Electrolysis Faqs

Electrolysis is the only FDA approved method for permanent hair removal. It involves the usage of an electrical current that is distributed directly into your hair follicles, destroying the areas that provide the nutrients for hair growth. The follicle damage prevents hair from growing and causes the existing hair to fall out.

I never start an Electrolysis service with a new client unless we have a consultation appointment, regardless of whether they have had electrolysis elsewhere or not, as this will enable me to provide the most efficient, individualized treatment.

At your consultation appointment, I will evaluate your skin and hair type and design a customized treatment strategy. The key elements to be decided upon are the modality/type of current, the duration, and frequency of the treatment, and your home aftercare procedures.

Every hair on your face and body is produced independently. This means that not all hairs are visible on the surface of the skin at any given time. The follicle produces the hair and discards it eventually through shedding. The process of growth, rest (dormant) and replacement are known as the hair growth cycle. The sequence of events is repeated constantly until a hair ceases to be formed.

Unwanted hair can be caused by hormonal changes brought on by pregnancy, and electrolysis can be performed safely. With that said, I am happy to provide my electrolysis services to a pregnant person, but I do require written approval from your doctor.

Be sure that your hairs are long enough to be grabbed with a professional tweezer (approx. 3mm). I strongly recommend shaving or clipping, as absolutely close to the surface of the skin, 3 days before treatment so that we can ensure completely permanent results for those hairs present.

Drink plenty of water the day before your treatment. As moisture content is one of the key factors in the success of Electrolysis, please consume as much pure water as possible at least 24 hours before treatment. In the hours directly before your appointment, please try to drink at least 1 liter.

I cannot emphasize this enough, but hydration will make your treatments so so much more effective and comfortable. Moisturize the areas to be treated topically in the morning before your appointment as per your regular skincare routine.

Try to avoid caffeine on the day of treatment. Please also steer clear of sodas or other stimulants. Your nervous system will be calmer and your hair follicles will respond better to treatment.

If you are having an underarm treatment, please skip your deodorant or antiperspirant on the day of your appointment. The follicle mouth will be more receptive to treatment as a result.

Last, but not least relax and enjoy the fact that you are becoming hair free permanently!

The latest technology has made electrolysis more comfortable and effective than ever before and I will do a thorough after-care process that will calm and soothe the areas treated, and minimize any after-treatment reaction. However, the following healing symptoms are perfectly normal and expected:
• Slight redness (disappears within hours of treatment)
• Slight soreness in the area (dissipates in 24-48 hours)
• Minor swelling (disappears within hours of treatment)
• Tiny red scabs on the follicles (usually appear after 24-48 hours and disappear in less than a week)
• Occasional milia or whiteheads in the areas treated (most often seen in the upper lip area). These are normal and is the body’s way of evacuating bacteria that were already inside the follicle before treatment.

In the highly unlikely event of an infection, you will witness symptoms within 24 hours. If you notice any sign of infection – pus, extreme redness, extreme soreness – contact me.

Yes, electrolysis will work perfectly, even if you are tweezing or threading your hair. But as tweezing and threading hair increases blood supply to follicles, which results in coarser hair re-growth, you may require more treatments. That said, you definitely would realize permanent results by the end of your treatment program.

If you would like a rough estimate of the amount of time you will need for your electrolysis treatment in case you are a daily tweezer/threader, here is the formula you can use: Number of Minutes Spent Tweezing/Threading Daily x 7 (days of the week) = the approximate number of minutes needed to treat the area one week after you have stopped tweezing.

You can expect to have at least 2 months of weekly treatments for this many minutes before reducing the length of your treatment, but be sure, that as time goes on, treatments will diminish along with your hair. In the end, you will be hair-free!

The treatment plan varies greatly from person to person and depends on several factors including the amount of hair, the size of the area being treated, sensitivity level, and the hair growth cycle.

Factors such as previous use of temporary hair removal methods, heredity, hormone function, certain medication, and stress, influence the treatment program for each individual.

When you come for your consultation I will advise you on approximately how long to expect for treatments over your particular areas’ growth cycles.

Most clients find that weekly sessions beginning at thirty minutes to one-hour work best. Eventually, moving to 15-minute touch-up treatments on a less frequent basis is sufficient. Again, the more closely you adhere to a treatment schedule, the sooner you will become hair-free forever.

Keep it clean. Even though I will have taken the most detailed precautions to protect your skin before and after treatment, you will have to refrain from touching, rubbing, scratching, or squeezing the area(s) treated. 

Stay out of the sun for at least 24 hours after treatment, especially on the face, and use sunscreen with SPF 25 or above. It is vital to protect your skin from the sun during your healing phase else you could subject your skin to hyperpigmentation.

Don’t use any occlusive product, such as Vaseline, as this will prevent the evaporation of heat present in the skin following electrolysis treatment and thus hinder the healing process. 

If you are having underarm treatments, please refrain from using deodorant or antiperspirant for 24 hours after treatment.

After face treatments, please refrain from using makeup, particularly creamy foundations, for 24 hours after treatment.

Allow the skin to form its natural protective barrier for healing before introducing any potential irritants.

Refrain from hot tubs, pools, saunas, steam rooms, or anything that will get you very sweaty for at least 48 hours after treatment, as we need to ensure that no unnecessary bacteria is introduced into the treated areas.

Try to wear loose-fitting cotton clothes, particularly in bikini, nape, and underarm areas treated to allow the skin maximum breathing and healing opportunities.

Be sure that regular electrolysis treatments will minimize the need for growth management. But early on in the course of treatment, or in the case of strong hair growth, there will be hairs that you will need to be dealt with.

Tweezing, threading, waxing, or laser is an absolute no-no. Trust me, in most cases, cutting those unwanted hairs close to the skin, will be sufficient until our next appointment.

In case you suffer from an excessive amount of hair and have, before commencing electrolysis treatment, only been coping by shaving the hair daily, you can continue.

All you have to keep in mind is to allow at least 24 to 48 hours of hair growth before your electrolysis treatment. As finer hair grows slower than coarse ones, you may be requested to allow several days of growth.

In any case, I reassure you, that the careful and strategic planning we will do before starting our electrolysis treatment will aim toward the discontinuation of shaving, section by section.

Electrolysis cannot be performed if:

• You are on Blood-Thinning medication
• You are having Cochlear Implants or a Pacemaker
• You suffer from Dermographia or Haemophilia
• If you have Keloid Scarring
• If you have recent scar tissue, sunburn, bruising, edema, or swelling in the area to be treated
• If you suffer from active Rosacea in the area to be treated
• If you suffer from circulatory problems i.e. Phlebitis/Thrombosis in the area to be treated
• If you had Dermabrasion (medical) within 6-12 months, Micro-dermabrasion within 4-6 weeks, or a recent Laser/IPL treatment in the area to be treated
• If you have a loss of tactile sensation in the area to be treated
• If you have metal plates or pins on/near the direct current return path

In the following cases, I will require written approval from your physician:

• If you have auditory devices apart from Cochlear implants
• If you suffer from Diabetes, Epilepsy, Heart Conditions, High Blood Pressure, Lupus, skin diseases, pigment disorders, or if you have a history of Cancer
• If you are immunosuppressed, or if you are on steroids
• If you are pregnant
• If there is a mole in the area to be treated.