How Many Laser Hair Removal Treatments Does it Take to Permanently Remove Hair?
By Aaliyah Albo
Have you ever thought about how much time you spend shaving? Think about it: if you shave three times per week, your number of shaving sessions adds up to 3,900 sessions over the course of 25 years - that’s a lot! And people whose hair grows back faster tend to shave even more.
The truth is - unless body hair is your thing, of course - dealing with unwanted hair can be extremely frustrating. Wax burns, razor bumps, and ingrown hairs are side effects known all too well by those who wax, shave, and tweeze in an effort to get rid of pesky undesirable hairs. In addition, body hair is relentless, and it doesn’t matter how many times you try to get rid of it because it will just keep coming back.
So, how does one achieve such a great feat to abolish unwanted hair once and for all, you might ask? The answer is: laser hair removal treatment.
Laser hair removal treatment is a non-invasive cosmetic procedure that has become increasingly popular over the years to safely and effectively treat unwanted hair. However, in order for this method to work properly, many treatments are needed. How many? Keep reading to find out!
All About the Laser Hair Removal Process
Laser hair removal treatment utilizes state-of-the-art technology to target the hair follicles deep within the skin, where other hair removal methods like shaving can’t reach. Since hair follicles are responsible for producing hairs, altering them can leave you with smooth, hair-free skin.
How Does It Work?
Medical-grade lasers emit a highly focused beam of light in short pulses. These powerful lasers are color sensitive, making the light attracted to the pigment (melanin) in your hair. When your hair absorbs the light from the laser, it converts to heat. The heat then damages the hair follicle to prevent hair from being able to grow back.
Is It Safe?
Absolutely! The first laser ever developed for hair removal was in the late 1960s. Laser light technology has come a very long way since then and is actually much safer when compared to other methods to remove unwanted hair. Think about it: you don’t need to risk potentially cutting yourself with a razor or risk potentially burning your skin with hot wax. There are no harmful chemicals to irritate your skin as there are with the depilatory cream method and unlike plucking, laser treatments don’t involve the discomfort of yanking each individual hair by the root with tweezers - ouch! Laser hair removal treatment is non-invasive and requires no downtime. You can go back to work and resume normal activities immediately after each laser session.
Are there side effects?
Laser hair removal treatment is a safe method to remove unwanted hair, but can come with a couple of minor side effects.
Redness and irritation. Hair removal via laser can cause temporary skin redness and irritation. You may also notice a little bit of swelling in the area that you got treated. Still, these effects are minor. In fact, they are often the same effects you might notice after other types of hair removal, such as waxing and tend to go away after a few hours.
Pigmentation changes. After your laser treatment, you may notice slightly lighter or darker skin. If you have dark skin, you are more likely to have lighter spots following treatment, while those with light skin may notice darker spots. However, just like skin irritation, these changes are temporary and aren’t usually a cause for major concern.
There are side effects to all methods of hair removal, but with laser treatment, the effects tend to disappear after a few hours. When you get a cut or ingrown hair from shaving or waxing, it can take a week or two to completely heal.
How Many Sessions Will You Need?
Everyone is unique and has a different amount of hair growing at different rates. To get rid of all your undesirable hair in a given area, multiple sessions in accordance with your hair growth cycles are needed. The number of sessions needed for treatment will vary from person to person.
To truly understand why you need multiple treatment sessions in the first place, it’s important to understand hair growth cycles.
The Different Stages of Hair Growth
Anagen. During the anagen phase, the hair is visible above the surface of the skin.
Catagen. In the next phase, the hair transitions from growing actively to resting in a dormant state.
Telogen. During the telogen phase, the hair is dormant and remains in the skin, but it rests above the base. Beneath it, the follicles begin to produce new hairs.
Exogen. In the final stage, the hair sheds itself. Once it’s gone, the new hair, which started to grow under it during the telogen phase, starts to sprout up to the surface.
At any given moment, you have hairs in every phase of the growth cycle existing on your body simultaneously. While some hairs are shedding, others are robustly in their prime. This is why you always have some visible hair.
Laser hair removal sessions are only effective in eliminating hairs that are in the active growing phase, anagen. This is why many sessions are needed to effectively get rid of unwanted hair. After your first session, you will need to wait a few weeks before getting another treatment. During this time, a new group of hairs will enter the active anagen phase, where they can be treated. This process of performing a session and waiting for the next group of hairs to become visible in the anagen phase will be repeated until you are satisfied with the results.
Okay, so how many laser hair removal treatments does it take to permanently remove hair?
Depending on the area you are looking to get treated, and how your hair grows, most people get the results they desire after six to eight laser hair removal treatments. You may notice a little bit of hair growth following the completion of all your laser sessions, but you find the hair is not as dark or thick and less noticeable than before. To ensure your follicles don’t regenerate to start growing hair again, maintenance sessions may be needed once or twice a year.
A Final Word
For those looking to never have to deal with a dull razor, messy wax strips, or smelly depilatory creams ever again, laser hair removal treatment is an excellent option.
In addition, laser devices like The KENZZI IPL Hair Removal Handset are now available, offering anyone the ability to achieve hair-free, silky smooth skin, from the comfort of their very own home. KENZZI offers the world’s #1 at-home IPL handset that is gentle on the skin and designed to produce visible results in just three treatments.
Laser hair removal may require a few treatments to permanently remove unwanted hair, but when you take into account how much time you spend shaving, tweezing, or waxing, it’s easy to see why the laser method is superior to the rest. Just a few laser hair removal treatments, and you won’t ever have to experience painful ingrown hairs, razor bumps, or wax burns ever again.
If you’ve been searching for a way to get effortlessly smooth, hair-free skin, look no further because laser hair removal treatment can help!
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