How close of a shave for laser hair removal? | Skin Perfection (2024)

FAQs

How close of a shave for laser hair removal? | Skin Perfection? ›

Shaving before a laser hair removal session ensures that the hair is short enough for the laser to target the follicle without being distracted by surface hair. I advise all my patients to shave the treatment area 24-48 hours before their appointment. This way you can also avoid irritation from dry shaving on the day.

Shave Before Treatment

You should shave within 24 hours of your scheduled laser appointment. Your laser technician cannot treat areas that have hair above the skin. You cannot even receive treatment if there is rough stubble because this may create too much heat for the pigment of your skin.

Shaving too closely right before your appointment can increase the sensitivity of your skin, making the treatment more uncomfortable. It can also increase the risk of skin irritation or redness.

Reduced effectiveness. If you don't shave before your laser hair removal treatment, the laser will target the surface hair, which can lead to a less effective session. This means you might require more sessions than initially planned, delaying your journey towards that attractive, hair-free body.

For most people, it's best to wait between four and eight weeks between each treatment, and we generally recommend six treatments for optimal results.

Shave within 24 hours of your laser appointment. Your Laser Technician will not be able to go over areas with hair that's above the skin.

Cuts and Abrasions

There is no room for debate here – if you have a cut, abrasion, or any other kind of open wound, we cannot laser the injured area. If it's just a small cut or scrape in a larger area, we can simply use the laser around the cut.

Potential Risks of Skipping the Shave

Reduce efficacy: Hair above the skin absorbs laser energy, diverting it from the follicles, leading to diminished results. Cause skin irritation: Unshaved hair can lead to post-laser redness, inflammation, and swelling.

Wait until the skin has fully healed before shaving, which can take up to two weeks. Shaving too soon can cause further irritation and damage to the skin, which can lead to scarring and hyperpigmentation.

Yes, you can shave in between each laser hair removal treatment. During your course of treatment, you can shave any unwanted hair that may regrow. After your first laser hair removal session you will notice that you won't need to shave as much as before.

Why won't my hair shave off after laser? ›

If you feel like your hair isn't shedding at all, this could be due to a few factors. In some cases, the hair may be too light, the treatment intensity too low, or the hair might be in the wrong growth stage.

The benefits of not shaving pubic hair are avoiding irritation, cuts, and ingrowns—when you don't shave, you won't get irritated. If you don't shave your pubic hair, nothing happens, but it's important to keep it clean with a daily genital-friendly wash and exfoliant to keep odor at bay.

You'll want to wait at least 4-6 weeks after your last waxing appointment before you start your laser hair removal treatment. You should also avoid using depilatory cream like Nair hair remover on any area you will treat for at least 2 weeks before your appointment.

First of all it's important to keep in mind that laser hair removal requires multiple treatments to achieve optimal results. Overdoing it by having too many treatments in a short period of time can increase the risk of skin irritation. And even worse skin damage without actually having an effect on your hair follicles.

Shave gently, lightly and steadily. Also, rinse the blade after each cut to ensure it's free of hair. Going slow not only prevents cuts but also helps to prevent you from over-shaving the area. After you have shaved the top section, clean the area with a wet cloth.

In rare instances, laser hair removal may cause thicker, darker hair to grow or regrow in an adjacent area to the one being treated. This condition is known as paradoxical hypertrichosis. Paradoxical hypertrichosis can occur anywhere on the face or body.

Unshaved hair attracts laser energy above the skin as well as targeting the hair follicle beneath the skin surface. We need to essentially avoid the laser reaching the area of skin above the follicle, as this can lead to painful and uncomfortable skin irritation and skin burns.

Using scissors, trim off all long hairs before going in with a razor. Ensure your bikini area is wet. We don't advise shaving the area while it's dry. Don't be in a rush to finish.

Using laser treatment to remove unwanted hair from damaged skin can further irritate the skin, especially if your skin is sensitive. Ultimately, this will increase the damage and prolong the healing process. Avoid treating areas with the following types of skin damage: Scrapes and cuts.

It's worth emphasizing that you must shave the areas being treated the day before your appointment. While shaving, please move a clean razor in the direction that your hair grows. If you have fine facial hair, you can trim it with a facial hair trimmer or scissors.