I am a black male who is looking for a good alternative to shaving for removal of body hair. I don't have the time or money to get professional help and was looking into some DIY methods. After looking through some of your forums, it is beginning to look like there is almost no options for me. Either I buy a used electrolysis machine (which I have NO idea how to use) or I risk buying some home system that will, most likely, not work. If I am getting it wrong and I do have some options left to me, PLEASE, someone let me know.

If you're looking for permanent methods of removal, your only options are professional treatments. We would need to know what areas you want to treat and what type of hair you have on each area (coarse, fine, sparse, dense, etc). Depending on that, we can also provide you with average cost. Laser is not as expensive as some think since treatments are spread out once every 2-3 months. Plus, many places take credit cards. So if you're seriously considering this, you can probably make it work.

DYI electrolysis is not easy. It would involve buying equipment and books and hours of training. You would basically be learning to be an electrologist, on your own, which is a big committment. One thing to consider is also that your skin type can pigment, which means you may experience some scarring while training yourself. Also, do realize that this method removes one hair at a time. So for large areas with lots of hair, it will take years to do yourself. I would assume there are some areas you won't be able to reach too.

Your other options are temporary like waxing.

If you do think about laser, please read the FAQs below first. You can only use a Yag type of laser on your skin type and only treat coarse hair. And you need someone experienced in treating people of your skin type.