Facial hair growth can be one of the most challenging aspects of transgender transition. While hormone therapy may help decrease it over time, electrolysis remains the only effective means to permanently eliminate facial hair.
Before selecting an electrologist, carefully assess their training and track record. Be wary of electrologists that do not belong to an established professional body that oversees their practice.
Costs
Electrolysis provides permanent hair removal that leaves smooth, hair-free skin; making it the ideal permanent hair removal solution for transgender women and gender confirmation surgeries (grs, phalloplasty or metoidioplasty). Furthermore, its use as part of gender confirmation surgery (grs/phalloplasty/metoidioplasty).
Unfortunately, electrolysis can be both painful and time consuming, prompting transgender people to seek alternative methods for hair removal that might be faster, cheaper and less painful. Resist any such temptations; such approaches may lead to unscrupulous practitioners taking advantage of transgender people by promising false hope or promises.
When choosing an electrologist, make sure they specialize in transgender hair removal and have considerable experience dealing with this population. Seek recommendations from those who have undergone the procedure, and visit their practice for a consultation visit before making your decision to undergo treatment. During this consultation visit, inspect for cleanliness and hygiene; inquire about training/experience as well as look out for scams!
At the outset of your transition process, electrolysis treatments will likely be required. It is generally advised to start this treatment shortly before puberty ends and maintain an ongoing schedule, particularly for facial treatments; clearing a typical face and neck typically takes anywhere between 100-400 hours of treatments.
Electrolysis will likely require weekly or biweekly appointments over a two year period to achieve permanent hair removal. While it may seem tedious at times, the results will make the process worthwhile and help give you a hair-free feminine appearance that people will notice!
While undergoing electrolysis, you should use topical anesthetics to alleviate pain and discomfort. There are prescription and over-the-counter options such as EMLA or ELA-Max that you can find in pharmacies; alternatively some electrologists provide injection anesthesia to ensure complete pain reduction – this helps avoid scar tissue formation as well as skin damage from this procedure. If financially assistance is required to cover this procedure then Point of Pride offers this assistance for FTM/MTF, nonbinary/gender nonconforming people living within the US.
Treatment Time
Electrolysis is a permanent hair removal method that utilizes electrical current to deactivate each individual hair follicle to destroy its growth center, taking time and commitment over an extended period. Many transgender people utilize it as part of their physical transitioning to remove facial and genital hair that detract from presenting themselves feminine.
Electrolysis provides long-term permanent hair removal results and is effective on any part of the body. When selecting an electrologist to assist in your journey, be sure to find one who has both experience and compassion – this will ensure you’re treated with dignity and respect throughout.
Treatment duration will depend on both an individual’s hair type and length, so exact results may vary depending on their situation and timeline for completing their journey. While some people can achieve permanent facial hair removal within two years or less, others could take much longer. As early treatments with electrolysis tend to work more easily on growing phase hair than terminal end hair cycles, starting as soon as possible and maintaining a regular treatment schedule are key parts of success for achieving successful transition.
Electrolysis treatments may cause discomfort, but you can manage the pain with topical anaesthetics like prescription EMLA cream. Regular use can prevent skin sensitization and drastically decrease discomfort during sessions. Also discuss with your electrologist the possibility of Nitrous Oxide Sedation which provides anesthesia through a small face mask during electrolysis sessions.
Electrolysis is an excellent way for transgender women to remove facial hair through electrolysis, so it is wise to begin this process early and follow a regular treatment schedule, beginning with facial treatments. While it may take up to 400 hours of treatments for full clearance of facial hair in transgender women, the result will be smooth, beautiful skin that’s hair-free.
Aftercare
Transgender people often struggle with facial hair growth, detracting from their desired look and making life uncomfortable. Electrolysis is an effective solution that involves passing an electric current through individual follicles to destroy their growth centers permanently and can be applied across skin types and colors.
Before beginning treatment, ensure your electrologist understands and respects transgender issues, so they can offer you optimal care. Also seek recommendations from transgender individuals in your locality who have successfully undergone the procedure.
After each treatment session, it is perfectly normal to experience temporary side effects such as redness, swelling, welts, tiny blisters or scabbing. To minimize these side effects and ensure faster healing times it is important to drink plenty of water during and after every session as well as use soothing gel afterward to accelerate recovery time.
Avoid tanning, working out, and other activities which increase sweat production while the treated area is healing, as these activities could cause the skin to swell and delay treatment. In addition, avoid applying makeup or other products directly onto the site as these may irritate it further.
If you have excessive hair growth, try growing out your locks before each electrolysis appointment to reduce the number of hairs needing removal and speed up your transition faster. In addition, cut back any long or coarse locks prior to an appointment since these will be harder for an electrolysis probe to reach.
After visiting an electrologist for many months, you will begin seeing results. Each hair has its own growth cycle that can only be killed with certain treatments; an experienced electrologist should be able to kill about 75% of each growth cycle at once for optimal results; it should take around 18 months until all unwanted hair has been eliminated with regular electrolysis sessions.
Safety
Electrolysis may be your safest bet if you want to permanently eliminate facial and body hair, as it destroys hair follicles without risk of them growing back. Be sure to choose an experienced electrologist who understands your goals while providing safe procedures within an uncompromising supportive environment, with regards to privacy and choices respected at every turn.
Your electrologist will ask whether or not you are taking any hormones, such as testosterone. Androgens control organ development including hair follicle development – when present, androgens produce hair typically associated with female gender identity while when blocked they remain dormant but when permitted back in can produce hair typically male in nature.
Most transgender women transitioning to female will require genital hair removal for both their face and chest areas. Although this process is time consuming and costly, as well as potentially painful, it is necessary in order to create a hairless appearance and ensure a successful transition process.
Make sure that when choosing an electrologist for hair removal on transgender individuals, he or she has experience performing it on other transgender patients and understands all available genital surgery options, helping you select the appropriate surgery procedure.
An experienced electrologist can utilize various techniques to reduce discomfort during their procedure and can customize needle placement and current levels to accommodate diverse skin types.
Before your electrologist appointment for either your face or genital area, it is recommended to stop shaving at least 5 days in advance to make it easier for him/her to see and remove existing hairs. In addition, caffeine and alcohol consumption should also be reduced prior to appointments as this can dilate blood vessels and delay diagnosis of existing problems.
Consider inviting someone you trust as support to your electrolysis appointment. Electrolysis treatments can often leave people feeling vulnerable, so having someone in your corner may make the experience less uncomfortable and provide needed distraction. Your supporter could take notes while keeping you distracted so as to minimize pain.
