Laser hair removal

electricitylikesme

For my beard essentially. I've been meaning to get it done because frankly I hate shaving. I think I've got a good hair candidate since it's reasonably dark and I have fair skin. The problem I'm having though is, everyone who offers it falls into my "quack radar" range, so I'm wondering if anyone has some good advice on how I can not get screwed over from this, and actually get my beard removed? Does anyone have any experience with it?

The adsorption max of my hair pigment is around 370nm.

TroubledTom

Dr. Drew once warned against it on the Loveline, claiming the lasered area gets infected. I think he might have even said the hair eventually comes back. Have you tried an alternate method of shaving than what you usually do? Also, it seems like if you go through with it, you would be spending a lot of money, putting yourself in pain/out of comission, and potentially scarring your face just to save 5 minutes a day.

Zsetrek

Is a beard out of the question? Whole lot cheaper...

Uriel

Shaving is not time consuming or difficult.

I actually rather enjoy it, I find it somewhat relaxing.

What is it about shaving you find so annoying as to consider this costly and possibly dangerous alternitive?

The Cat

Its completely unregulated, so I'd wait until its dragged kicking and screaming into the fold of 'medical procedure' before you try it out.

Tube

Uriel wrote:

Shaving is not time consuming or difficult.

Speak for yourself.

Uriel

Cardboard Tube wrote:

Uriel wrote:

Shaving is not time consuming or difficult.

Speak for yourself.

Well maybe you aren't doing it right? :P

Tube

Different people have different levels of hair growth you fucking tard.

Uriel

I know I'm kidding.

Sam

what about lasering off body hair, like on the back

The Cat

Sam wrote:

what about lasering off body hair, like on the back

bwa? its the same procedure wherever you're zapping, the advice stands.

bone daddy

Do you have a dermatologist you like and trust? They might be able to point you in the direction of someone who's not Fuckee McQuackerson, MD.

The Cat wrote:

Sam wrote:

what about lasering off body hair, like on the back

bwa? its the same procedure wherever you're zapping, the advice stands.

Yes, but less likely to result in "lol shaving is neither difficult nor time-consuming" replies in favor of "omg wookie" replies.

EggyToast

Wikipedia has a good summary.

I loved the idea a few years ago. Never shave again! Save money in the long run! Smoother face than all other methods!

Yeah, if that was truly the case, guys would flock to this thing. It's expensive and only lasts about 2 months, give or take a month depending on how quickly your hair grows back. You're better off going to have your face waxed.

Actually, if you truly despise shaving, get a bath mirror and some hair removal cream, like Magic Shave. You don't have to be black. Plop it on in the shower, soap up your hair, scrub your body, and remove with help from the mirror. Buy a bottle of Veet (for women) or something, as they come with a "bladeless razor." Far better than using a spoon ;D

Rook

If this helps, I read up about these things a lot because I had similar plans. Also, interestingly enough there was one of these machines in the lab where I worked as my old boss has published a few papers in journals about it, but that's another story

Anyways, everything that I've read basically says it won't work for beards. It'll be expensive, painful, patchy at best and most of it will grow back anyways.

There are many problems with getting the hair lasered from your beard. Because there hair their is so dense, the heat generated by the laser is apparently, really painful. Also, because of this you're more likely to get infections/rashes etc. Secondly, because your hair grows in different cycles you'll need multiple treatments to get rid of it (expensive). Also because very few peoples facial hair is uniform in it's pigmentation the laser isn't uniformly effective and that's before you begin to factor in the operators skill.


Your best bet is to learn to shave properly. If you're using shaving cream/gel bought at a store it's most likely crap. Buy a decent cream and a badger hair brush to apply it, and don't put to much pressure on your blade.

Sam

Yeah, I don't think I want to shave my back regularly though, not least because I live in a dorm with communal bathroom facilities. I figure even if my chewbacca rag gets patchy and less dense, it'll be better than what it is right now.

But still, I can't bring myself to actually go through with it for some reason. I should though, I feel like a leper.

Skwirl

In regards to the back hair question, you could try waxing. It should be cheaper than lasers and more effective, plus you won't end up with back stubble like you would with shaving.