Most Frequently Asked Questions about Light Sheer Permanent Hair Reduction:
How much will the treatments cost?
The cost will depend on the size of the area to be treated and the number of treatments that will be needed.
Having an idea of what laser might cost will help you decide if laser is for you. There are general prices shown on this site. During your consultation, the area you would like to have treated will be assessed and the price will be tailored to meet your specific needs.
Packages are available and are a great way to save money. It is quite simple- if you buy 2 of a treatment area, you’ll get the third for half price; buy four, and the fifth is free. I offer such a discount through packages because I have found that clients who buy packages tend to keep up with their treatments and therefore get better results. Getting the best results is what Light Touch Laser is all about.
Why offer a package of 5 when I should expect 6 treatments?
So you can come in and have your first treatment, and then, when you are excited about what laser has done for you in just one visit, you will be very comfortable committing to the process to get the best results possible.
Is this covered by my insurance?
Most insurance companies do not offer reimbursement for cosmetic procedures. However consult your insurance company for more information. If the treatment is to solve a medical concern such as severe ingrown hairs, emotional distress, drug or hormonally induced hair growth it may be covered as a medical expense for tax purposes. Talk to your Doctor and Accountant to be sure that you qualify.
Is there a guarantee that this will work?
The science behind laser hair reduction and how it destroys hair is solid and proven. As with any medical procedure, some people will respond better than others. Variables such as age, hormonal fluxuations, ethnic background and health can affect your results. Laser hair reduction works 90% of the time in most individuals.
Unfortunately 10% of people may not respond at all and sometimes, this cannot be determined until after 2 treatments. However, during the consultation, we will evaluate these variables and how they apply to you; then, based on my experience and the treatment parameters of the laser, we will establish what you should expect for results. If you attend all sessions as suggested you should obtain 70-95% permanent hair reduction. Every effort will be made to help you achieve the most reduction possible in the fewest treatments possible; with the hair that remains being finer and lighter
If you require more treatments than you are quoted, any subsequent sessions are half price. And even less if we are only treating stray hairs.
Is the Lightsheer Diode FDA approved?
Yes. The laser was developed in 1994 and the first hair removal study began in July1996. The FDA cleared the device for treatments in December 1997. The FDA then granted it’s claim for permanent hair reduction in April 1999 after it demonstrated in a 3000 person study a better than 50% permanent hair loss after only 3 treatments.
Is hair reduction permanent?
Yes. Once the system that grows the hair is destroyed, that’s it for that hair.
However hormones, pregnancy, medication and the effects of aging all can result in development and changes in hair, so as time passes you may see more hair. These will be ‘new’ hairs- the laser can only treat hair that is present at the time of treatment, it doesn’t stop hair that will come as you get older.
Treatments work the most successfully on hair that is light brown to black. Blond, grey and some reds do not have enough melanin for the laser to absorb and those hairs will remain after the treatment is complete. Most clients will lose about 15-20% of hair volume with each treatment and each time you treat the hair that comes back will be finer and lighter. The FDA defines permanence as a hair that does not re-grow after 2 cycles of growth. Hair re-grows in cycles between 4-12 weeks depending on the body area.
Is there an age limit for treatments?
Hair growth can be a problem at any age. If you are struggling with unwanted hair then it is important to investigate what can be done to deal with it. The best thing to do is to have a consultation to discuss what is bothering you—no matter how old you are. We will go over the different methods that are available and what would be the most suitable method to cope with your specific problem.
It might be laser, or there may be a different method that will work better for you. It is suggested that girls have gone through puberty so the hormones that may be causing the hair growth can stabilize; but the reality is our hormones continue to change throughout our entire lives, so I find it is best to deal with the concern as it arises. All ages can benefit as long as they understand the process and potential side effects.
Is it safe?
Yes. The light sheer is really only interested in one thing- colour.
Laser light is attracted to three main elements in the body- blood, water and melanin. Lasers can be calibrated so they can focus on a specific one. The wavelength of the Lightsheer is attracted mostly to the melanin which is what makes up the colour in the hair. When the light is pulsed for a fraction of a second, it looks for melanin, and where ever it sees it, it is attracted to it and will heat it up. That’s how it destroys the hair.
Where there is not colour, the energy disperses and doesn’t really do anything. That’s why if I was to laser a spot with no hair- you’d hardly feel anything. And that’s the main reason the laser is so safe. The other reason is that the depth that it penetrates into the skin is so shallow and so controlled that it really focuses on the hair. To further protect the skin we use lots of cooling. The laser has a special cooled tip and we have a fantastic cold air machine that helps the skin get rid of some of the heat that is created in the skin during the process.
How long will the treatment take?
This will depend on the size of the area being treated. It can take as short as 15 minutes to 2 hours.
