How often do laser hair removal?
A question that often arises when you think about laser hair removal is: “How often do laser hair removal?” or “How many treatments do I need for laser hair removal?” If you are wondering how often you should have laser surgery for lasting results, you are certainly not the only one. In this blog I will tell you exactly how many sessions you should consider, but also the difference between certain devices, such as the device we use for lasering and the well-known IPL device.
Brief explanation of the hair growth cycle
Before I immediately address the question of how many laser treatments you need, it is important to share some more background information.
The hair growth process consists of several phases and is known as the hair growth cycle.
Basically there are three main phases, anagen phase, catagen phase and telogen phase. The anagen phase is the active phase and in this phase laser hair removal is most effective. The hair follicles go through a phase independently of each other.
Because each hair follicle within the same treatment zone goes through a phase independently of each other, it is possible that one hair is in the anagen phase and the other in the telogen phase. This is why you have to come back several times.
Hair growth cycle duration
The average duration of a hair growth cycle is 6 weeks and for the face this is between 4 and 5 weeks. This is also the reason why I schedule treatments every 6 weeks and for facial treatments every 4 to 5 weeks. On average, this is the most effective period to repeat a laser hair removal treatment.
How many laser treatments are needed for a permanent result?
I think it is important to be transparent in the way we work. That is why I will never name an exact number of treatments, but can only give an indication based on my experience and knowledge.
The information about the hair growth cycle is essential to understand why you need to undergo laser treatment multiple times. Unfortunately, laser hair removal does not immediately provide 100% results after one treatment. 90% of my clients indicate that they see a difference after the first session.
The majority of my clients, approximately 60-70%, achieve 95% results in 7 sessions. On average, laser hair removal requires between 6 and 8 treatments for the result to be definitive.
Side note number of laser treatments
Of course, there is a caveat to the number of treatments you need for laser hair removal. Laser hair removal works with settings based on your skin and hair type. It is important to maintain the standard settings but to increase the 'power' with each session. This way you make leaps during the treatments. If this is not possible due to sensitivity, this may affect the results.
IPL vs. laser
IPL is also called laser hair removal by some, although this is actually not true. IPL stands for Intense Pulsed Light and should actually be called light therapy.
IPL uses a broad spectrum of light with different wavelengths. Although the light is also focused on the pigment of the hair, it is less concentrated than with laser light. IPL technology is effective at reducing hair growth, but it achieves this in a more widespread manner.
In contrast, our laser uses wavelengths including Alexandrite, Diode and nd:YAG. This results in optimal results with fewer sessions than with other methods.
IPL requires a greater number of treatments than laser hair removal. IPL often does not achieve a higher result than 75-80%.
I will go into more detail in another article the comparison between IPL and laser.
