Laser Hair Removal isn’t Permanent — Especially if You Get Pregnant
Nothing lasts forever, right? (Photo: Ian Rubin/Trunk Archive)
In my 20s, I worked at a popular style magazine in New York and treated myself like a beauty guinea pig, gorging on as many treatments as humanly possible. (For research, of course.) Most of them were as temporary as my youthful attention span: the hair extensions, fake eyelashes, and spray tans I indulged in were all fleeting, lasting months in some cases, mere days in others.
But there was one brand-new treatment that promised truly permanent results: laser hair removal. Getting rid of your unwanted body hair—forever? Sign me up.
I jumped through the various hoops: scheduling my treatments six months out, shaving pre-appointment, popping Aleve, and slathering my nether regions in numbing cream. I dutifully went in for my monthly appointments, gritting my teeth as the technician burned away my hair follicles, each zap of the laser like a rubber band snap-snap-snapping against my skin. Six months later, I was a hairless wonder. Bye-bye razors. Sayonara ingrown hairs. It was glorious.
“By the way,” they said to me on my way out, as if an after-thought. “It’s not permanent permanent. You’ll need a little upkeep over the years. Maybe. But probably not.”
Fast-forward a decade, and it was as if I’d never even had the procedure done. If anything, I seemingly had more hair. How was this possible? For answers, I turned to celebrity dermatologist Simon Ourian, MD. His Beverly Hills clinic Epione has an entire floor devoted to laser hair removal, so I knew he’d help me get to the bottom of my failed experiment.
Our conversation stunned me: it turns out that IPL, the early laser treatment I had undergone a decade prior, wasn’t a laser at all. Back in the wild-west days of laser hair removal, IPL (which stands for Intense Pulsed Light) was popular, but mostly because it was one of the only options. While IPL uses multiple wavelengths, lasers use a single-wavelength for your individual skin tone, making them more concentrated, powerful, and precise. And because IPL only targets active follicles, dormant follicles eventually become active, equaling regrowth. In essence, I was punished for being an early adaptor and should have waited a few years for better lasers to hit the market.
But now, laser options abound. Regardless of the laser, they’re all based on the same premise, explains Ourian: “Laser light is absorbed by the melanin in hair follicles, destroying them while leaving the surrounding tissue undamaged.” Various lasers are used for different complexions: Nd:YAG for dark skin, Alexandrite for light to olive skin, Diode for dark skin and coarse hair, and Ruby for light skin.
More shocking? The fact that I’d had a baby the year before all but guaranteed that my results wouldn’t have been permanent, even had I used the right laser to begin with.
Turns out that even the best new lasers are occasionally powerless in the face of that tidal wave of bodily disaster: pregnancy. “Pregnancy-related hormonal changes may cause hair re-growth,” admits Ourian, adding that the success of laser hair removal might also be affected by medication you’re taking, hormone levels, and even age or menopause. “Hormonal changes brought on by pregnancy or menopause may cause previously-lasered follicles to reactivate and grow new hair,” says Ourian. “The same may be true for those with excessive levels of testosterone.”
However, Ourian doesn’t think family planning is necessarily a reason to hold off on lasers. “In reality it could be years, perhaps many years, between when you might first want laser hair removal and the birth of your children. I don’t think this is a medical decision so much as a personal one,” he says. “But if you’re planning to have kids soon then it may make sense to wait have laser hair removal.”
Regardless of whether you’re done having kids, I was surprised to learn that my technician from years ago was still correct: laser hair removal isn’t permanent, even now. You’ll need about six treatments to see results, but despite their long-term efficacy, you should only expect a 70-90% reduction in hair. In fact, under FDA regulations, laser hair removal can only claim permanent hair reduction, not permanent hair removal. Scheduling maintenance appointments over the years is recommended for maximum satisfaction.
So, permanent laser hair removal isn’t quite permanent, but still produces a significant reduction — one that’s highly worth it. At least, as long as you’re done having kids!
Related:
5 Things to Know About Laser Hair Removal
Everything You Need To Know About Hair Removal
A Lesson in Lasers: How to Rid Wrinkles, Banish Hair and Reduce Redness
