First Date with the Laser
For those of you who are newer CD's or are curious, here is my description of the process.
First, this decision took me two years to make. Body modification is not something to be undertaken without some forethought. Who are you now? Who will you be 10 years from now and how will you be thinking then?
I made the call last week. I told the girl my intentions and said I had some questions. She transferred me to the technician. Jennifer answered my questions and then I told her I had another issue. I am transgender, and since we will be spending some time together, will you have any personal issues with this? No, absolutely not.
The appointment for the consult was for 12:30 today, just after lunch. I showered and shaved, no makeup. I arrived 1/2 hour early so I waited in the truck for 15 minutes. The "spa" was in a professional office building on the third floor. I walked in wearing white cotton capri pants, a magenta v-neck sweater, black suede flats and my natural hair. I don't wear forms, I'm a natural 36B.
Jennifer greeted me almost immediately, asked my to fill-out a medical history form, and then invited me back to a treatment room. They use a laser for the dark hair, and then follow this up with an RF unit for lighter hair. I will likely need both.
She asked me some more detailed medical history questions including current medications. Then she did two small test patches on my face to calibrate the laser and to see my skin reaction. She warned me that there would be some discomfort, but it was fine for me. Pulling a beard hair out with tweezers would have been more painful.
Afterwards, she worked-up a cost quotation based on her consultation. I explained that I would be leaving on a field assignment in less than two weeks, and would like to have my first session before I leave. Unfortunately, she is leaving tomorrow for a two week vacation. She did have an opening later this afternoon, and asked me if I was interested. I came back two hours later and we initiated the session.
The laser is a pistol grip with some kind of trigger. The tip looked roughly 1/2" square and was liquid cooled to protect the skin. My laser blasts were calibrated at 30 milliseconds. This is a very short duration. By the time you feel it, it is over. She pressed it firmly against my skin, fired, and then moved a half inch or so and repeated. Occasionally there are applications of skin moisturizer.
It takes about 45 minutes to do the whole face. Afterwards she moved me to a new room and applied sunblock. I am to use 30spf minimum, 45 is better every morning. I will go back in about 6 weeks for another treatment because we have three phases of hair growth and many of my cells are inactive right now. I will require between 3 and 6 or more treatments to achieve satisfactory results.
I researched this completely before taking the plunge, and everything Jennifer told me has been spot on. If any of you in west Michigan are interested I can provide contact info and cost. Just PM me. I was treated with complete respect and acceptance, and could not have had a more positive experience.
Michelle
