Hair Removal for African American Skin

iAm_misspiggy
iAm_misspiggy Posts: 35 Member
edited October 3 in Success Stories
Hi!
Upon meeting a goal I would like to do some 'permeant" hair removal.... BUT I don't know which option is best. I'm African American and I have heard that laser can be bad, because it can target the pigment of the skin instead of the hair. Please weigh in if you know which option works best. :huh:

Replies

  • getitamb
    getitamb Posts: 2,019 Member
    I would like to know this too.
  • sarah44254
    sarah44254 Posts: 3,078 Member
    the woman at the laser removal (ideal image) that I had said to me 'glad you have light skin, it will work better on you than if you were tanned or dark skinned'. I think she mentioned it because I am near Mexico border and many of the folks here are either a) latino and dark skinned or b) really tan cause it's a sunny area

    :( yeah, laser removal is likely not worth the money for your dark skin
  • MZNIKKIBOO
    MZNIKKIBOO Posts: 190
    BUMP
  • EDesq
    EDesq Posts: 1,527 Member
    Hi!
    Upon meeting a goal I would like to do some 'permeant" hair removal.... BUT I don't know which option is best. I'm African American and I have heard that laser can be bad, because it can target the pigment of the skin instead of the hair. Please weigh in if you know which option works best. :huh:

    You should really find an African-American Dermatologist. You REALLY don't want info from a "Diet" Forum. What you are talking about if done WRONG can be Permanently Disabling.
  • GreenTea703
    GreenTea703 Posts: 76
    Welcome to general chat?
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
    IDS laser.
    electrolysis.
  • MoLivesLuvsLifts
    MoLivesLuvsLifts Posts: 1,161 Member
    I used electrolysis. In particular, ask for thermolysis. Also, make sure that you used a licensed professional that has a clientele of people with curly hair. If you ask about whether or not they have African American clients, that won't help you. You want to make sure that they work with people with curly hair. The reason: in the other two forms of electrolysis, they use a probe to "zap out" the hair. This is assuming the hair folicle is straight and they can zap the root. In thermolysis, the probe is used to heat up the hair folicle. This causes an "electromagnetic reservior" of water in the hair folicle that will burn it whether or not the hair is growning from the bottom or the sides.

    A way to look at it is that the hair folicle is shaped like a "U", when the reservior of water fills up the "U", it can remove all of the hair that's there instead of trying to pin point exactly where the hair is growing from and zap it at the root. The third form of electrolysis is called the Blend where they use both. It's a waste of money because you won't need the electrolysis part that's for people with straight hair.

    It took me 1.5 years of meeting with the electrolysist weekly for 30 minutes paying $30 each session. I did this about 9 years ago. The result: no hair, no dark scarring (they used TendSkin to clear up the scarring). Now, another important tip that you need is that THE RESULTS WILL BE GREAT UNLESS YOUR BODY CHANGES. So, about 6 years ago I had a child (hair started growing back), gained 80+ lbs (hair started growing back) and now I'm losing weight (hair started growing back). However, the hair is thinner & lighter than before. So, it is still working...to a degree. Now when I get to my goal weight & have no more kids, the hair will stop again....until maybe menopause.

    So, in conclusion, use thermolysis, but know that hair will grow again when your body changes. You can just tweeze it out but it won't be under the skin that you have to dig at it and cause scarring. I think it's worth it! I'm definitely glad that I don't have to dig again.

    Hope this helps!
  • maipai21
    maipai21 Posts: 146
    African Americans can have success from using laser hair removal. I have PCOS and I have used laser hair removal from a dermatologist. Not some person who is just certified to do hair removal. I have about a medium to dark brown complexion and I have not had ANY complications from using the laser.

    The key is to find a dermatologist who has the proper laser for our skin. I found my dermatologist by googling my city and the laser that is best for Black skin (Nd:yag) it has shorter wave lengths that work wonders for our skin. I am super pleased with the results and the procedure is not time consuming at all- so far I have had 3 treatments (at about 10 minutes max per session) and have seen a 60-75% reduction in my hair growth. I have about 3 more sessions to go. It is expensive but WELL WORTH my hard earned money!

    Feel free to message me if you have any questions!
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