To give you an idea, an area like the underarms will take about 45 seconds for each side for the actual laser procedure, and then there’s prep and cooling that brings it to about a 15 minute appointment. Lower legs and backs are about 45 minutes, bikinis about a half hour. I will give you a good idea of the length of your appointment during the consultation.
What about ingrown hairs?
The laser is an amazing treatment for ingrown hairs. If you have ingrowns when we treat, the laser light travels through the skin to treat those hairs trapped under the skin.
It is an excellent treatment for those suffering from cystic ingrowns that can often be found on guys necks from shaving. What laser can do for ingrown hairs in the bikini line area is nothing short of a miracle. Skin that you thought would never be clear becomes as smooth as the inside of your arm. If you exfoliate after treatment, laser will not create ingrowns. And by destroying the hair you are essentially removing the very thing that is repeatedly causing the problem. I have seen clients who were due to have severe cystic ingrowns surgically removed avoid surgery with just a few laser treatments.
Laser hair reduction is an excellent way to overcome the issue of ingrown hairs.
Can I wear makeup?
Yes, depending on the type of cosmetics you use.
At Light Touch Laser we use Jane Iredale minerals. If you are treating an area on the face, I will do a mineral application after your treatment so you can feel comfortable to go about your day.
Four reasons I use Jane-
- It covers any redness present in the skin after treatment beautifully.
- It is an excellent sunscreen. It is a physical barrier between your skin and the sun- so you leave the office protected.
- It has zinc oxide in it which helps your skin heal.
- It allows the skin to breathe after treatment, which is important in allowing any heat that may be left in the skin to escape and not be trapped under makeup.
The next day, providing everything has gone as expected with your treatment, you can use whatever product you normally use. However, if you like the benefits you see with Jane minerals, I have them available for purchase in-house.
If the skin is open anywhere, do not apply cosmetics unless you are using Jane Minerals which are so gentle that they can be applied in this case. Open skin is not a usual outcome, so you should call me. In the meantime, you should use Polysporin ointment on the open spots.
How does the laser work?
The fact that hair grows in 3 stages is very important to laser hair removal.
Stage 1- Growth phase
Stage 2- Mature
Stage 3- Shedding
The laser targets the melanin, the colour located in the hair bulb and shaft. The laser light energy produces heat when it sees the colour and causes thermal damage to the follicle. The damage causes delayed re-growth of all the hair with colour and permanent destruction of the hairs in Anagen or growth phase.
Will tanning effect my treatment?
The laser and the sun do not get along well with each other.
A tan is damage to the skin. Whether from the sun or the tanning bed; from golfing or laying on the beach- whatever has caused the colour change in your skin- it is still a tan and will affect how your skin will respond to treatment. When your skin is damaged it creates “tan” or colour. This is “melanin” that has been deposited into the skin to give it added protection. It also means that your skin is already on the defence. This is not ideal.
The laser is attracted to melanin. It doesn’t care where it finds the melanin- wherever it sees it, the laser will heat it up. We want the laser to focus on the colour in the hair so ideally, the skin should be as light and as close to your natural skin colour as possible.
The Lightsheer has settings that allow it to treat a tan and lots of clinics will tell you how they can treat tanned skin. But here’s the deal. The energy of the laser must be reduced significantly to accommodate a tan. So if we are being gentle on the tan we are also being gentle on the hair- which we really don’t want to do because the client will require more treatments than someone without a tan.
To have a more effective and aggressive treatment it would be better to not have a tan.
Also it is very important to keep in mind that when you have a laser treatment it is critical to protect your skin from the sun for 2 weeks following your appointment.
The skin is not ready to cope with the sun right after laser. Although it might look fine, your skin is still recovering from the treatment and as a result it won’t tan properly if exposed. Should you expose your lasered area to the sun unprotected too soon, the effect of this, which usually shows as a pigmentation change –either darkening or lightening in the area- will correct itself, but could take up to a year. All you have to do to avoid this, is use a good high SPF sunscreen for the 2 weeks following your treatment and you are all set; keeping in mind that you’ll want to keep your skin colour nice and light for your next treatment.
How long do I wait between treatments?
Waiting time may vary with individuals. The general guideline is 4-6 weeks for neck and above areas and 8-12 weeks for areas below the neck.
What we are waiting for in the time between treatments is for the hair to start to re-appear. There is no point in treating if the hair hasn’t started to cycle yet. When the hair starts to come back, that is when you are due. These timelines are a good guide to use in booking your next appointment so you can stay on track to get the best results possible.
What can I do with the hair in between treatments?
Once the hairs that have been treated are shed, you should not have much hair to manage. If you need to, shaving or trimming is the most effective way to maintain in between treatments.
