A – Yes, you will need to shave your treatment area before every laser hair removal treatment you receive. Laser hair removal is effective because as the laser beam passes beneath the surface of the skin it turns to heat energy, and this extreme focused heat is what attacks the hair follicle and disables it at the root. In order for this to happen, the hair strand must be intact but not coming out of the skin.
This is why shaving is the only workable way to do this. As mentioned, the hair strand must be intact, and so, for this reason, waxing or tweezing is not an acceptable alternative to shaving. When you wax or tweeze hair, it is pulled out from the root and there is no hair follicle for the laser to locate and zap.
Using a depilatory (hair removal) cream is also not advisable. While the hair will remain intact under the skin, the chemical products in these creams may make the skin vulnerable to damage from the laser treatment.
Do I need to shave before each laser session? Yes, you do and shaving is the only hair removal method to be used before your treatment. Do NOT wax, tweeze, or use a depilatory cream. This is very important.
One last thing to be clear on as well is that you should shave the same day as your appointment is scheduled. Stubble or even the slightest bit of regrowth can reduce the effectiveness of your laser treatment. Most people will shave their treatment region the morning of their appointment. If your treatment is first thing in the morning and that’s not easily done, then shaving late the night before is usually acceptable.