I would purchase some Tend Skin and apply it to the back of your neck and anywhere else your having this reaction. Dont mess with them otherwise it could lead to infection and scarring.

Aftercare advice was wear sunscreen, wear sunscreen, don't go out in the sun, avoid the sun and, i think, wear sunscreen.
I'm not much of a sun worshipper so it's not a huge issue but i'm mindfull now, and so when i go snorkelling i shall wear a rash vest.

Here we go for 2 days post treatment. I'll post them until it clears that was the thing i was missing from these forums, what did it look like straight afterwards...well, this:

ooo, i'm alarmed at this post do you feel this is not a typical reaction? this is the same as both test patches...no visible scaring there.

You will be fine. Some follicles have some pus. We call this folliculitus. Take a warm shower and use an antibacterial soap, like Dial and they should be short-lived. Do not do any activity that makes you perspire for 24 hours after a treatment. Next appointment, go in with a very clean back. Have someone wash your back for you if possible. Observe if the technician disinfects the piece that touches your skin. Maybe these measures will help reduce this reaction. Tend skin is a good suggestion. Ask your laser practitioner what they suggest after you show them the picture or just mosey in and let them look at you. Did they give you an aftercare instruction sheet?

You will be fine. Just keep the area clean and dry.

Dee

Didnt mean to alarm you. Its a common reaction.

This is a typical thermal reaction on pale skin with very dark, coarse hair. Be gentle with the skin. I personally don't like Tend Skin nor antibacterial soap this soon after a treatment. The lymph fluid is mother nature's way of healing. Ice/cool packs immediately after treatment and off and on during the first several hours will help get that heat out of the skin.

thanks for the advice.
I have been trying to keep it clean, showering lots, unfortunately I'm quite an active person so avoiding sweating will be problematic (hence lots of showers).
I'm wearing loose t shirts, it's starting to get itchy though.

Now i've had folliculitus before, not on my back, as a result of shaving. It was a lot lot lot LOT worse than this. Trust me, it's the last thing in the entire world i would like to have again (i snapped the top of my femur off early last year and i would choose that again in a second).

anyway, if the itching has not gone away by Monday i shall get it seen to.

here we go, 3 days after treatment:





as you can see lymph fluid is down, itching is up. Most likely it's just the hairs ejecting from the skin causing irritation. IMHO.

off topic, but: Folliculitus is why i looked into getting hair removed permanently in the first place, and why i had never shaved my back before.

Pictures are great. I personally think you got a good treatment and this temporary skin reaction will be worth it if you are happy with the results in the end.

The thing that surprises me the most is clients who freak out over laser and electrolysis causing the inflammation process. All this is normal because the skins environment has been disrupted. The hard part for consumers is knowing when overtrearment has occurred. That's the job of the laser and electrolysis practitioner to know and then make adjustments. The skin is a pretty resilient organ and mends itself most of the time. I know you are NOT freaking out about this, so I'm not pointing this comment your way, but I say this as a passing thought when I think of some of my ladies who do freak out if they have one or several red dots on their face after a treatment. I would say not bad out of the 600 or so insertions that were made in one hour to remove to thick chin hair that has been tweezed for years. Both laser and electrolysis clients should expect some temporary skin reaction. We do our best to minimize it, but we are damaging tissue so you don't grow hair anymore! Believe me, hair is a tough enemy to fight.

So, in short, you are not the freaky out type of client and your concerns are well understood. You will be fine. Perhaps a good aloe vera gel will help to moisturize and soothe the itching. It works for electrolysis so I'm assuming it will work for laser aftercare. Look forward to future updates.

Dee

Thanks for the input Dee.
I reckon it would have helped a lot if the practitioner could have shown pictures of what happens to the skin shortly after treatment. While I'm not a freaking out type of guy, I am a worrier so maybe a photo-card that went "this is what it will look like" would have put me more at ease.
It was one of the reasons I came to this forum and it's sister site (http://www.cosmeticenhancementsforum.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=3)
At the end of the day it's not a big deal, I'm confident the itching will stop. I'm really looking forward to seeing how much of these little hairs I can see are stubble of new growth and how much is dead follicles ejecting.

You make such an important point about preparing clients to know what they can or cannot expect after a treatment. I spend a lot of vocal time with my clients on:

1. Hair Growth Cycles and...........
2. What is normal healing skin reaction and what is not normal healing skin reaction.

They are asked to give me feedback either by e-mail or at the next appointment about how they healed. That way, I can make adjustments in those early sessions as needed. Suggest to the laser clinic you go to that they can show the picture you took of yourself to future clients so they don't worry like you have worried. I think they would love the input and the offer. Afterall, you are a consumer and they are a business and a business can't be too thorough. It would certainly ease concerns like you had or console the freaked out clients.

Other comments unrelated: Cosmetic Enhancements Forum is not a sister site to hairtell. It is run by laser physicians, I believe?? Someone correct me if I am wrong. It's a very good site that I frequent now and then to answer questions, but the electrolysis section is not as active as the laser section because this website exists mainly for the promotion of laser hair reduction. The sister site to hairtell is www.hairfacts.com

Take a meander over there. Andrea has worked very hard to make it one of the best.

Again, it sure looks like something has happened to affect hair with those pictures, but time will tell.

Dee