Hello! I am really sorry to open a new topic, but Anagen-Telogen issue really bothers me! I read a lot of Josefa posts, and I saw the picture she posted when telogen hair lost its pigment.

Well, I did not shave my arms and thighs for two years, and apparently most hairs are in telogen phase now. I even bought a magnifying head-lamp with 4 times magnification. And yesterdays I was looking very carefully and long time to distinguish the difference between anagen and telogen hairs by lack of pigment. But they all look the same to me! They all look like the same hairs!
I do wonder how Josefa can distinguish hair stages with such high speed of work?! As far as I understand to see clearly when anagen and when telogen hair is very important because anagen hair can be as deep as 5 mm, but telogen as close to the surface as 2 mm!
And I have to confess with all this difficulty of clearly see which hair is which, I can understand those electrologist who ask to shave before treatment because in this case it will be clear which hair is anagen and which is telogen.

So, my question to Josefa: do you mainly FEEL the bottom of the follicle of anagen and telogen hair? Or do you really see the difference in them by observation? But you work is so fast that I have no idea how it is possible!

I will be happy if other electrologist will share their methods of recognizing the phase of the hair.

After years (decades) of looking at these things ... you know instantly! We can even predict all the intermediate stages of anagen, catagen and telogen (e.g., early telogen, late telogen, etc.). Minor adjustments are made to depth of insertion and current exposure instantaneously ... we're on "automatic pilot." For fun, I will have a patient watch me as I predict the growing phase of each hair before I remove it. They are always amazed ... but, for electrologists, it's nothing.

Remember, Eskimos have something like 50 - 100 words for our ONE word "Snow." (I probably have the actual number wrong, but I think you see the intended point here.)

Thank you so much for your reply, Michael!
I love your posts so much! They all are so wise and informative!

Thanks ekade. I wish I felt the same about myself. I'm often wrong and usually make poor decisions on almost everything. But, I still have a smile on my old wrinkled face!

Oh, Michael, I think that you are asking for another complement!

You know about so many things that I simply cannot believe your words about making poor decisions on almost everything! If you feel this way about yourself, I do not know what to feel about myself!

Okay ... I'm off working the whole day, again (kid from the East coast!). But, as a few folks REALLY know here on Hairtell ... I hate compliments! I would rather have an argument than an agreement. I mean, what do you actually learn when someone agrees with you? It’s like talking in the mirror! (Although, sometimes I lose those arguments too!)

Yes, you are totally right that you do not learn anything when someone agrees with you. But, you are helping a lot to another person/people to understand things!

Ekade, in my opinion, you pay too much attention to the base of the follicle, maybe trying not to overlook the papilla?. Focus on the anchorage area, there is the real goal.

Michael, you learn something when someone agrees with you, you learn that you are not wrong. Sometimes the arguments just serve to confuse you and make you doubt your own instincts.

You know ... that's true! Corroboration of your findings is very important. Hope I didn’t miss much yesterday, I’ve been up to my eyeballs in FOLLICLES! I’m doing a “Jossie job!”

What a coincidence, I've been doing today a "Bono job"!