IPL hair removal treatment at home: A detailed guide | Braun AU (2024)

FAQs

Is IPL hair removal at home effective? ›

Efficacy. Long-Term Reduction: Home IPL devices offer long-term hair reduction. With consistent use, they can significantly reduce hair growth over time. Traditional methods provide temporary results, requiring frequent maintenance.

IPL hair removal is a progressive treatment that offers full body hair removal - but you can use IPL to treat separate areas, such as your arms, legs, or pubic area, depending on your individual needs. When using IPL, you'll hold a flashgun device that delivers a spectrum of light to the skin.

While most IPL procedures must be done by a doctor, you can do IPL treatment for hair removal at home. These handheld devices are safe and effective but take more sessions to get the desired results.

You'll see permanent results from month three.

After the first few treatments, the impatient ones amongst us may be disappointed as you may not see much of a difference, but after the three month mark, you will start to notice that a lot of your body hair is not growing back.

Neither treatment is permanent permanent, but the results for both IPL and laser hair removal can last for months, and both devices are FDA-approved for reducing the amount of hair regrowth over time. The IPL treatment might save you some discomfort compared to laser, though.

IPL treatment does not cause hair to regrow any quicker, despite what the myth may have you believe.

If you forget to shave, the effectiveness of your treatment may diminish. The laser, instead of focusing on the follicles, might target surface hair. This can lead to heightened discomfort, potential stinging, and a risk of burns. Surface impurities like dirt and oil can also reduce efficacy.

After a single session of laser hair removal, some hair will grow back. However, it will be finer and lighter than before. For optimal results, patients usually undergo multiple sessions. Each session leads to a greater reduction in hair regrowth.

IPL is most effective while your hair is in the growth phase –if you treat your skin multiple times a week, your hair can become dormant and IPL treatment won't work as well. Additionally, while IPL is a gentle treatment, too much of it can be a bad thing. If you use IPL too frequently, you can irritate your skin.

What are the tips for doing IPL at home? ›

After shaving the skin to prepare it for IPL hair removal, all-over body treatment takes just 30 minutes.

It is impossible to avoid all sun exposure and so even with the best of skin care and protection, new brown spots may emerge gradually over time. Proper skin care and protection is the only thing standing between you and appearance of future brown spots.

After IPL hair removal

The hair will appear to grow (though very slowly) for 2 to 4 weeks and should then fall out; this is the treated hair being pushed out of the follicle, not new growth. Any hair that does not fall out was either too fine, too light, too deeply rooted or possibly wasn't treated.

If you stick to a regular IPL routine, you can expect to see the majority of your hair gone for the long haul. But as an IPL device can only stunt the growth of active hair follicles, it may take a while to remove all hair. This is because some areas will grow back quicker than others.

You need a small amount of hair visible at the surface of the skin for the IPL light to effectively destroy the follicle. Shaving the area being treated will help the laser focus beneath the skin and improve the results. If there's a lot of hair on the surface, a lot less light energy makes it deep into the follicle.

You can use at-home IPL devices on any area of the body where hair is found, whether that means treating your facial hair or giving yourself a full Brazilian, according to Dr. Shirazi.

Yes, you CAN use IPL up to twice a week. Good news if you're really itching for results: if you use Lumi IPL twice a week, you'll see full results in just six weeks. That's the highest frequency we recommend, though – you should not use your device more than twice a week.

In the IPL vs. waxing battle, the choice often comes down to your preferences, budget, and skin type. IPL offers the potential for long-term results, while waxing provides immediate hair removal. Consider your pain tolerance, desired outcome, and convenience when making your decision.