The way you feel about your body hair is your business. Many people embrace their natural body hair and choose to leave it be, but that choice isn’t for everyone. For those who choose more of a metro approach to body hair, knowing how to treat excess body hair requires a lot of extra work. The constant shaving, waxing, and hair removal creams use up time and money while putting your skin through a lot of stress.
Dr. Brent’s practice is your center for plastic surgery in Los Angeles. But he also provides many non-surgical aesthetic treatments. Laser hair removal is but one treatment offered at his Los Angeles location.
How to Treat Excess Body Hair
Most of the methods we typically use to treat excess body hair just aren’t sustainable. Shaving, waxing, and even hair removal creams all come with a list of negative side effects. These include:
- Redness
- Irritation
- Bleeding
- Ingrown Hairs
- Rash
- Allergic Reactions
- Chemical Burns
- Sun Sensitivity
- Blisters
- Pimples
With all of these side effects, your legs, chest, or back may be hairless, but more often than not it won’t be the perfect skin you’re envisioning. Add an irritant such as saltwater or sand during your next beach day, and you’ll wish you hadn’t gone through your regular grooming routine the day before. As a result, it is always best to choose a hair removal option that minimizes damage to your skin.
Protecting Your Skin
To be fair, every hair removal technique puts your skin through some stress. Ideally, you want to space out that stress as much as possible. The extra time in between hair removal treatments gives your skin time to properly recover. As far as conventional salon and at-home methods go, the necessity of proper spacing has made waxing the gold standard of hair removal because the treatment only needs to be done about once a month.
Unfortunately, waxing is also one of the most painful hair removal methods. Bleeding and redness are an expected side effect that most patrons just see as part of the process. They deal with the pain, hide their skin for a few days, and then enjoy almost a month of hairless skin. Luckily, modern technology has made it possible to receive even better results without the pain.
Opting for a Better Alternative
Laser hair removal makes it easier than ever to get long-lasting results with minimal side effects. You may still experience some redness and irritation, but instead of lasting just a month, laser hair removal can last up to two years. That’s a lot of money, time, and pain you aren’t wasting on keeping unwanted body hair at bay. Even if you shave at home, you’ll still likely save money over those two years by choosing laser hair removal.
Of course, laser hair removal isn’t for everyone either. You will want to speak with your primary care physician as well as Dr. Brent Moelleken to make sure that laser hair removal is the right choice for you. Be prepared to answer questions regarding any medications you may be taking (especially blood thinners) and any skin conditions you may have. Learning more about your medical history will help your board-certified cosmetic surgeon determine whether you are a good fit for laser hair removal.
Preparing For and Recovering From Laser Hair Removal
Laser hair removal is a fairly straight forward procedure, so there is very little prep or recovery involved. However, sunlight can play a serious role in determining the quality of your results. Don’t be surprised if your cosmetic surgeon wants you to take time out of the sun to normalize your skin tone prior to the procedure, as tanned skin is slightly more prone to changes in pigmentation during laser hair removal.
Your surgeon will also ask you to keep the treated area out of the sun for at least a few weeks. Your skin will be sensitive after the treatment, so you won’t want to expose it to UV radiation right away. Instead, it is better to give your skin the time it needs to heal. After all, you’ll have two years to enjoy your results anyway.