The hairs, when shedding in the week or two after your appointment, can sometimes be stubborn, especially early in your first few treatments. Using a face cloth or exfoliating mitt will also help the treated hairs come out and let you get the most out of the honeymoon period between treatments.
Even tugging gently on those hairs with tweezers to see if they come out without resistance will help you get rid of the treated hairs. Then you can get the most enjoyment out of what I call the “honeymoon period” of laser.
Who is a candidate for laser hair treatments?
Anyone who has hair that is light brown to black. Males and females of all ages can benefit.
Darker skinned clients require a patch test and 72 hours to ensure that their skin will not over react to the laser. The Lightsheer allows clients with any skin colour to be treated safely and effectively.
The ideal candidate—
- Has hair with colour that they don’t want.
- Is not pregnant
- Is not tanning
- Is not taking Accutane
- Has not recently waxed, tweezed or had electrolysis within the last 3-4 weeks
- Does not have active cold sores or genital herpes at the time of treatment
How many treatments will I need?
The number of treatments is largely determined by the cycles in which the hair grows.
The cycles are staggared and only a certain percentage of the hair is in the right cycle to be destroyed at a given time. If all the hair was in the growth phase at once (the anagen phase) then one treatment would get them all and laser hair removal would be very straight forward. However, that is not the way hair grows.
About 20% of the hair will be in the right phase to be destroyed at a given time, with the rest of the hair being affected only in that they are carbonized, fall out and when they finally cycle through again, will come in a bit finer and lighter.
With each treatment our goal is to have as many hairs as possible in that growth phase. Then we will systematically knock out a cycle each time. This usually means 6 treatments. Most clients should expect six sessions.
Because we are chasing these hair that are continuously cycling, repeated sessions are necessary. Finer hair and dark skin clients may require 6-8 treatments. If you suffer from a hormone imbalance your treatments may be ongoing.
To have effective treatments it is imperative that they be sequenced.
Every client’s expectations of hair loss is different. Some may be happy with 50-60% loss and may want to discontinue treatment there, and others will want until they reach their maximum loss of 70-95%. It is important to understand that no one will ever be 100% hair free.
What areas can be treated?
Anywhere the dime-sized head of the laser can get full contact can be treated except for the area around the eye. This includes full Brazilian for both male and female and everything from the scalp to the toes.
What should I do before my treatment?
- Try to avoid sun exposure. Hair can be more aggressively treated without a fresh tan.
- Having the root of the hair present is essential to having a successful treatment. Therefore, you cannot wax, tweeze, thread or have electrolysis for 3-4 weeks before a treatment. The best way to manage hair before is to shave, trim, bleach or use cream depilatories.
- The night before your treatment the hair will need to have been freshly shaved. Or if it is a difficult area for you to shave yourself, or you find shaving does not agree with your skin, I am very easily able to prep the area when you have your treatment. If you do shave the area yourself and there are little strays outside the obvious growth area, leave a bit of a head there so I can see it to treat it—those hairs tend to be the most annoying when all is said and done.
- You can use self tanners, but discontinue for a week before treatment.
- If you suffer from cold sores often and are having your mouth area treated, you might want to get a prescription for Acyclovir or Zovarix and take as directed by your Physician. Usually it is 2 days before and 3 days after your treatment. It will suppress the possibility of the light from the laser to trigger an outbreak.
6.Purchase either Aloe or Vitamin E gel and keep them in your fridge ready to go for after your treatment. Often these won’t be necessary, but it can be a nice thing to do for your skin. Sometimes the skin can have a bit of a heat feeling that lingers and these will have soothing and calming effect. Be sure that they do not have added colour. Stay away from the bright green stuff and check that there is no alcohol in the ingredients list- it will sting when applied.
What should I do after?
You will be given a post care treatment sheet and please follow the suggestions on it to have the best possible outcome.
Why the LightSheer Diode Laser?
The LightSheer has numerous documented studies to demonstrate its efficacy. With its patented chill tip and 800 nm wavelength and ability to have a variable pulse duration to affect hair the Lightsheer diode is considered the “gold standard” for lasers used in hair removal. For more information please visit the Lumenis web site. www.lumenis.com
Does the treatment hurt?
When you pluck a hair it hurts. And that hair will grow back. How, then, would it be possible to destroy the hair so it doesn’t come back without feeling it?
No treatment to remove unwanted hair is completely painless.
There is a nerve attached to every hair. If you hurt the hair, you trigger the nerve. Any hair removal that does not trigger the nerve is not going to destroy the hair.
Lightsheer has the patented chill tip and compression of the skin which reduces the discomfort. The darker the hair the more the client may feel the pulse of the laser. But the darker the hair- the better the treatment works…
Clients that have previously waxed or had electrolysis usually find the treatments more tolerable. Most people describe the sensation as tingling or slight stinging some heat sensation associated with it. The first treatment is usually the most uncomfortable because the hair is the most dark, dense, and coarse that it will be.
