GentleMax Pro

GentleMax Pro carries two lasers, and the difference between them is the difference between a clinic that can treat your skin properly and one that cannot.

• 755nm alexandrite. Strongly absorbed by melanin. Efficient on fine and lighter hair, and the better choice for lighter skin tones.
• 1064nm Nd:YAG. Travels deeper and is far less absorbed by the melanin in the surface layers. The appropriate choice for deeper skin tones, where a shorter wavelength risks targeting the skin as well as the hair.

Clinics running an alexandrite-only device have two options with deeper skin: decline the treatment, or run settings too conservative to achieve much. Because GentleMax Pro carries both wavelengths, we select the wavelength and the laser settings to suit your skin tone and your hair, rather than fitting you to the machine. If you have previously been told that laser hair removal is not suitable for your skin, it is worth being assessed again.

Most of the laser body hair removal treatments we carry out use this platform, for both women and men. Courses range from a single small area up to full body, and common treatment areas include:

• Face, including upper lip, chin and jawline
• Underarms
• Bikini line
• Legs
• Back and chest

The platform is also cleared for benign vascular lesions such as thread veins and facial redness, and for benign pigmented lesions. We select the right device for the concern rather than defaulting to one, so a consultation about facial redness may point you towards a dedicated vascular laser instead. One use worth naming specifically is pseudofolliculitis barbae, the ingrown hairs and razor bumps common in men with coarse or curly facial hair. Reducing hair density often resolves the problem where changes to shaving technique have not.

Laser hair removal works by targeting pigment, so the honest limitation is pigment. It works well on brown and black hair, on any skin tone, with the wavelength matched to your skin. It does not work on white, grey, red or very fine blonde hair, because there is not enough melanin in the follicle for the laser to target. No device currently available changes this, and any clinic suggesting otherwise is overselling.

We will also postpone treatment if you have a fresh tan or recent significant sun exposure, an active skin infection or inflammatory condition in the target area, a pregnancy current or planned, or any photosensitising medication including recent isotretinoin.

Patients often arrive having lost confidence in laser after a disappointing course elsewhere. Usually the hair colour was never going to respond, or the laser equipment was not suited to their skin tone. We would rather tell you that at consultation than sell you a course that cannot work.

If your hair growth is driven by a hormonal condition such as polycystic ovary syndrome, laser can reduce density substantially, but you should expect to need ongoing maintenance alongside management of the underlying condition.

Hair grows in cycles, and only follicles in the active growth phase respond to the laser. At any one moment only a proportion of the hair in an area is in that phase, which is why a single session cannot treat everything, and why the interval between sessions matters as much as the number of them.

Most patients need six to nine treatment sessions spaced four to six weeks apart, with facial areas often needing shorter intervals than the body. After a course, most people move to occasional maintenance rather than stopping altogether.

What a course actually achieves. The regulated term is permanent hair reduction, and the distinction matters: a lasting, stable reduction in the number of hairs growing in the target area, not the removal of every hair for life. Expect a substantial and durable drop in density, with the hair that does return being finer and lighter. We would rather set that expectation now than have you disappointed at session nine.

1. Consultation and assessment. We assess your skin type, hair colour and coarseness, medical history and any medication, then agree the areas and the plan.
2. Patch test. Carried out 48 hours before your first full session so we can check how your skin responds at the intended settings.
3. Preparation. Shave the area 24 hours beforehand. Do not wax, pluck or epilate for four weeks before, because the follicle needs to be present for the laser to work.
4. Treatment. You will wear protective eyewear. Each pulse feels like a brief warm snap, followed immediately by a cool burst from the cooling device, which keeps discomfort to a minimum. Session duration depends on the area: an underarm takes a few minutes, full legs closer to an hour.
5. Afterwards. There is no downtime. You can return to your day straight away.

Post-treatment care is simple, but what you do between treatment sessions has a real effect on the result.

• Expect mild redness and slight swelling around the follicles for up to a few hours.
• Avoid hot showers, saunas, steam rooms and strenuous exercise for 24 hours.
• Apply broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher daily to any treated area exposed to sunlight, and avoid deliberate sun exposure and self-tan between sessions.
• Shedding over the following one to three weeks is normal and is not regrowth.
• Shave between sessions if you need to. Do not wax or pluck.

For more information on aftercare, download our GentleMax Pro aftercare guide. Your therapist will also go through it with you at your appointment, and you are welcome to call the clinic at any point between treatment sessions if something does not seem right.

Post-treatment care is simple, but what you do between treatment sessions has a real effect on the result.

• Expect mild redness and slight swelling around the follicles for up to a few hours.
• Avoid hot showers, saunas, steam rooms and strenuous exercise for 24 hours.
• Apply broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher daily to any treated area exposed to sunlight, and avoid deliberate sun exposure and self-tan between sessions.
• Shedding over the following one to three weeks is normal and is not regrowth.
• Shave between sessions if you need to. Do not wax or pluck.

For more information on aftercare, download our GentleMax Pro aftercare guide. Your therapist will also go through it with you at your appointment, and you are welcome to call the clinic at any point between treatment sessions if something does not seem right.