So I’m in college and the semester is almost over. It’s time to sell back our textbooks and I know I’ll be getting around $300. So I figured with that money I can do some electrolysis on my thighs. (I’ve never done electrolysis on my thighs yet, I’ve only been doing it on my face and arms). I was thinking about doing about two hours on each thigh at the end of May. I figured we could clear out a good area in that amount of time. However, the thing is since it will be summer I will not be able to do electrolysis on my thighs at all until September. Do you guys think it is a waste of money to have a 3+ month lapse and then start up again? Should I just wait until September to start my thighs and then follow a normal weekly schedule of clearing them up? Or should I try to get some out of the way (I know it will all regrow back in the summer) since I do have all that extra cash? Anyone’s opinion would be great!
Assuming you can find someone who can do a full clearance, you will have 3 to 6 weeks where you have no, or little hair visible in the area. After that, you will have the next phase of hair come in, and it will look like you did nothing at all. Next year the same week, you would see the reduction that the treatment you had come back, as the phase of hair growth occupying the week you have the treatment(s) would have fewer hairs that can grow, as many follicles in that growth phase would have been silenced for good.
What you should do has more to do with your goals, than what would work.
This is really hard to comment on without an idea of how much hair you have. Also, what is the color and your skin color? Is the hair coarse or fine? How dense?
I figured we could clear out a good area in that amount of time. However, the thing is since it will be summer I will not be able to do electrolysis on my thighs at all until September. Do you guys think it is a waste of money to have a 3+ month lapse and then start up again? Should I just wait until September to start my thighs and then follow a normal weekly schedule
Don’t get your hopes up for what two hours per thigh will do. Thighs have a lot of hair to clear. If you’ve never had any work done on that area, it’ll make a very small difference. You might want to have the work done on the ankles, knees, or back of knees. Someplace where that little of work will be noticeable. If I were you, I’d wait until you can make it a regular thing. It’ll be too disheartening to spend three hundred needed dollars just to see another wave of growth cover it. You might then be hesitant to spend anymore on the area.
Lagirl is indicating a good thing to consider. If you only had a set amount of cash, were an optimal laser candidate, and went with a trusted laser (read: Candela GentleLase Alexandrite) for one good powerful blast, you may knock out enough hairs to pave the way for quicker electrolysis in the future. You’ll be letting time pass anyway betwen now and when you can do electrolysis regularly, so that will give you a good recovery window.
There is a chance that the laser would be ineffective, but it’s not like two sessions per thigh would give anymore noticeable difference anyway. If the laser were capable of killing ten percent of the present, active anagen thigh hair, you’d be doing okay.
Mantaray
So what your saying is that its best to get laser done first and it will make your electrolysis better for quicker results? Im just trying to see if thats what you meant
Rani,
I suggest that you spend the $300 to continue the work you have already started (face, arms.) Begin a new area when you know you are able to commit to the regularly scheduled treatments.
Too many people say that electrolysis doesn’t work or laser doesn’t work but this is often the case when people are not able to stick to a regular treatment schedule or are just a poor candidate as is the situation I often see in laser.
What Arlene is saying is sound, good advice; keep working on what you’ve started. Don’t get anxious to start on a new area. Even I know this feeling.
But what I’m saying is this about starting a new area. It seems you have maybe $300 to spend on some hair removal, then you’ll go throughsome downtime, and then you’ll be able to focus once again on it. So if you surely wanted to start a new major bodypart like legs…
Look at the risk/benefits of what your choices are:
Electrolysis- two hours per thigh - optimal result: two well cleared small patches, one on each thigh, about four inches by eight inches, or around there. other waves of hair will come in, this area will appear sparser. And if it’s not faded correctly, will just look like a scant patch. This is okay if you continue to keep getting sequential treatments. But if not, you’re gonna have two patches of microscabs and depressed hair growth in that area. That’s not really an aesthetic look if you ask me. I’ve had a ton of hourly electrolysis sessions myself, I know what I’m saying. I just don’t want you to get over-excited on what four sessions can accomplish.
Laser - regarding you are a good candidate and find a proven laser with a proven operator - optimal results: You’ll get both thighs treated, front and back, you may knock out ten percent (modest estimate) of active hairs. On both thighs, ten percent of evenly distributed hair death goes a long way. And for a one shot treatment, may yield your best, evenly distributed hair follical reduction. It’s not going to be hugely noticeable, but then again it will probably look more natural. As a side benefit, laser helps even out skin blemishes like moles. And, it’s one quick appointment of uncomfort versus four hours of discomfort spanned over a month. Of course, there’s the possibility that it’s not so successful, but you know what? That will make you all the more sure to stay with electrolysis. At least you’ll know more about what you’ll respond best to, valuable knowledge gained from just one appointment, and will be more resolved in your going about appointments in the future.
In the end, you will eventually impliment electrolysis, it’s how you finally get rid of everything permanently. But how you start, this all kind of touches on the big thing on this board; starting with laser and finishing with electrolysis versus the starting, staying with, and finishing with electrolysis camp. The other fifty percent of squabbles that arise here are from people that get treated by technicians that bought budget equipment (magnification, IPL’s, Synerons, Hinkle Classics, vacuum tube Kree’s, One Touches, No!No!'s) and don’t know what the hell they are doing.
Mantaray
That about sums it all up. That’s the whole board.
We can’t say anything without knowing the skin and hair type etc. This would be true when talking about someone who is a good candidate for laser and can find someone with a good machine who knows what they’re doing.
Hi all! I apologize for the delayed response…i’m in the midst of my finals for my senior year of college and ahh. anyway…first of all THANK YOU so much to all you guys for being so responsive and helpful. I appreciate it so much.
Sorry I didn’t specify more. I’m indian so i have tan skin and pretty thick hair although its kind of softer/thinner on the thighs but it is dense…so there is a lot to work with.
Mantaray: you’re right…i totally understand what you’re saying and I realize it may not be smart to do thighs now. Also, if for some reason it doesn’t heal clearly and it’s summer and i want to go to the beach…i will be horrified.
As for the laser thing, I don’t even want to go near it since I have dark skin and parts of my body have very light hair. I’ve heard that that’s not optimal for laser and just with all the bad practitioners out there I’m too scared! I thankfully have an amazing electrologist (Fino Gior’s dauther) and am getting terrific results with her.
I think my decision will be to work on the stomach area with all my extra money and then save up some of it for when it gets colder so I can start my thighs then. Thanks again everyone for being so helpful and steering me in the right direction.
Sounds like you are in the place to be.
Be happy your local electrologist is so well trained. Be VERY happy.
Thanks James, I agree. I am extremely lucky and happy to have such a conveniently located solution.