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Review content:
As a woman who has struggled with PCOS and all its nasty effects throughout my entire adult life, I have become quite a laser expert. I've been to various places around the city (believe it or not I used all the money my grandmother left me when she died towards some high cost laser), and I have to say that Gentle Touch is a great deal for the money (I snatched up a Groupon for it). I want to be as unbiased and helpful as possible, so I'm going to talk about the positives and negatives...
The positives: the laser works. I am one of those ""pale skin dark hair"" people though, so keep that in mind. I paid for a ""full face"" package, which covers upper lip, cheeks, chin, and the neck. Having all sorts of dark hair on your face, is, as a woman, completely terrible. The psychological toll, the stress, the wondering if people will notice - I can go on and on. The laser works, people! My hair = gone, after one treatment. I know as someone who has a hormonal issue (the PCOS) and the fact that hair grows in cycles, I will need to keep going back every six weeks. It's 100% worth it, especially with this amazing Groupon deal. If I am able to pick this deal up again, I most definitely will.
My ""full face"" treatment took maybe 10 minutes to do
The negatives: this may not be a negative so much as an urging for people to understand how laser works before you go to your first session. The laser WILL burn your skin. If you have a lot of hair, it's going to burn. The burning is not a question, it's more a matter of how much it will burn. Immediately after you are treated, they apply the cooling gel to the area. Then the next few days the area will be red, splotchy, and tender. This has happened to me every time I've had laser. I've had laser treatments on different areas, with different lasers, at different facilities, and the skin always burns to some degree. But it does heal. It may take a few days or up to a week, but it should heal. If you can, try to schedule your appointment on a Friday so you have the weekend to recover in seclusion if you need to.
Immediately after the laser is the worst, since it zaps the hairs and brings all the hairs that were under the top layer of skin (almost) to the top, so they are quite noticeable. After a week or so, they shed completely and are gone. My face, which only a few weeks ago I couldn't even look at out of embarrassment, has looked better than it has in YEARS. I look like a normal girl!
Another more relevant negative to this location is the service - I understand with the Groupon they are VERY busy. After I booked the Groupon, I had called and emailed and hadn't heard back for several weeks, so finally I just showed up in person to make my appointment. Not only did I make an appointment, but since someone was a no show for their appointment, I got my first treatment done right then and there. And once I was there, everyone was very nice and helpful.
Yes, it's a tiny room with a laser and there does appear to be a hair salon in the back. Honestly, I don't even care, because with how expensive laser is normally, this is a steal. I recommend this place to anyone with realistic expectations of cost compared to service/location, because the bottom line is the laser WORKS.
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