The most interesting thing about laser hair removal is when the pulse is fired you feel the instantaneous sensation and as soon as it is over the area goes back to feeling pretty comfortable. We will move through the treatment as quickly and efficiently as possible and when you leave the clinic you should feel fine (except a slight sticky feeling from the aloe gel we’ve applied..)
There are some options to make the treatments more comfortable. You can take whatever you normally take for a bad headache before your treatment. Topical anestheic creams like Emla™ or Maxilene are available. You purchase them or other forms of Lidocaine at your local pharmacy. Ideally you want a minimum of a 4 % Lidocaine, which we have in-house.
The hair needs to be shaved first then a layer worked into the skin with a secondary layer spread over top and then this is covered with saran wrap. The shaving and the saran wrap help the medication penetrate more deeply and it works the best after it has been on for a minimum of 1-1.5 hours. We can do this at the clinic if you prefer but adequate time needs to be booked in advance to allow for this.
What can I expect during the treatment?
You will be asked to sign a consent form that outlines that you understand that laser requires more than one treatment and the other details that we will have covered during the consultation. Subject to your approval, photos will be taken to document your starting point.
I understand the intimate nature of some of the treatments that you might be having. Every effort will be made to make you feel at ease. I have treated a lot of bikini lines, male and female, in my seven years as a laser technician.
It is a huge source of pride for me that my clients often make comments that their experience was so much better than they thought it would be. I have had mothers who I have treated in the past bring their daughters for treatment when it’s become an issue- and there really is no higher compliment. I understand that treating certain areas might be awkward at first, and I will help you through the treatment because it is so worth it. Whatever you feel about getting the treatment done it is nothing compared to the liberating feeling of not having to worry about it at all.
There is a drape provided for any degree of undress and you will have the opportunity to get ready for your treatment in private.
With the underarm area you can wear a tank top or just leave your bra on and cover with a drape.
For bikini lines, panties can remain for the Basic or French Cut- you have the option of wearing your own or using the disposable ones I provide. For Brazilian or Brazilian Plus, those areas are more thoroughly treated with panties removed.
The area will be cleaned and outlined with a highlighter (the laser won’t see the highlighter as colour). If it is a larger area, it will be divided into sections to ensure a thorough treatment.
A touch up shave will be done to remove any visible hair.
A cold ultrasound gel is applied to the skin and the laser is compressed against the skin and the treatment begins.
During the treatment, you will have a wand that blows cold air to aim towards the treatment area. This is a great tool to help cool the skin while we are treating. It makes the treatment more comfortable and helps the skin recover faster when the session is over. Also, an Aloe Vera gel will be applied to your skin to soothe and calm for best results.
You will notice a distinguishable aroma of ’lasered’ hair. This is a good sign and is one of the end points we want. We will move section by section applying aloe to each section as it is completed until complete. We will take as many breaks as you like. As soon as the treatment is finished you should feel quite comfortable and able to go about your day, with only a few restrictions in the next 24 hours. Always remember to protect your skin from the sun
BOTOX Cosmetic is an injectable treatment derived from a purified protein. It smoothes out frown lines by preventing the muscles between your eyebrows from contracting into a wrinkle.
How is BOTOX® Cosmetic™ used?
A tiny amount of BOTOX Cosmetic™ is injected into the muscle that creates the dynamic wrinkle. When BOTOX Cosmetic™ is injected into the muscle, it blocks the nerve impulse from reaching that area, and as a result, the muscle relaxes. As the muscle relaxes, the dynamic wrinkle overlying the muscle is smoothed away.
Where can BOTOX® Cosmetic™ be injected?
The most common areas for the use of BOTOX Cosmetic™ are the frown lines between the eyebrows and on the forehead. On occasion, some other areas may be treated as well; however, in Canada, BOTOX Cosmetic™ is only cleared for use for frown lines between the eyebrows.
Will it give me a fake frozen look?
Not if you are treated by an experienced doctor, who will be able to determine the right dose and injection technique for you. The treatment only relaxes the muscle beneath the frown line at the injection site, so the other elements of facial expression remain active. It also has no effect on the sensory nerves, so you still have normal feeling in the treated area.
How long does BOTOX® Cosmetic™ treatment last?
The effects of BOTOX Cosmetic™ usually last three to four months, at which time another injection is required to maintain results. After several treatments, the effects of BOTOX Cosmetic™ may begin to last longer.
\Are BOTOX® Cosmetic™ treatments safe?
BOTOX Cosmetic™ has been used safely and successfully in ophthalmology for over 10 years, and for wrinkle therapy for over 6 years. In the amounts used for wrinkle therapy, the most common side effects, such as bruising, are temporary and localized to the area of injection.
