Electrolysis -10 things you need to know
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Electrolysis
10 things you need to know
1. ONLY needle probe electrolysis will remove all hair types – yes it will hurt – no pain no gain 😛
2. Probe electrolysis (some are scared when they hear needle) uses a special polished blunt needle and does not (well should not) pierce the bottom of the hair follicle
3. ‘Needles’ come in a range of sizes and should not be reused – you should see it being opened and loaded by the electrolygist. Usually the thicker the hair the thicker the needle.
4. Hairs grow according to the shape of the follicle – for example a curly hair grows from a curly follicle – if you have curly hairs then you should get a blend treatment as that alone may not get ‘around the corner to the bulb.
5. Good machines should also offer CATAPHORESIS (+pos roller) AND ANAPHORESIS (-neg roller) treatments – the + roller is plugged into the machine and rolled on the area to be treated to open the follicle to make insertions easier and after treatment the reverse to reduce redness and normalise the PH of the skin.
6. FLASH capable machines are less painful but can result in some regrowth but are faster and very expensive :\ – thermolysis uses heat to cook the hair bulb – galvanic is most reliable but requires skill to use properly – it creates units of ‘lye’ (sodium hydroxide) this chemical reaction result in the lowest regrowth rate and is idea for difficult to access bulbs. Blend is a mixture of both – the heat in the blend method increases the chemical reaction of the galvanic.
8. A professional should have very good sterile working practices – clean skin pre – wear gloves non powdered – sterilise the handsets – not touch her nose or answer the phone during the session unless she washes hands after or changes gloves – be aware of this and should offer either witch hazel or aloe vera gel post treatment.
9. You should NOT be in agony! Lower powers work just as well but just takes longer (the electrolygist will nto be able to remove so many hairs in the session compared with tolerating more pain – but it still achieves the same result – always be honest about you pain threshold as it could last for hours!
10. If the electrolygist uses anything other than laser or needle and says this will ‘permanently’ remove you hair then its a scam – it won’t! Make sure your Electrolysis salon carries insurance and is registered with the local authority! Hairs do grow in cycles so hairs that return are not necessarily the same hairs that were previously treated!
One last thing needle means you need enough growth for a pair of tweezers to hold the hair and gently slide it from the follicle so your face needs that much growth 🙁 – laser does not – but may that not work if you have blonder, light brown or gingery hair.
Hope this helps.
DIY ELECTROLYSIS
If you plan on DIY Electolysis then there is currently only one budget device on the market
The ‘One Touch’ that has a stylus you thread down into the follicle – no other product under £250 will work as hairs do not conduct electricity everything else including tweezers and battery epens are a waste of money. The Vector (USA) when used with a pro needle handset will work and after that try and buy a Sterex student unit or similar that takes needle probes at around £299+ If you can afford it purchase an apilus slow thermolysis machine and if you are really loaded buy a flash capable device.
If you would like more advice then visit our forums DIY Electrolysis section or use one of the very good links below
Good links if you plan on DIY Electrolysis
http://www.hairtell.com/
http://www.tsroadmap.com/physical/hair/zapdiy.html
Citation: TransgenderZone.com