Which Type of Laser Hair Removal Is Right For You? (AD)

AD – Guest Post.

Whether you’re trying to treat a lot of unwanted body hair or just a little, it’s likely that you’re tired of always waxing or shaving. I certainly am! After all, why bother if the hair is just going to regrow within a week?

There are ways now to get rid of hair for much longer, but I find myself a bit confused about the options, so I’ve never actually given them a try.

Most of them fall under the category of light treatments, but that category branches off into Intense Pulsed Light procedures and laser light procedures.

I didn’t actually know the differences between these and have been thinking about giving them a go for a while. Conveniently I had an email waiting for me in my inbox explaining the differences, so keep reading if you want more info!

A Brief Overview of Light Treatments for Hair Removal

Each treatment uses different forms of light

IPL uses a broad form of light. It’s essentially flashes of light directed at the skin. Those light pulses are directed by a hand-held wand device used by the clinic technician. In IPL treatments, the light gives off very little heat.

Laser treatments are quite different because each one uses a single light beam in a really concentrated form. Those concentrated beams of light are very powerful, and also very warm, whereas IPL light beams don’t usually give off much heat at all.

Treating a Small Area

If you have “problem hairs” located in very specific areas, laser hair removal machines can be very effective at getting rid of them. The machines can target even single strands of hair with extreme accuracy.

On the other hand, if you are trying to keep unwanted hair from growing back on a larger surface area, like your legs, you may want to undergo IPL treatments instead. The wider beams can be run across larger sections of skin much faster than most laser beams.

At-Home Kits for Both Treatment Types Exist

It’s also important to note that there are at-home lasers and at-home IPL devices available today. It might be tempting to just try one of them instead of going to a clinic to be treated, but there’s a catch.

The strongest laser devices should only be used by trained professionals, so the ones made for at-home use lack the power of clinical machines. The same is true for IPL devices too, so you’re likely to get much better and faster results in a clinic.

Picking One of the Two Treatment Types

If you’re interested in having a laser treatment to get rid of unwanted hair then you may have a bit of a long road ahead to find one that will do the job on your skin type. It all depends on your skin colour, how oily or dry it is, and what other skin conditions you are dealing with. Some lasers are meant to treat very specific skin types.

It won’t do much good to remove hairs with laser treatments if you accidentally damage your skin in the process, so make sure you find the right laser for you!

IPL is a bit easier because these devices aren’t as harsh or as particular as far as which skin types they can treat. However, they also don’t work as quickly or as well as laser treatments.

If you don’t mind a slow progression into getting rid of unwanted hair they’re great. But if you want immediate results right away then laser treatments may be a better solution.

Personally, I’m still a bit undecided about which to go for, have you had experience with either? I’d love to know.

Thanks for reading,
Emily.

Read about my experience with Laser Hair Removal at the New York Laser Clinic.