5 Reasons Why didn't my hair fall out after laser hair removal?
Home » 5 Reasons Why didn’t my hair fall out after laser hair removal?
SYNOPSIS Of Laser hair removal -
Laser hair removal is a medical procedure that uses a concentrated beam of light (laser) to remove unwanted hair.
During laser hair removal, a laser emits a light that is absorbed by the pigment (melanin) in the hair. The light energy is converted to heat, which damages the tube-shaped sacs within the skin (hair follicles) that produce hairs. This damage inhibits or delays future hair growth.
Hair color and skin type influence the success of laser hair removal. The basic principle is that the pigment of the hair, but not the pigment of the skin, should absorb the light. The laser should damage only the hair follicle while avoiding damage to the skin. Therefore, a contrast between hair and skin color — dark hair and light skin — results in the best outcomes.
Many patients expect to see their hair falling out almost immediately after a laser hair removal session. However, this is a misconception: unwanted hair doesn’t magically fall out by the next morning after your laser hair treatment.
So why doesn’t hair fall out after a laser removal procedure? In one session, a laser device might only be able to address around 15% of the hair which falls off on its own later on — around 5 days or more after the procedure. This mechanism varies on the person and their age, skin type, hormones, and natural hair growth processes.
About ‘hair’ & its ‘growth cycle’
Before figuring out why hair doesn’t fall out after laser hair removal, it’s important to take a look first at the three major hair growth cycles your follicles undergo:
- Anagen – Anagen is known as the growth cycle; it is the most ideal stage for laser treatments to work. The anagen phase is when hair is visible on the surface of the skin, which allows the laser to hold onto it and move heat down the strand and into the hair follicle.
- Catagen
– The catagen stage of the hair cycle is right before the hair falls out naturally and not because of the laser. During this time, laser hair removal will not be as successful because the hair itself is already dead and is being pushed out of the follicle.
Telogen – Telogen is the final stage where the hair is neither growing nor developing under the skin. Also known as the resting stage, telogen is the least ideal time to have laser hair removal done as no hair is showing above the surface of the skin.
Why aren’t you shedding after Laser Hair Treatments -
Laser hair removal is a medical procedure that allows patients to temporarily pause on the daily need to wax, shave, tweeze, or pluck their unwanted hairs. The process utilizes powerful light from a laser device to target the pigment in dark hair, which allows the heat to penetrate the skin and destroy the hair follicle. However, it is not permanent and a new follicle will grow back eventually.
After one session of laser, the hair bulb will come out over a 7 – 30 day period. During this time, redness and bumps may appear as your body is pushing dead hair out of the follicle, although ingrown hairs may get trapped under the skin as well. Patients may think it is hair growing but in reality, it’s the body pushing the hair up to the surface and working the hair out of your skin to get rid of it.
Some patients may worry because not all of the hairs in the treatment area were shed after the laser session. It is important to note that each hair follicle might not necessarily share the same growth cycle as the ones around it. The laser can only kill hair during the anagen phase but only around 15% of hair would be in this stage during one laser session. This means only 15% of the follicles will be destroyed and only these hairs will fall out 5 – 14 days after treatment.
The growth cycle is also the reason why it may take 6 – 8 sessions before all hair follicles are destroyed. Each treatment area also has its own growth cycles; hair growth in the upper lip may take a 4-week cycle while the growth cycle of the legs may take 8-10 weeks. Usually, a cosmetic surgeon will spread out the sessions in your treatment plan by six weeks to synchronize with hair growth.
Why are results not visible to you post-laser hair treatment -
You didn’t time your treatments correctly:
Proper treatment times are essential. If not enough time has been allocated to each one of your sessions this will result in large areas being left untreated. Laser hair removal treatments should not be rushed in any way. This will affect your results. If the laser is passed too quickly over the skin the energy from the laser will not be absorbed correctly. As a result you will notice some patches of hair that were missed are growing back a lot faster than others.
Hair type and hair color
Hair type is also a factor to be considered. Hair that is rough and coarse will have more prominent hair follicles, while hair that is fine and smooth will have less distinct hair follicles. The ideal candidate is a patient with fair skin and dark, coarse hair. The further a patient is from the ideal laser hair removal profile, the more difficulty they may experience.
While recent advances in laser technology have helped to alleviate some of these pigmentation-related problems, it still remains a slight issue today.
Possibility of hormonal imbalance:
One of the top reasons why Laser hair removal doesn’t work boils down to hormones. Yes, believe it or not hormonal conditions can lead to ineffective hair removal. Our hormones encourage hair growth with the most common one being testosterone. Males naturally have higher levels of testosterone which is why they’ve more hair, especially facial hair. Women naturally have lower levels of testosterone and a woman’s testosterone levels are controlled by estrogen. This yin and yang type balance prevents women from growing as much facial hair (and other hair for that matter).
Women with excessive body hair or facial hair might see laser hair removal as their go-to hair removal treatment. However, if you have too much hair, it might be a case of a hormonal imbalance that could cancel out laser hair removal results. If your hair growth is a result of hormonal imbalance, laser hair removal might not work at all for your excess facial and body hair.
