wondering if anyone has tried waxing their facial hair? I would imagine that that the results would last for a few weeks. But, I'm hesitant about having a bright red face for more then a few days. Any thoughts?
Thanks.

You might be an ideal candidate for laser. A long-term reduction (not permanent removal) would make it much easier to cut through with a blade. Laser made it much easier for me to shave my very thick, dense ethnic hair and that alone justified the cost even if it did not result in permanence. It also really helped with PFB bumps, which you may also suffer from.

I am guessing waxing would be difficult or impossible, given the sheer density and how deeply rooted beard hair is. I would imagine you won't be able to rip it off, or if you did you will take some skin with it.

You could try plucking it out with tweezers. I did it for years, but it has its own share of problems, not least of which it takes hours and hours and hours and really hurts after a while. Definitely don't wax or tweeze if you are considering laser or electrolysis!

Thanks for your responce. Originally, I was considering Laser, but I've read a number of horror stories of treatments gone wrong. I'm sure that the number of success stories outways the horror stories. But, I don't know what the success rate is?

Just remember, if you want to have your hair removal on the face come to an end, electrolysis will be the place you find the end of the road.

If you have dark coarse hair, laser can be exactly what you need. There are people who don't know what they're doing in every profession. Do your research (plenty of info here - start with FAQs below) and find the right experienced clinic with a good machine, and you'll get the result you deside without any side effects. I've had many areas done with both laser and electrolysis and all permanent and successful.

Laser is permanent, when done properly. It doesn't kill every single hair because it mostly only kills coarse hair. For finer hair, you need electrolysis. In your case, you probably just want a reduction, so laser will do the job just fine. It will make it easier to shave and get rid of most of the shadow within a few (4-5) treatments or so. If that interests you, read the FAQs below to get started on a search for the best clinic in your area. The most important thing to look for with facial treatments on men is to find someone who has experience on this particular area and overlaps well to avoid patchy results.

Vickie, the settigs you list on Coolglide are very low. That's probably why you're only getting temporary results.

Don't let some horror stories scare you, just let them make you more aware. I was scared when I first started laser, but after 6 sessions I'm much happier. Lasers great for a permanent reduction, look for a place that has experience in treating male facial hair, as this is one of the toughest areas to treat.

Regards,
Benji

lagirl, the last treatment I had was 35J. To be honest, I could barely tolerate it at that level, with a lidocaine gel applied beforehand. It was so painful I almost had to have her stop. And I have had thermolysis (cranked up high) on my upper lip under the nose and the laser was still worse in most spots. During the last treatment the hair were popping out like crazy. Less than 2 weeks later I have lost 80%+ of the dark anagen hairs, really an amazing result. The laser seems to work better and better each time. There is just something that doesn't seem to stick, has me very confused. I was hoping to use the laser to shave down the 250+ hours of electrolysis I would require, at least, but I fear that is what will be required to finish. At least my electrologist said the hairs that reacted to the laser are now thinner and much easier to remove.

Oddly, during the last laser treatment I didn't feel the laser at all on my upper lip, where I have had first clearance/8-9 hours of electro, even though there was "regrowth" of black hair there. I think I can extrapolate that at least the electrolysis is working

35J is still low on a Yag. What skin type are you? What is the pulse and spot size being used with those joules? I'm assuming you're female? Areas with dense coarse hair hurt most. Did you leave the lidocaine cream for an hour to take effect? Did you ice before and after?

Also, if the hair is fine (even if black), laser probably won't target it (for example on your upper lip), especially if it's a Yag laser and on such low settings.

No, actually, I am transgendered (no hrt). It is a male beard, basically, and it is very dark and dense. I have type III skin (southern european/mediterranean.)

My technician said she could see most of my beard absorbing the energy like a sponge, but the upper lip, lower lip and cheekbone area didn't really absorb at all. (I had no idea one could see it absorbing until she mentioned it.)

Well, she can't really see it, so I don't know what she means. She can tell if there is a reaction she's used to seeing maybe. But that doesn't really tell you whether the settings are strong enough to damage the hair permanently. Lower settings can make the hair shed, but it may not necessarily be enough to actually damage the hair for good. And those are pretty low for type III skin. Most people with your skin type get treated at 40-50J on a Yag, with a low pulse (10-25ms).