Men's IPL Hair Removal ★ Rockhampton

IPL is an abbreviation for Intense Pulsed Light. It differs from laser in that IPL uses a broad range of light frequencies to target many chromophores (light-sensitive molecules), i.e. melanin, collagen, haemoglobin, and porphyrin.

With each flash, light passes through your skin in search of the chosen chromophore. When it comes to hair removal, melanin located in the dermal layer is the one we want to seek and destroy. In very simple terms, when the melanin gets zapped, the hair dies.

A cool side note is that IPL can also be used to target melanin in the higher epidermal layer for treating skin pigment problems. Awesome hey?

With each IPL Hair Removal treatment, the machine will zap any hair follicles that are 'juicy', or in the early-anagen phase of growth.

Broadly speaking, each hair is actively growing for about one month, then goes dormant for five months, which is why you'll need a series of treatments.

IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) is or was a registered trademark. Over the years, this legal issue proved problematic for rival machine manufacturers, so they invented new names.

In other instances, new terms were used to differentiate from other versions on the market, sometimes with minor tweaks.

Here's a breakdown of the main IPL variants you'll likely come across and what they mean:

• E-Light - IPL technology combined with various RF technologies, which theoretically enables blond and grey hairs to be culled. I really wish this technology worked - I'd buy it in a heartbeat - but no machine maker has yet been able to provide me with a shred of evidence that it works.
• ELOS - Same as E-Light except that it's a trademarked brand name.
• PTF - Photo Therapy Flash - Very high energy output, sapphire heads, air-cooled to maximise efficacy. Medical-grade, no bells and whistles, indestructible. This is the variant I use.
• SHR - Super Hair Removal - not much thought went into naming this extremely low powered 'rolling' form of IPL. The head glides along the skin instead of being placed upon it. SHR is very fast, so salons can pump through lots of clients quickly but requires many treatments if it works at all, and ends up costing a fortune. Similar tech is used in the cheap hand-held machines sold online for home use, which have given IPL a bad name.
• SIPL - Super Intense Pulsed Light - Usually no difference. The term implies that SIPL machines are more powerful than other brands but I'm yet to see one that is.
• SPL - Square Pulsed Light - means nothing. All IPL machines transmit a square pulse.
• VPL - Variable Pulsed Light - means nothing. All IPL machines have variable frequencies.

• very dark skin: Type 6 and some Type 5
• waxing or plucking in the past week
• use of depilatory creams in the last month
• sunburn, dark suntan, fake tan
• contagious skin diseases
• STIs if treating genitalia
• open wounds, badly broken skin
• unhealed surgical scarring
• epilepsy or seizures caused by flashing lights
• Testosterone supplements
• Skin tattoos, eyebrow or scalp micropigmentation
• Photo-sensitising medications and supplements

Here is a list of contraindications for men's IPL which goes through each factor in detail.

As a general rule of thumb, each hair grows for one month then sleeps for 5 months to re-energise. I can only kill hairs that are actively growing.

For that reason, I recommend 6 treatments in 6 months, preferably 4 weeks apart.

After 6 sessions, we'll reassess. If you have no hairs returning, I'll start spacing out your appointments. We'll book your next session for two months, then four months, and so on, until I'm only seeing you every year or two for a top up.

On the other hand, if you're having a slower response but we're definitely seeing results, we'll just keep chipping away.

Ideally, you'll see one or both of these responses:

• Your hair will stop growing for 3 to 4 weeks, or
• Your hair will regrow normally for around two weeks, and then suddenly fall out.

No. Different tech, different service, different results.

Hair removal is the same as any other product or service. You get what you pay for. And frankly, if discount-chain laser is so good, then why is it so cheap?

Does any other product or service in Australia work that way? No.

The fact that there are two national laser franchises in Rockhampton, yet my share of the hair removal market continues to grow, speaks volumes.

IPL converts light energy into heat. Due to this energy transference through your skin, you might experience pinkness or a mild 'sunburn-like' effect.

This usually passes quickly but can last up to 24 hours. You can go about your normal activities but be sun smart with treated areas and cover up or use a sunscreen.

That's about it really. Significant negative side effects are extremely rare. In all my years at Man Thing, I've never had a single after-effect that required medical attention.

Definitely. Without pubic hair, sex is smoother and much more hygienic. Your partner will love it too.

No. I'm happy to do one treatment at a time.

I don't have contracts and I won't get you to sign a form committing to further treatments. Nor will I sell you 10-pack deals that achieve very little until the miraculous 10th treatment to encourage you to buy another 10-pack.

I provide a genuine no 🐮💩 service. When you have a hair removal treatment with me, you're under no obligation to return. Yet you will.

Absolutely. This special article about pubic hair removal and waxing for male cyclists explores your options.

Yes, if you tell me when you book. For various reasons, guys often combine waxing with IPL but I do need to know in advance.

It's common to notice after say four treatments that very little hair is growing back. Subsequently, people who don't take advice well, decide to ring and postpone their appointment.

This is a HUGE mistake, because next month they ring back claiming that their hair has grown back with a vengeance.

It hasn't grown back - This is the month's hair that we didn't treat because the client jumped a treatment, and now you'll have to wait six months for that bit of the cycle to happen again.

Remember that we are treating hair bulbs that you can't even see, not the hair above your skin that is already dead.

I cannot state this more clearly: Don't think you will be the exception - Everyone needs a MINIMUM of six treatments, so we cover the whole six month growth cycle.