If you believe that your excess hair might be related to hormonal imbalance, consider having a medical evaluation prior to your laser treatment. Some predictors of excess hair due to hormonal imbalance include sudden hair growth, obesity or acne problems, or a family history of hirsutism.
Rate of growing hair
Laser hair removal can only target hair follicles that are in the first stage, the growing stage. Several treatments are necessary to effectively burn all the hair follicles that are missed in the other treatments, as they go in and out of the growing stage.
If your laser hair treatments are not spaced optimally relative to your hair’s growth cycles, then your laser treatments might not be affecting as many hair follicles as necessary for best results.
Waxing before treatments
Believe it or not, this is one of the top reasons why Laser hair removal isn’t successful for people. Yes, you do need to remove the hair before every single laser hair removal treatment but you cannot wax it. If you wax before a Laser hair removal treatment, it’s pointless. It won’t work. And it never will if you keep waxing.
Why? Because the laser needs to identify the pigment to locate and target the hair follicle to encourage targeted hair loss. Waxing removes the entire hair and follicle so no pigment can be found.
For best results, it is essential that a patient follows proper preparation protocol before a laser hair removal treatment. Failing to do so will lead to less-than-ideal results, or even no changes at all.
Benefits of Laser Hair Removal -
Laser hair removal can provide a wide range of benefits for many different reasons. Here are ten of the best:
Long-term solution
Once the hair follicles have been destroyed, they will not grow back. This means that you can say goodbye to unwanted hair for good and get lasting results.
Low maintenance
Laser hair removal is a wise investment for anyone who seeks a permanent solution for hair removal. Annual touch-ups are recommended, but that’s nothing compared to the time you would have spent shaving!
Minimal side effects
With advancements in laser treatments, they have become less painful and more effective, thus reducing the severity and number of side-effects. The most common side effect is follicular edema: redness at the follicle that lasts 24-48 hours.
Quick
Laser hair removal sessions are short. Small body areas (lip, underarms, bikini) only take 15 minutes! Even larger areas will only take up a small fraction of your day.
No more ingrown hair
Laser hair removal treatments eliminate ingrown hairs, minimizing the risk of inflammation, bumps, and itching.
Less painful
Laser hair removal is a less painful option compared to other methods of hair removal including waxing, tweezing and threading.
Safety
Thanks to new advances in laser hair removal technology, people with dark skin tones now enjoy the same level of safety as those with lighter complexions. And you can depend on no more razor cuts that can lead to unsightly scars.
Precise Treatment
The precision of laser hair removal makes it ideal for removing specific hairs, such as those in a particular area or on a small section of skin. We can treat between your eyebrows or even shape your beard.
Promotes beautiful skin
In addition to reducing hair, laser treatments can reduce the frequency and severity of acne breakouts. It can also prevent the dark marks that are secondary to skin irritation and help improve tone and texture.
Convenient
Laser hair removal saves so much time that is otherwise spent on grooming.
Detriments of Laser Hair Removal to You -
Risks of side effects vary with skin type, hair color, treatment plan and adherence to pre-treatment and post-treatment care. The most common side effects of laser hair removal include:
Skin irritation. Temporary discomfort, redness and swelling are possible after laser hair removal. Any signs and symptoms typically disappear within several hours.
Pigment changes. Laser hair removal might darken or lighten the affected skin. These changes might be temporary or permanent. Skin lightening primarily affects those who don’t avoid sun exposure before or after treatment and those who have darker skin.
Rarely, laser hair removal can cause blistering, crusting, scarring or other changes in skin texture. Other rare side effects include graying of treated hair or excessive hair growth around treated areas, particularly on darker skin.
Laser hair removal isn’t recommended for eyelids, eyebrows or surrounding areas, due to the possibility of severe eye injury.
FAQ'S -
In most cases, you’ll need between six and twelve treatments. These treatments are spaced out four to eight weeks apart. The waiting period is necessary to target every hair follicle while it’s in an active stage of the growth cycle
Laser removal can be performed on any area of the body except the eyelids. The most popular treatment areas are the legs, back, arms, chest, upper lip, underarms, and bikini area. You can also get laser hair removal on your ears, nose, scalp, forehead, eyebrows, and other parts of your face.
Anyone can get laser hair removal, regardless of skin color or hair type. However, people with light skin and dark hair tend to see faster and better results than people with light hair or a darker skin tone. Any man or woman can have the treatments, though pregnant women should wait until after they’ve given birth to begin their sessions. Contact best cosmetologist in Mumbai for the best treatment.
It is best to play it safe and avoid laser hair removal while you’re pregnant. There is no evidence to suggest that it is unsafe, but there have not been long-term studies to analyze the effect of the laser on an unborn child.
To protect your unborn baby, wait until after you’ve given birth to begin laser hair removal treatment.
There is no specific age minimum, but it is important to wait until you’ve gone through puberty to begin laser treatments. Females should not begin treatment unless they’ve already started their menstrual cycle. Generally, fourteen is the earliest age that people should begin laser hair removal.
Some people see permanent results, while some people may need a touch-up treatment every six to twelve months. Results vary depending on your hair type and skin type. Proper preparation and aftercare can also affect how long the results last.
The answer is yes. The U.S Food and Drug Administration approved it as a safe method for hair removal in 1997. However, laser hair removal is only safe when a licensed technician performs the procedure.
