What Happens If You Don’t Shave Before Laser Hair Removal? (2024)

FAQs

What Happens If You Don’t Shave Before Laser Hair Removal? ›

Potential Risks of Skipping the Shave

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. Shaving helps to ensure this does not happen, so make sure you shave before your treatment session.

Shave Before Treatment

You cannot even receive treatment if there is rough stubble because this may create too much heat for the pigment of your skin. If you miss any hairs while you shaved, and you do not feel comfortable with your technician shaving you, your technician will need to avoid treating those areas.

Therefore, if you shave less than 24 hours before your scheduled appointment then there won't be enough hair present to burn, and this can cause irritation to the treatment area.

At best, a dull blade will give you an uneven shave and leave you with redness, blotches, and patches of unshaven hair on your face and neck. At worst, a dull blade will remove a fair amount of your skin along with the hair!

Potential Risks of Skipping the Shave

Cause skin irritation: Unshaved hair can lead to post-laser redness, inflammation, and swelling. Increase burn risk: Longer hair can excessively absorb laser energy, heightening the risk of burns and blisters.

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.

The appearance of increased hair growth after laser hair removal can be concerning, but it's important to understand that this is a normal part of the treatment process. Hair shedding, hair growth cycles, and misconceptions about hair growth can all contribute to the perception of increased hairiness.

Exfoliating helps to remove any dead skin cells that may be trapping hair underneath, allowing the laser to penetrate more quickly and increasing the chances of successful treatment. Depending on your skin's sensitivity, you can exfoliate 1-3 times per week after LHR treatments.

Hairs begin to fall out in 5-14 days and may continue to do so for weeks. Hairs may be more rapidly removed by rubbing, scrubbing, or plucking (with no discomfort after 5 days) if one desires to speed up this part of the process. It is not necessary to do so.

What if I cut myself shaving before laser hair removal? ›

If it's just a small cut or scrape in a larger area, we can simply use the laser around the cut. For smaller treatment areas or larger injuries to the skin, it's important to wait until you've had a chance to heal before attempting to remove the hair.

Immediately after your treatment your skin is likely to be sensitive – if you shave too soon after your session you may irritate the skin. Generally you'll need to wait a week , but everyone's skin is different so it might be worth shaving a small patch first to see how your skin reacts.

Tipping for laser hair removal is not mandatory, but it is generally appreciated. Some sources suggest tipping after each visit, while others say it's okay to tip at the end of a series of treatments.

Quite simply the hair will absorb the energy that was meant to penetrate under the skin in the first place. The energy would burn the hair, leaving the skin with marks and scarring. While wasting away on the surface level of the skin.

Straight up, there is no science to support a reason not to shave above the knee, says Dr Elizabeth Farrell, gynaecologist and medical director at Jean Hailes for Women's Health. Some women don't feel the need to because the hairs on their thighs are finer and thinner than those on the lower half of their leg.

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.

Heat is a key element used by the laser to remove hair so that the hair follicles' stem cells get damaged. However, hair that's too long will lead to singed hair and your skin getting burned. You absolutely must shave before going in for a session of laser hair removal.

A shave 24 to 48 hours before the appointed date is important. While the hair root is invisible, the laser can seek it out within the pigment. By shaving, you reduce the chances of burns with the hair being below the skin's surface.

Patients may notice more hair 1 – 3 weeks after laser hair removal sessions as follicles in the growing cycle begin to shed. During this process, exfoliating the skin, once swelling and redness have dissipated, can help hairs shed faster, leaving skin feeling smoother.

Because we require the hair's length for the laser energy to travel down to the all-important root, the hair should only be shaved off, not pulled out entirely. If you are a waxer, you'll need to let your hair grow out and then shave it before your appointment.