How short is too short? Hair length for electrolysis
If it’s your first time for electrolysis, you may be wondering how long your hair needs to be to ensure a good experience.
The short answer is: 3 mm (which is about the width of a classic wedding ring).
But, here’s the tricky part — knowing how long it actually takes to grow your hair to 3 mm! If you’ve had any type of professional temporary hair removal, whether it’s waxing, threading, sugaring, etc., you are probably already aware that human hair growth is not a uniform process — it actually grows in cycles.
Your personal rate of hair growth and previous methods of hair removal will affect the timeframe needed too!
The concept of hair cycles
So, rather than growing every hair on your body at the exact same time and then losing it all at the same time (for some, this may be a very scary hairless thought), right now, only 20% of your total hair is actively growing. This means the other 80% is in the process of being shed or has already fallen out, after which your hair follicle rests for a period of time before starting to grow a new hair.
Body hair often grows for just 3 to 6 months while the hair on your head can grow for 3 to 7 years. If you think about it, this makes sense, as the hair on your head can be very long, whereas the hair on your face remains relatively short (because the growth/shed cycle occurs within months and not years). It also means if you pluck a hair on your chin today, it will likely be 3 months before we see that same hair again (and PSA - tweezing makes it come back stronger and thicker, so you should never tweeze!).
Hair growth rate — it’s personal!
How quick or slow your hair grows is pretty much determined by your genetics. For some people, hair growth may be slower, which means you’ll need to allow a week or more to ensure you have 3 mm of length. For others, hair may grow quick, so just a few days will be sufficient for electrolysis.
If you’re coming for electrolysis for the first time, it is wise to allow a few extra days to grow out your hair, so you aren’t in a panic and will better know what to expect for your 2nd appointment!
Previous methods of hair removal — another factor
If you shave, you are cutting your hair right at the surface of the skin, so it usually takes just days for 3 mm of growth to show (unless you are a slow grower). If you use a depilatory, it will dissolve the hair just under the skin surface, so it make take an extra couple of days beyond if you were just shaving to reach the desired length. If you pluck, wax, thread, or sugar, however, you are pulling the hair by the root, which means it will be a few months before that hair breaks the surface of the skin again.
Now, I know what you’re thinking — I pluck a hair, and I see it again two weeks later — so my hair must grow super fast! Well, that’s probably not the case, because we know facial hair takes 3 months to regrow when it’s removed by the root. What’s most likely happening is that it’s another hair near the one you just tweezed — feasible when you keep in mind the average person has hundreds of hair follicles in every square inch of their skin (except the palms of your hands and the soles of your feet - they’re entirely lacking hair follicles).
Bottom line — for the best electrolysis appointment, you’ll want to want to ensure you have a sufficient amount of hair growth. A good rule of thumb is — if you can grab it with your fingernails, you are good to go!
See you soon!