Laser Hair Removal for Dark Skin - Witness A Visit

Some of you may be wondering what a laser hair removal experience is like.  Well, I will share with you what my experience at BodyLase is like.  Come with me.  Above is the standard treatment room.  To the right of the bed you see the lasers.

Above you will see the laser.  When receiving a laser hair removal treatment, most times your practitioner will have you cool your skin with ice packs or a cooled glass plate.  With this particular model, there is an attachment that blows cold air on the skin to keep it cool during treatment.

The practitioner demonstrating how the laser is used.  The pointed end is more of a guide.  The orange glow on her hand shows us the area being treated by the laser.

Here, I have taken my place on the table.  She is marking planes on my face that are the treatment areas.  This will prevent her from treating the same area twice. I have also been fitted with my eye protection at this point.

In this picture, I am receiving the laser treatment.  She has placed a tongue depressor under my nose to prevent some of the air from going in my nose.  This actually was the worst part of the treatment. The air used to cool my skin is soo forceful it literally took my breath away.  Again, you see the orange light showing the practitioner the area that she is treating.

Another treatment area up by my cheekbone.  Many might ask what does the laser feel like.  I guess it would be best described like a rubber band snap, where the pain goes away immediately.  I also get my eyebrows threaded.  To me, the pain from the eyebrow threading is worse than the laser treatment.  So while there is some discomfort, I would characterize it as mild.  The worse area for me has been along the jaw line where there is little fat. There is a little more discomfort in this area.  You might also smell a little singed hair after the laser makes contact with a hair. 

This picture was taken after a previous treatment but after each treatment a combination of a post treatment cream and a spf 30 sunblock is applied to my skin to soothe my skin after treatment.  I usually wear this for 15 or 20 mins before cleansing my face.  The only side effects I have felt after treatment is a little tenderness on the jaw line after treatment and maybe a tiny pimple.  These usually subside in a day or so.

Special thanks to Karen Albright at Bodylase for allowing me to take pictures in her facility.  Thanks also go out to Meredith for being patient while pictures were taken during our last session & to Matt for stepping in to be the photographer.

The next post in this series will show my progress after 3 treatments.

What questions or concerns do you have about laser hair removal as a melanin rich woman?  If I can't answer them, I'll reach out to the staff at BodyLase to respond!