Electrolysis

Overview

Unless you begin HRT very young, you'll probably need electrolysis (aka zapping) to remove facial hair. This is not fun, or quick, or cheap. I've had over 100 hours so far, and I estimate that I'm only about half completed. I think this is fairly typical, but some people need significantly less, and others need much more. It's generally cheaper to have an hour of electrolysis than to have two half hour sessions, and you can often get discounts for paying for several sessions at once. You need to let the hair grow to a reasonable length before an electrolysis session; for me, not shaving the relevant area for one or two days beforehand is sufficient. I'm very fortunate in having pale hair which doesn't show up much against my skin, so the stubble doesn't attract much attention. If you have darker hair, lots of makeup is the usual solution (though it may be better to avoid makeup on the day of the session, to avoid irritating your skin any more than necessary). After a session you can expect temporary redness and swelling of the treated area, and possibly bruising on occasion.

Electrolysis involves having a tiny needle inserted into a hair follicle, and an electric current run through it to kill the follicle. The hair is then pulled out with tweezers (which shouldn't hurt if the follicle has been treated properly). It often takes more than one zap to kill a follicle, and follicles are not active all the time (ie you have many more follicles than the number of hairs visible at any one time). There are three types of electrolysis: thermolysis, galvanic, and blend (a combination of thermolysis and galvanic). Thermolysis (which uses alternating current to heat the follicle) is much faster, but galvanic (which uses direct current to cause a chemical reaction at the follicle) has a higher kill rate. Galvanic and blend electrolysis require you to hold a sponge wired to the electrolysis machine to complete a circuit. There is no consensus on which method is best, but blend is the most common. Make sure your electrologist is skilled, and if possible has experience working on women with Benjamin's Syndrome, or at least male facial hair. If not done properly, electrolysis can be ineffective, or worse leave you with permanent scarring.

Though many people are put off by the needle, it is actually the electricity that makes electrolysis a painful experience. I've found that the insertion of the needle (which does not actually pierce the skin) and the tweezering seldom cause any pain. The pain from the electricity is quite variable, depending on how close the particular hair is to a nerve, and the concentration of nerves in the area. The upper lip is easily the most painful area for most people. There are ways to numb to skin before an electrolysis session, but I've mostly managed without them. The exception to that is the upper lip, which does need some kind of anaesthetic to be bearable. Emla cream (available from most pharmacies) is quite effective in numbing the skin. It needs to be applied in a generous layer an hour beforehand, and either covered with plastic wrap to prevent it from evaporating or reapplied every twenty to thirty minutes. It seems to retain its effectiveness comfortably for a full one hour session. A 30 gram tube of emla costs about US$60, but will last for many applications if you concentrate on a small region each session, and the cost is neglible compared to the electrolysis itself. Another option is to go to a doctor or dentist beforehand to get a local anaesthetic injection, which is very effective but more expensive and more hassle. I also found it to be rather uncomfortable while wearing off.

Laser Hair Removal

May 2002 Update: the state of laser hair removal appears to have improved in recent years. Effectiveness has increased, and price has come down. If you have dark hair and pale skin, it may well be worth a try. It still does not give 100% full removal, but that isn't the ideal outcome anyway; women naturally have very fine, soft facial hair. A friend of mine is currently trying laser with quite remarkable initial results, though of course the lack of permanence was laser's biggest problem and it's too early to tell how much progress has been made there. I'll update this page in a year or so when we've seen the long term outcome.

Original Item: This DOES NOT WORK! At best it may shock the hair follicles into dormancy for a few months, but eventually most people get complete regrowth. The people marketing it do their best to imply that it has permanent results, but are not legally allowed to say so directly because it isn't true. The only permanent result that it can achieve is skin damage, if you're unlucky. I believe one brand may have been approved as providing permanent reduction, but that is NOT the same as permanent removal. If anyone claims it did work for them, check when their last treatment was - they probably haven't waited long enough to tell (at least a year). Also check whether they were supplementing the laser treatment with traditional electrolysis. It "works" best on people with pale skin and dark hair; if used on pale hair it's unlikely to achieve even significant temporary results. The tweezer systems and home electrolysis kits that get advertised in mail order catalogues do not work either (only the ones that include needles rather than tweezers can do anything at all, and even those are not very effective), so don't waste your money. Unfortunately, professional electrolysis is the only effective way to permanently get rid of unwanted hair, so the only alternative to going to a beauty salon is to acquire a professional electrolysis machine and learn how to operate it yourself.

Genital Electrolysis

In recent years it has become common to have electrolysis on parts of the scrotum and penis before GRS, to avoid hair ending up in unwanted places after surgery such as inside the vagina. Though this can be extremely embarrassing and painful, it is a very sensible idea. Individual surgeons will let you know their recommendations. It is a good idea to get to know your electrologist quite well before bringing this up, as they are likely to be uncomfortable with a relative stranger making such a request. This is the only situation in which I think laser hair removal should even be considered - a certain amount of hair removal can be done during surgery, and weakening the follicles with laser beforehand might possibly help a little. Maybe. It is also possible to do some tidying up after GRS, once you know where all the hair has ended up, but (with the most common surgical techniques) there are areas which cannot be reached by an electrologist after surgery, so this isn't a substitute for pre-surgical electrolysis. In my opinion, electrolysis around the base of the penis is not an option without some kind of anaesthetic. For me the level of pain is similar to the upper lip, but lasts longer. Emla is adequate for pain control. For injections, you'll definitely have to see a doctor rather than a dentist... :-)

Body Hair

If you're lucky, your body hair will be light enough with hormone treatment alone. Remember that women without Benjamin's Syndrome do have hair too, it's just very common to hide it or remove it by shaving, waxing, depilatory creams (eg Nair), etc. Some people do have electrolysis for other parts of their bodies, but this can be a big extra expense and take a lot of time even though the hair isn't packed as densely as on the face or genital region. I'd recommend it only if you're really sure it's necessary, and you've tried temporary removal methods (hair can sometimes grow back significantly lighter after waxing).

External Links

• Hair Removal - electrolysis section at TS Road Map.
• Electrolysis in Transsexuals - electrolysis section at the Looking Glass Society.
• Hair Removal - electrolysis section at Kathleen's Korner.
• Electrology 2000 - intensive hair removal.