Looking to hear experiences about Laser Facial Hair Removal

AMAB gender nonconforming person here! I had it done 2 years ago, 8 sessions total, face only (upper lip, cheeks, chin, and neck). I'm also white with dark hair, and as you described, my technician told me that I was pretty much the ideal client. I explicitly went to a trans-oriented clinic (Bluebird Laser in Toronto), and my experience was very positive. I'd highly recommend checking out their website even if you aren't in the area, as I very much agree with a lot of what they've written on their site about laser hair removal.

I think I started out with a below-average amount of facial hair to begin with? I was never going to be able to grow a beard (not that I would have ever tried), but there was enough hair for it to be unpleasant and require daily shaving.

After my 8 sessions, and two years later, I no longer have to shave my cheeks or neck at all. Not a single hair remains in those areas. I still get a few pale hairs on my chin, but they're invisible enough that I shave my chin maybe once a month. Unfortunately, I still do have to shave my upper lip... There are a couple dozen patchy hairs left, and if I leave it for a few days/a week, then they become noticeable. But, this is fully expected, as the upper lip is the most difficult area, and my laser technician warned me ahead of time that it's typical to be referred to electrolysis to fully clear out the remaining upper lip hairs. I've just been lazy slash satisfied enough with the minimal shaving I have to do, and so I haven't taken the time to pursue it further. I haven't gone for any touch-ups, and I haven't felt the need tbh?

As far as satisfaction with the cost, the process, and the end result, I'm over the moon. I would do it all again in a heartbeat. It's lovely to not really have to shave, purely from a convenience standpoint. But, it's also done wonders for my discomfort re: facial hair. I'm also in a similar boat re: gender ambiguity. In terms of identity labels, I've waffled between transfem, demigender, nonbinary, bigender, etc. But the common thread between all of my feelings is that I don't want to be seen as a capital 'M' man. I don't want people to interpret me as manly -- I'd rather be read as soft and unthreatening. And over the years I've tried to accomplish this by gradually minimizing male sexual dimorphic characteristics where possible -- facial hair fits right into this.

I haven't fully transitioned to presenting as female, and I'm not 100% sure I ever will. I still 'boymode' so to speak, and people who aren't my fiance still view me as a (boyish) male, and that's... Mostly fine! But, just because I'm not a binary trans woman doesn't mean that the 'in between' options are off the table. :)

Based on your post, and how similar you sound to how I was a few years ago, I really think you'd benefit from it! It's painful and expensive, but imo wholly worth every cent. I look back at pics of myself pre-laser and it's shocking how much of a ghastly shadow I used to have on my face in every pic. I would never go back.

EDIT: I'd be happy to fetch some before and after pics when I get home? I haven't shaved in a few days, so it'll be perfect for demoing exactly what I'm talking about.

Your mileage may vary indeed. I know some that have had 6 sessions and that's been it for them and they like @evie rarely need to shave. I also know someone who got scarred from it (electrolysis). Never heard of anyone getting more hair from it though. Personally I have had 12 sessions of IPL (light, not laser) and approximately 15 with diode laser and while it has been treated about 80-90% - so you can argue that it did work well - it is for me not fully permanent. It looks great 2 weeks after a session but 2 months later I need to go again.. I need to shave every other day at least but I'm always a bit nervous about that second day, so if I have some sort of plans then I do it every day. I have never had any issues with either IPL nor laser.

Whatever you do, do not get IPL as that is not permanent. Also do not get an at-home laser as they are not powerful enough for beard hair - ask me how I know, €500 later..

Diode laser is the most affordable of the treatments that work, but it might take a very long time and at least in my case, like I said, I have to go back every so often for touch-ups as things come do back. It also depends on your skin tone and the colour of your hair. If you are pale and have black hair, it will be the most effective. The darker your skin and lighter your hair, the less effective it is.

If you have a high budget for this, go for electrolysis, that stuff is mostly permanent and nothing will ever come back (edit: nvm @x08 can weigh in). It does however require a lot of hours of stabbing pain. Well all permanent hair removal is painful as fuck.

