Unwanted hair is usually caused by normal systemic changes such as puberty, pregnancy and menopause. Anytime there is a hormonal change in a women's body, there can be an influx of hair growth. A glandular imbalance, your hereditary factors, some medications and stress can also play a part in the production of unwanted hair.

      A medical history form is filled out before the consultation, as it is important for your electrologist to have an understanding of the cause of your unwanted hair. After reading your medical history and talking to you about your unwanted hair problem, your electrologist will be able to recommend a treatment program for you. Electrolysis requires a series of treatments over a period of time to reach the end result of permanent removal. This is due to the fact that hair goes through many different stages before it is visible on the surface, and we can only treat the ones we can see. When we are looking at an area to be treated, we can tell what direction we need to insert the filament so we can be precise in reaching our target, the dermal papilla. It really is a process of elimination. As your body produces the unwanted hair, your electrologist will remove it. As you make progress you will need less time for the treatment and you will be seeing your electrologist less often.

      If you have been tweezing the hair, you will need to stop! Your electrologist needs to have some growth visible (it doesn't have to be real long!) so she can remove the hair after it has been treated. In between treatments you can clip the hair close to the skin, or even shave it. (Yes, I did say shave it!) When you do this, you are only cutting the hair off at the surface of the skin. When you tweeze, wax, or use any method that pulls the hair out, there is a greater chance of getting ingrown hairs. That can result in pitting and scarring, (from trying to dig them out), or distorted follicles which can make electrolysis more time consuming. You also risk increasing the growth over time as you repeatedly increase the blood supply to that area. Eventually, as the hair growth is reduced, the shaving will also stop, and clipping a few will not even bother you because you will see such a marvelous change!

      If you have been shaving, or using a crème depilatory to begin with, usually we find that your treatments will progress quicker because you have not disrupted your natural hair growth pattern.

      During treatments you should not feel the insertion of the filament. You will feel the application of the treatment, (a heat or sting sensation is how most clients describe it). Then the hair needs to be removed, this is done with a tweezer. It should not feel like the hair is being pulled out. If you do feel tweezing, the treatment is not being done properly and you will not see good results. Why pay for something that you can do yourself?

      After the treatment your skin will feel warm, and it will be a little red and puffy which is normal for any skin trauma. Usually within 30 to 60 minutes this will subside. The application of a mild astringent and sometimes a cool pack can be used until the skin returns to normal. It is very important that you follow your electrologist's recommendation for after-care during the next 24-48 hours.