sacrificing on the altar of beauty (again)

Guys, this is really a SHALLOW, feminine topic kinda post - and more of a reference for any woman thinking about this cosmetic procedure - so feel free to click off (ESPECIALLY if we're dating)...lol


So, I have to start off admitting something...
<sigh> I'm hairy <sigh>

I've had facial hair ever since I was 17 years old, and have tried just about all removal methods: Nair, bleaching (not really a removal method, and a horrible idea for black women...hair turned bright red...lol) shaving,electrolysis, tweezing, waxing, epil (what sadist invented that?), etc. So, I finally broke down & got Laser Hair Removal. Yes, it's expensive, but I wanted a permanent solution.

The location:: Skin Solutions Inc.

The process:: My aesthetician was Travis, and he was pretty thorough in explaining what I should expect. The laser he used was a Cool Glide laser - 1064 ND:YAG, which is designed to safely be used on tanned and dark skin. The cool glide handpiece REALLY cools your skin, just before the laser pulse is applied, and after the treatment.

The laser felt like a "rubber band snapping against your skin" according to Travis, which was accurate. Now it's only slightly painful - sorta like if you've ever used Nair, and left it on a little too long. The entire laser session was probably only 15 minutes - and I have a LOT of facial hair. He did a patch test behind my ears, toward the hairline, to judge what level he could use on the laser, and since he was satisfied and I was ok, we went ahead and did the first treatment. My skin was very tender afterward, and most (but not all) of the hair is gone. There were a few stray hairs, that I shaved (the only method they suggest doing between treatments) off. Also, this doesn't work on white (grey) hair (I have those, and I shaved them too).

After the treatment, Travis suggested using a combination of aloe vera gel, and moisturizers on the treated skin. He also suggested a SkinCeuticals SPF 45 moisturizer, since per Travis, the treated skin is susceptible to burning. Of course I bought it...

The aftermath::
Day 1 - face was just slightly painful - like a slightly overdone relaxer treatment
Day 2 - same
Day 3 - SWELLING!!!! Some of the hair on my face is VERY thick/coarse, and very dark. The technician spent a lil more time in those areas, than others - and those swelled, like pimples. I probably had about 6-8 swollen spots on each cheek, and 1-2 on my chin. VERY not cute.
Day 4 - scabbing. Have you ever seen men who have had beards for a long period of time, shave? The skin underneath ends up looking red & tender, & then may scab over. That was how my sideburns looked. At this point, I called the salon like "HELP!!!". They told me try Neosporin & stay out of the sun...I never made it to the store, but kept using that SPF 45 sunscreen...
Day 5 - bumpy & scabby :(
Day 6 - swelling begins to go down. I cancel my appointment to let the technician make sure it is ok - the scabbing/swelling's gone down enuff that I can tell it'll be gone in a day or two...
Day 10 - swelling's completely gone, and scabbing is also gone. There's a dark patch on each sideburn - right where the scabbing was. I've continued to use the sunscreen, and stayed outta the sun, and I'll check & see if I should use a hydroquinone based lightener to fade that spot, or just let it fade on it's own...

That's it so far. The tech said the swelling was probably due to the level he used during treatment, and he'd scale back next time - YES, I'm going back :D. Even with all that drama, my cheeks are relatively hair free, and the skin is slightly smoother than before I started, so...