I'm currently undergoing laser hair removal (6 sessions so far) for a few areas but the face isn't one of them. However, here are a few things I've learned or been told by my practitioner about laser hair treatment in general:

• I shopped around and checked reviews before I landed on a practitioner I was comfortable with. Each place should do a first consult to check your hair type, check your medical history, and explain the process and watch-outs to you. I ended up picking a doctor who has great reviews, and during my interview with him he was honest and very clear on the whole process. He also explained the science behind what he was doing which I found reassuring.
• Not all parts of your face can be lasered. If you get laser on certain areas of your face (like eyebrows, nose, temples), the hair will be removed there but can grow elsewhere instead. I'm a cis woman, so was only concerned with the upper lip, which is ok to get laser, but I assume getting beard hair lasered is fine (ask your practitioner though).
• You usually need to shave the night before or morning of the session to get the hair down as short as possible. Lasers today don't require a day or two of hair growth.
• I was told not to shave, epilate, wax, exfoliate or even use an electric shaver for three weeks following each session as this can stimulate hair growth. I assume it's going to be similar for beard hair but worth checking with your practitioner.
• In-grown hairs can be a bitch after a certain number of sessions as the hair thins and struggles to break through. It's really important to exfoliate well when your practitioner tells you to, and do it regularly until you have your next session.
• The first go it barely hurt at all, I was very surprised. However, with each session the intensity is raised. It can hurt quite a bit in later sessions but your mileage may vary. It's quick though, so whatever pain there is is usually over quickly. The intensity can also be adjusted if it's really unbearable. It might just mean you need more sessions.
• It's important to respect the interval times between treatments so the hair gets lasered during the right cycle. Wait too long and you give time for follicles to recover and regrow. This happened to me between my fifth and sixth treatments so he had to raise the intensity to make up for it.
• The lasers they use today can work on darker skin and fairer hair, and you don't have to be as careful about sun exposure. Do check with your practitioner though.
• I personally haven't had any major issues right after each session. The follicles will be red for a day or two after but it's nothing crazy. It's itchy when the hair grows back but that was already the case for me with regular shaving. Some people can have an allergic reaction but your practitioner should let you test a small area before you go for the full thing.
• You need to put a good cream on the area religiously at least once a day following treatment.
• Some hairs are just stubborn, especially the lighter thinner hairs. If laser doesn't work, electrolysis is the next step, where each individual hair is zapped. I don't have experience with this but have been told it takes longer and is more expensive so it's only really used for small areas.
• It can seem like only a few sessions are enough but not all hairs are undergoing the same cycle at a given time, so you need to stick with it for a while. I'm up to 6 sessions and it's clear I'll need at least 10 in total to get rid of everything, if not a couple more than that.
• You'll need to get touch ups at least once a year. I'm not at this stage yet so can't really speak to it.

Overall I'm happy with the experience, but I'm not done and there's still some ways to go. I do notice the difference, but only time will tell if it really sticks long term. I hope this helps!

I'm curious about this myself. I'm a guy and moderately ok being so, but there are sections of my face that will never grow a proper beard, and I've often pondered whether it would be worth getting my neck and the patchy sections of my face lasered. If anyone has experiences, I'm all ears. The laser hair removal places will promise the moon, but the experience of someone who's actually had experience with it would be invaluable.

Trans woman who finished laser on my face ~2 months ago with a total of i think 10 sessions. My facial hair is a mix of light & dark hairs so I went into it with the understanding that not all of it would get zapped. So far its been pretty successful. I still have to shave and there are a few darker hairs that are coming back, but before I would get ~12 hours out of shaving I can now get away with a couple of days before I feel it and a day or two after that before its visible. Previously i wasnt able to shave more than once every 3 or 4 days because it would really irritate my skin and give me a big red mustache if i shaved too soon, but now I can shave without any issues almost as soon as i feel hair so even though i still need to shave, I dont have to plan my life around only being clean shaven once a week.

Overall its been totally worth it even if it wasnt 100% or even really 60% successful at getting rid of my facial hair. It brought it down to a level thats manageable and stays nearly invisible if i keep on top of it, versus constant facial hair shadow and regrowing within a day.

I've had laser on my face and legs. I went to I think three biweekly sessions? I have fair skin and very light, wispy hair, so the effectiveness wasn't as high as it would be for you (probably gonna do electrolysis eventually). In terms of sensation, it feels like getting flicked hard by a rubber band repeatedly during the session, and like having a mild sunburn after. It hurts, but hurts in a way that had me giggling; it isn't so bad. This was a few years ago now. It worked alright for me -- I only have to shave my face once or twice a week now, and my legs every couple weeks -- but didn't totally stop all growth, and I think the effectiveness has definitely diminished with time. That said I did fewer than the recommended number of sessions so that could play a role too. Me and two of my family members did it and none of us have had any damage or health issues from it.

I've had about a dozen sessions on my face and entire body. I also have dark hair and light skin. It's not permanent in that you won't kill every hair, but you will kill a lot of them. I used to be very hairy, thick beard, etc. I still shave but way less. I'm doing electro to clear up the white hairs and the hairs that still exist.

The nicest part has been doing it all over my entire body. I shave much more rarely now and don't even bother shaving many areas because the hairs still around are all white or much thinner.