Something different yet again! There's a lot of new treatments going on these days that make a lot of claims. Like those that apparently help you lose weight without needing to exercise and anti-wrinkle creams that use stem-cells (eww).
I'm going to review something that you can't take home (although there are versions of this that can be taken home). Today, I will review a service and the place that provided me this service - laser/IPL hair reduction.
Cost (Aus): I bought this treatment package during a special deal for $149, valued at $1,600. This allowed me 6 treatments, once every month.
What is it?: It's a "very low and ultra safe wave of light" that is aimed directly at the hair, which is transferred down to the hair follicle and it's supposed to burn that, weakening it and causing the hair to fall off easily.
It's NOT permanent hair removal but during my first treatment I was told that a lot girls had hair not growing back for years and would only come back for a 'touch up'.
It's recommended you have 4-10 sessions but of course results vary person to person and they can't guarantee it will work. Those with red, blonde or white hair can not be treated and it is most effective on people with dark hair and fair skin, which I am so I was pretty hopeful for this to work.
Depending on how intense they make the laser, it can hurt. If it does hurt, it basically feels like an elastic band being flicked onto your skin. You can always ask the person treating you to lower the intensity but I would assume that would lower the effectiveness of the laser.
They recommend you shave your legs because it helps direct the light to the follicle more effectively. Do NOT epilate or wax because then the light would have no path to follow to get to your follicles.
What happens: If it's your first time, you have to fill in a form like you would at the Doctor's or Dentist. Once that's done, you're lead into the treatment room where the person who will treat you leaves you in the room after asking you to remove your pants or whatever may be blocking the laser from your skin. There's a skirt they provide, which has a split so you can still cover yourself and only reveal the part the needs to be treated. You then lay down on a bed and before the person treating you comes in, they will make sure you are ready. When they come in, you are usually given special glasses to block the light from piercing your eyes. This light is quite bright and fills up the room.
Before using the laser, they rub some lotion on to the parts they will laser. I guess this helps increase it's effectiveness. They then use the laser and try to cover as much of your legs at possible. It's hand held and only covers a small area.
Once it's completed, sometimes they rub the after-laser lotion on your legs for you or they get you to do it. If you do do it, they leave the room and that's it! Of course you leave the room too :P
Service: I'm not sure if me buying this treatment via a deal site had an effect on how they treated me but I felt like they didn't give me an equivalent service they would if I were a full paying customer, which, I don't find surprising but still, it's pretty dodgy.
Anyways, the reason why I feel this way is because I compare my first few treatments with the following and the latter were not that great. The first two treatments I really felt like I was being taken care of and I felt the laser was effective because it hurt a bit and afterwards, I did notice the hairs on my legs were easier to pull out (using an epilator). I could even remove them using my fingernails! From my third appointment and onwards, sometimes I would be sent to a different room despite the original room - where I felt gave me the best results - was empty, (and was still empty after I finished my treatment). In the new room I felt the laser was different since it no longer felt the same as the first room, it didn't hurt me as much, meaning, they lowered the intensity despite me being able to handle a higher level. As a result of this, I believe, the strength of my hairs on my legs returned to normal and nearing the end of my treatment, I hated it because I felt like I was wasting my time.
Another thing that made me feel uncomfortable was the amount of times the person treating me changed. I thought a service as personal as this would involve the same person doing the treatment for you. I've had hair cuts done by the same person and the good thing about that was the relationship you were able to build and that person already knew what type of cut you like, etc. Here, I couldn't form any bond or familiarity and it felt like I was going to an unknown place each time. Maybe it's just me though. Or maybe I really, really wanted the first person I saw to treat me. She made me feel so comfortable and at ease.
I did notice the hairs on my legs grew slower, which found me epilating/shaving once a week and I used to have to shave everyday.
Conclusion: Now, I have to admit I'm not a scientist when it comes to this kind of treatment but I do find it suspicious and sad that the quality of service given to me lowered over time. And I guess it's pretty annoying when the first treatments you get give the best results and those afterwards seem to no longer be effective. Doesn't it work the other way around? It's not like I was an awful customer or anything. I'm always polite when receiving services because you never know what people are doing behind your back!
Would I do this again? Maybe, if I were rich.
Was it worth the $149? I guess not really. They say you get what you paid for but the difference here is they said 'get $1,600 worth of treatment for $149', so shouldn't I be getting what it's worth? Like I said, I'm not surprised that this happened but it's still annoying.
