Guide to Pain-Free Hair Removal for Sensitive Skin
People with extra sensitive skin have it rough. You have to read the ingredients on everything. You have to watch your diet. You can’t wear most perfumes. Want to sleep over at someone’s house? Better bring your own sheets! It’s like walking through the world having to be on constant high alert for invisible things that will attack you and make you itchy, irritated, and red.
And when it comes to something like hair removal — which, let’s face it, most people do to some degree — there’s a whole host of other problems, from shaving irritation to allergic reactions to creams to super tender post-electrolysis skin. Is there even such a thing as pain-free hair removal for very sensitive skin?
Yes! Believe it or not, there is! At-home intense pulse light (IPL) devices like the Silk’n Flash&Go PRO provide permanent, pain-free, at-home hair removal. Think it’s too good to be true? Keep reading.
What does it mean to have sensitive skin?
Believe it or not, “sensitive skin” isn’t a medical diagnosis. It just means that your skin is more prone to irritation more often than is other people’s skin. Maybe it gets irritated and red when you use certain products, or you must have scent-free everything or you’re just always itching and burning. For some people, that kind of sensitivity is caused by the fatty top layer of skin being thinner than it is on other people. But for others, it can be a sign of an underlying skin condition.
Some skin conditions that can cause very sensitive skin include:
- Eczema (also called atopic dermatitis). Symptoms include dry, itchy, inflamed skin.
- Rosacea. Symptoms include red skin, swelling, and visible blood vessels.
- Psoriasis. Symptoms include scaly, dry patches and rashes.
- Contact dermatitis. These are rashes that you get when you touch something you’re allergic to.
In some people, frequent flare-ups of very sensitive skin can be due to a weakened immune system. So if you’re not sure what’s going on — like you haven’t ever been diagnosed with one of the skin conditions listed above and you’re still itchy or red or bumpy all the time — schedule an appointment with your health care provider.
The causes of irritation depend mainly on the type of sensitive a person has. For example, people with contact dermatitis might get red, bumpy, irritated skin when they come in contact with a certain fragrance or ingredient. With eczema, a change in diet can cause a flair up.
And when it comes to hair removal, there a lot of factors to consider. Let’s take a look at what people with very sensitive skin need to be thinking about when they’re considering the most popular hair removal methods. Spoiler alert: Most of them aren’t so great.
Shaving for sensitive skin
Shaving is one of the most popular hair removal methods, mainly because you can do it at home, it’s affordable, and it works for most hair types. And while people with extra sensitive skin certainly can shave, the repeated contact of moving the razor over and over again against the skin can cause irritation. The end result? A decidedly not pain-free hair removal experience.
Another potential irritant when shaving is the ingredients in whatever shaving cream and gel you’re using. It can be difficult to find a shaving cream that is truly okay for people with very sensitive skin. (And you know that the “sensitive skin” labels are BS, right?) Some people choose to use a shower gel that they know works, for example, but that comes with an increased risk of post-shave irritation.
Waxing for sensitive skin
The biggest pro of waxing is that you don’t have to do it very often — most people can get away with going to the salon every few weeks. Because it pulls hair out by the root, you can expect smoother skin for a longer of period of time when compared to shaving.
Waxing probably isn’t a great idea for people with very sensitive skin, for two reasons. One: It pulls the hair out by the root, which can cause surface irritation. For a person with overly sensitive skin, that irritation can last for a while. And for any person, waxing is the opposite of pain-free hair removal.
And, two, it’s hard to be sure what ingredients are included in the waxes used at salons. But one thing you can be sure of: They’re likely to contain irritants.
Sugaring for sensitive skin
Sugaring is a natural waxing method that’s been used for millennia to remove unwanted hair. Instead of a wax, you create a warm, sticky mix of sugar and water. That mix is applied to the hair, left to cool down, and then ripped up. Not pain free, but at least generally pretty quick.
The disadvantage of sugaring is similar to that of waxing: Pulling hair out by the root on very sensitive skin can lead to major irritation. But, unlike waxing, sugaring is an all-natural treatment. That’s the big advantage it has for sensitive skin types: You know for sure the ingredients.
Hair removal creams for sensitive skin
If you have very sensitive skin don’t use hair removal creams. Even the ones that use aloe vera or vitamin E or try to look more “natural” are packed full of chemicals that often irritate the skin of people with non-sensitive skin.
There’s really no such thing as a “natural” hair removal cream, or at least not one that works. So unless you’re cool with slathering yourself with chemicals — sensitive skin or not — it’s probably best to avoid these altogether.
Electrolysis for sensitive skin
Electrolysis is a hair removal method that pushes a teeny tiny prong into the hair follicle, zaps it with electricity, and damages it. After repeated treatments, the hair follicles die, and the hair can no longer grow back. It’s a great option for permanent hair removal.
The downsides of electrolysis are pretty numerous, though, and even more if you have sensitive skin. First of all, you have to go for multiple treatments. That means lots of time spent at the aesthetician — and lots of money to achieve permanent hair removal. It also can be a little painful for people who don’t have sensitive skin, so those with very sensitive skin might experience extra irritation afterward.
Intense Pulse Light (IPL) hair removal for sensitive skin
Which brings us to intense pulse light (IPL) hair removal for people with very sensitive skin. IPL — which is what the Silk’n Flash&Go PRO uses — is a revolutionary new hair removal method that uses intense, target light to zap and damage the hair follicle. Over repeated treatments, people using IPL see reduce hair growth and, eventually, permanent hair removal.
And that’s the first benefit of IPL for people with very sensitive skin: After a few treatments, you don’t have any more hair to remove! That means no more irritation from shaving; no more pulling hair out by the roots from waxing or sugaring; and no more electrolysis. No more hair removal at all! Is there a more pain-free hair removal method than that??
With the Flash&Go PRO, we recommend you do a test run to see how your skin responds before trying to remove all of your unwanted hair. Pick a level, do a test pulse on a part of your skin that’s not visible, and then wait 24 hours to see what happens. If it’s red or irritated the next day, then the level you chose was too high and you need to run another test on a lower pulse level. Keep repeating the process until you find the pulse level your skin can handle.
Just before you do the IPL treatment, clean and shave the part of your body that you’ll be treating. Use whatever cleanser you know works for your skin. And if shaving with a wet razor is too much for your sensitive skin, check out the Silk’n Trim Precision Hair Trimmer. It’s a compact electric trimmer that’s kinder on sensitive skin than a wet razor might be.
Once everything is prepped, all you have to do is glide the Silk’n Flash&Go PRO over the treatment area. Once you’ve covered all the square inches, follow up with your favorite moisturizer to help the skin get over any minor irritations as quickly as possible. You’ll likely need a few treatments but, eventually, you’ll have baby-smooth, irritant-free skin.
Throw away that razor, because you’re definitely not going to need it again.
Give at-home IPL hair removal for sensitive skin a try
Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it? The Silk’n Flash&Go PRO is the latest and best in at-home IPL hair removal and it’s excellent for hair removal for very sensitive skin.
For more information, reviews, frequently asked questions, and our Q&A section, check out the Silk’n Flash&Go PRO page. And if you still have questions or doubts, feel free to reach out! We’re always happy to talk to potential customers.
