“You need to shave the day before.” The instruction always surprises people a little: you are coming precisely so you no longer have to. It is not arbitrary, though, and following it directly affects how effective and how comfortable the session is.
Why shaving is needed
The laser has to deliver its energy into the follicle, under the skin. The visible part of the hair is of no use: it is already dead.
If hair sticks out, two things happen, both bad. Part of the energy is consumed at the surface, burning the shaft, so less of it reaches the bulb. And that surface combustion produces useless heat right against the skin: it is unpleasant, it smells of burnt hair, and it increases the risk of redness.
Hair shaved close, by contrast, lets all the energy travel down to where it should act.
Why you must absolutely not epilate
This is the point that matters most, and the most frequent mistake. Shaving and epilating are not the same thing.
A razor cuts the shaft and leaves the root in place: the laser’s target is intact. Wax, tweezers and epilators pull the hair out with its root: there is nothing left to aim at, and the session is wasted for those hairs.
That is why we ask for 4 weeks with no wax or tweezers before starting, and throughout the protocol. Wax three days before a session, and that session is pointless — we would rather postpone it.
Exactly when to shave
The day before, ideally in the evening. Not the same morning, not three days before.
The evening before gives the skin a night to calm down if shaving irritated it slightly, while keeping the hair short enough the next day. Shaving just before leaving means arriving with skin that is still sensitive, onto which we are about to apply heat. Shaving three days before, conversely, allows a millimetre or two of regrowth — enough to fall back into the problem described above.
How to do it properly
- A clean, recent blade. A blunt blade tugs at the hair, irritates and encourages ingrown hairs.
- On damp, soaped skin, never dry.
- With the grain, with few passes. Chasing the closest possible shave damages the skin without helping the laser.
- Rinse with cool water and moisturise with a neutral cream.
- No scrub the same day: the skin would be doubly stressed.
For the back, nobody is asking the impossible: get help, or mention it when booking. What matters is that the area is clear on arrival.
If you forgot
It happens, and it is not dramatic. Tell us on arrival rather than saying nothing. Depending on the area and the length of the hair, there are two outcomes: either we shave on the spot when the surface is small, or we move the session by a few days. Either way, that beats a session done in poor conditions and paid for nothing.
Between sessions
You can shave as much as you like. It does not disturb the treatment at all and does not lengthen the protocol. That is precisely the point of the laser: you carry on with your life normally while density drops session after session.
A reminder of what is off limits throughout: wax, tweezers, epilators, harsh depilatory creams. The razor and the trimmer remain your allies.
The detail that changes everything
Of all the instructions we give, this is the one with the biggest effect on the final result, together with keeping to your appointments. Two people with the same hair and the same device do not get the same result if one respects the shaving rule and the other does not.
The rest of the guidance is in our article on what follows a session. And if you are unsure about your case, the assessment is free: book an appointment in Uccle, Etterbeek or Watermael-Boitsfort.
