Before you head to the doctor for laser hair removal, make sure you are prepared. Proper preparation starts about four to five weeks before your procedure.
Any time you have a medical procedure done,
you need to prepare properly for it. For serious surgeries where complications are common, doctors will over-prepare you for what to do and what to expect. When you are choosing a non-invasive cosmetic treatment, like laser hair removal, this might not always be the case. You may need to do a little learning on your own to determine just what you need to do to prepare.
If you are considering laser hair removal, there are a few steps you can take prior to your procedure to ensure that the results are as effective as possible, and also avoid some common side effects to this procedure. Knowing these at least a month before your procedure will give you the best possible outcome.
When you schedule your procedure, your doctor should give you a set of instructions. If they do not, ask for them. If they do not offer instructions, find a different doctor. You need to know what exactly the doctor's orders are for you to prep your skin for the procedure.
In the month prior to your procedure, stop using any treatment other than shaving to deal with your unwanted hairs. This will give you better results from the procedure when it is time. If you use sunless tanning treatments or visit the tanning bed, stop doing so for at least a month prior to your treatment. Too much melanin in your skin can prevent the lasers from properly attaching to the follicles. Avoid any situations that could cause sunburn as well.
Much of your preparation occurs in the day before your treatment. You may be thinking that you have to let your hairs grow prior to laser hair removal, but this is not true. Instead, you should shave the area the day before your treatment.
If the hairs are too long, they can burn. If they burn, then you decrease the effectiveness at destroying the follicle while increasing the likelihood that your skin will burn. Also, shaving makes the treatment proceed much more quickly and minimizes pain or discomfort.
The day of your treatment, you have a little more to do to prepare. If you normally use lotion, deodorant, perfume, makeup, or any other topical treatment on the area that you will have treated, skip it the day of your treatment. Substances on the skin will have an impact on how well the lasers work.
If you know that you have a low pain tolerance, ask if you can have an anesthetic cream. This can dull the sensations during laser hair removal. If your doctor does not wish for this, take acetaminophen 15 to 20 minutes before your procedure to dull the discomfort.
That is it. That is all you need to do to prepare for laser hair removal. If you follow all of your doctor's orders precisely, you should have a successful procedure. Keep in mind that this is not a 100 percent effective way of dealing with unwanted hairs. You may still find that you have some strays that survive the procedure, your may need to have a repeat treatment, but for the vast majority of patients who meet the qualifications for this treatment, including both men and women, it is highly effective at minimizing the look of unwanted hairs.
