I’m completely dissatisfied with my first laser hair removal treatment with the lightsheer, which has resulted in many small spots of hyperpigmentation in the underarm area. I think I’m a type III; I tan easily with minimal if no burning. I asked whether it would be okay to get the treatment even though I suntanned two months prior and they said it would be fine. Now I’m starting to question whether I made a huge mistake because I’ve read somewhere online that tanned skin can increase the likelihood of blistering and discoloration. I also believe that the settings were too high (39 whatever that means). I don’t know if I should go back in 6 weeks to get this done again. I certainly don’t want this kind of a reaction with every treatment. Won’t the hyperpigmentation interfere with the next treatment? I would appreciate it if someone can offer some advice.
You look either tanned or definitely not a type III. Sounds like they used settings that are too high for your skin type. 39 joules if that’s what it was is pretty high, even at high pulse. This will resolve but will take time. Definitely show it to your clinic. There are creams that can help clear it up faster. They should be aware that this happened. You should wait until it clears up completely before having any more treatments. The issue is not when you tanned last but how tanned you are when you are having the treatment, i.e. the darker the skin, the more chance for side effects especially when lower settings are not used to cater to darker skin. If you didn’t pay up front for your treatments and are confident in their skill, wait until it clears up and then go in for treatment, but at lower setting. Or you can find another clinic that seems more experienced. Keep in mind that you should wait 8-12 weeks between treaments anyway, not 6, and do avoid the sun altogether on that area. Keep it as light as possible for most effective treatments without side effects.
Thanks for the information. I definitely suspected that the settings were very high. If I was told that I would get that kind of a reaction, I would have never gone through with the treatment. It has been a total nightmare. I’ve been in constant pain from the burns and emotionally I’ve been totally stressed out. After visiting my family physician, I’ve been told to stay away from the laser for quite a while until everything heals & the hyperpigmentation goes away. I’ve been also told to stay away from that clinic. I’m just surprised that this happened to me because I did a lot of research and picked a dermatology clinic where a physician assistant would perform the treatment. I never thought that a physician assistant would be so inexperienced and clueless.
Speaking of clueless, I kept looking at your photo’s thinking I was looking at bruising rather than hyperpigmentation. It appears purplish??
Also, am wondering if you purposly tan your underam area. That’s one body area that I always assumed didn’t see much sun.
I do hope you will keep coming back with feedback and pictures as time goes by to show others how you heal. When reations like this happen, everybody is desparate to know if this will resolve completely. They want to know how it will be treated and how long it will take to resolve. I firmly believe that whenever this happens to anyone the clinic should be made aware and partner with you in treating this. Mistakes improve people. It is unfortunate that people like yourself find themselves in a position where another is learning off your distress. These kind of spots fade away as a general rule. How long it takes varys.
It seems people assume that just because someone is a physician’s assistant, they know what they’re doing when it comes to hair removal. Hair removal is not taught in any schools they went to. Everyone takes the same quick classes afterwards. What really matters is one’s experience in hair removal in particular, and on that machine in particular. I would bet she’s new at this and hasn’t treated many clients yet.
I do know a few physician assistants, nurses, etc., that have gone to laser school and most will tell you that they have as a selling feature because they know the majority of their competition have not. If in doubt about their training, ask. The shortest true laser class I know of is 30 hours. Mine was 40, there may be some 50 hours or more available now.
Those dark spots are burns, which after five days have healed somewhat and hyperpigmentation is left. My physician will prescribe a 4% Hydroquinone cream bleach to help reduce the hyperpigmentation and hopefully it will go away after a few months. I don’t tan the underarm area on purpose, but the sun rays can still hit that area from the side when you’re laying out on the beach. I get tanned very infrequently (maybe like once a year) and I never go to tanning salons because I’m not a big fan of tanning. When you go to the beach, it’s kind of impossible to hide from the sun all the time. The physician assistant who performed the treatment is aware of the situation and they told me to apply a cortisone cream and vaseline on it (Why the heck would I want to apply a steroid on my skin which can produce harmful side effects?) I’ve been using a homeopathic calendula ointment that has proved to work well in healing the burns. They said that I got the dark spots probably “because I have such healthy thick and dark hair.” They also said “I’m sorry that this happened. I was really trying to get you results. I will turn down the power a bit and you will have less of a reaction anyway because there will be less hair to absorb the laser light.” What do you think of their response? I don’t want to have anything to do with that clinic. I think they’ve done enough damage. Nobody should have to go through what I have. Do as much research as you can because the office may look reputable, but in fact you might be putting your health at risk. Don’t put your trust and health into unexperienced hands. I’ve done some more research and I’ve made an appointment with a dermatologist who specializes in using all kinds of lasers, including several for hair removal. Hopefully they can offer some advice.
It doesn’t really matter if it’s a dematologist. Sometimes, that’s actually worse because they don’t have time or desire to do hair removal themselves all day long. It’s best to find someone who specializes in hair removal and does it themselves all day long, with at least 5 years of past experience.
There is a balance to this art. If the settings are too low, you won’t get results. If they’re too high, you risk burns. You need to find someone who has enough experience operating a laser on various skin types, who will know where that perfect balance is for your particular skin type. If you go to this clinic and they decrease settings to 28-30, you may be fine. They can also do some test spots at various settings before doing the entire area again. Or maybe they have a more experienced nurse at this same clinic.
