Epilators can serve as a hassle-free and stickiness-less hair removal alternative to waxing but the pain associated with it keep you at arm’s length, right? What if I say you can reduce that pain and get epilation whenever you want without having to beg your soul to tolerate the pain?
Well, you are guessing it right. Pain reduction is possible in an epilator hair removal treatment. So, we have the top 13 tried and tested tricks to get pain-free hair removal with an epilator for you in this article.
How Does an Epilator Work To Remove Unwanted Hair?
An epilator is a handheld hair removal device that is either operated on electricity or a main power supply. It can either be corded/cordless or wet/dry/both. Its size and material also differ.
The head region of an epilator contains rotating coils with tweezers attached to them. Furthermore, the rotating coils make the skin taut and expose the hair while the tweezers grab the hair and eradicate them from the roots by pulling them out.
Additionally, while it works like waxing or plucking by targeting the full length of the hair, it does not require the use of any substance or thread on the skin making it quicker than plucking and more hassle-free than waxing.
Is Hair Removal with an Epilator Really Painful?
Unfortunately yes, epilation is really and extremely painful. It is even more painful than waxing. Now you would wonder why, right? Well, the waxing material attaches to the surface of the skin and grabs the hair more gently as compared to epilators. Also, the pain with waxing lasts only for the instant you pull the hair.
However, epilators directly grab the hair from the roots by rolling them on the tweezers. The hair roots also contain nerve endings that carry the signals of pain to the brain. When these nerve endings are stimulated, you get a sensation of pain that is strong enough to make you scream.
Also, as tiny tweezers work continuously, you feel the pain constantly.
The Best Tips for Pain-Free Hair Removal with Epilator
No matter what your pain tolerance is, the following tips can help you reduce the intensity of the pain caused by hair removal treatment with an epilator.
1. Make Your Pain-Carrying Nerve Endings Numb by Medication
The best tip to prevent the pain caused by epilator hair removal is to numb the nerve endings that take the pain signal to the brain. You can use a local anesthetic cream containing lidocaine over the treatment area.
Additionally, taking a tablet of ibuprofen, aspirin, or paracetamol 30 to 45 minutes before starting the hair removal can help you reduce the pain significantly.
2. Exfoliate Your Skin Every Time Before Epilation
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So, exfoliating the skin every week can help in making hair removal with epilators less painful. Also, if you only epilate once a month, exfoliating the skin 2 to 4 days before the treatment can help. You can use an exfoliating brush or scrub for the body and a chemical or physical scrub for the face.
3. Take a Hot Shower/Bath
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Take a hot water bath or just wash the area to be treated with lukewarm water before your hair removal treatment. It can help in softening the hair, hydrating the skin, and opening the pores. So, the hair comes out of the roots easily.
4. Epilate Unwanted Hair in the Shower
Taking a shower beforehand is for epilators that are not waterproof and cannot be used on wet skin. However, buying an epilator compatible with dry or wet hair removal can change the game for you because water provides a film over the surface of the skin to calm the pain caused by the epilator.
So, you can simply take your water-resistant epilator in the shower, make the area wet and move it slowly to remove hair. It will help in making the epilator move more easily and also reduce friction and skin irritation.
5. Trim the Objectionable Hair Beforehand
The longer the hair, the greater the pain. So, if your unwanted hair is at its full length at the time of hair removal with an epilator, just shave them off and wait for 2 to 3 days for the hair to grow out a little.
The hair does not need to be as long as in waxing. Shaving beforehand helps in alleviating the pain by decreasing the pull of the epilator on unwanted hair.
6. Go Slow and Gentle with the Epilator
Using an epilator at its full speed can cause painful hair removal, especially if you are a beginner at using a device that removes hair from the roots. So, begin by using the epilator at its slowest speed. It will give more time for the epilator to work on the unwanted hair and reduce the pressure as well.
Consequently, you will feel less pain. Additionally, better results can be achieved at a slow speed.
7. Use the Epilator in the Right Way
Sometimes the skin can also get stuck in the epilator along with the hair if you are not using it right. This can cause excruciating pain and even tears in the skin. So, make sure your epilator is at 90 degrees with the skin and the skin is taut when you are removing hair. Also, if you cannot make the skin taut, squeeze it.
You should also take the room temperature into account so that your hair does not get goosebumps when you are epilating. Furthermore, check how to use the epilator on different areas in how to use an epilator on the face, body, and pubic hair.
8. Ensure that Your Skin is Not Dehydrated
Dehydrated skin means flaky skin with rough texture. And rough texture means greater friction and risk of skin irritation. So, regularly moisturize your skin making it soft and smooth enough for the epilator to glide effortlessly and give you no pain.
9. Epilate the Hair Regularly and Also Do Touch-Ups Often
You do not need to let all hair strands go to their full length before epilating. Just keep the epilator in the shower and use it as soon as you see small sections of unwanted hair sprouting out in any area.
This will make the sessions of epilation shorter. Thus, less pain. Moreover, when you epilate more often, the hair grows back to be finer over time and your pain tolerance also increases.
10. Go for an Epilator with More Tweezers
An epilator with less number of tweezers will have to work harder to remove coarse hair and you will also have to glide the epilator a few more times giving you more pain. So, consider the number of tweezers in an epilator before buying.
An epilator will a greater number of tweezers will grab more stands of hair at one time thus reducing the treatment time and pain.
11. No Epilation During Periods
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Rather, epilate on the fourth day after your periods are gone and experience reduced pain and better hygiene.
12. Get the Right Epilator for Your Skin
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Similarly, bikini line areas are sensitive. However, the hair in such areas requires a little more effort. Also, some epilators work for sensitive skin and others do not. So, get the epilator that is more suitable for your skin type and requirements.
Moreover, you can get yourself the best epilator for face hair removal and the best epilator for bikini areas here.
13. Distract Yourself from the Pain
Although you must pay attention to the epilation so that your skin does not get stuck into it and you do not use it hastily, playing calming music, thinking about a joyful moment, or talking to a friend while epilating can help you distract yourself from the pain.
Is it Possible to Make Hair Removal with Epilator Pain-Free?
Sadly, pain cannot be eliminated when you are removing hair with an epilator no matter what you do. However, it can be significantly reduced by trying the tips we mentioned above including painkillers, wet epilation, exfoliation, and more.
Also, pain sensitivity differs among individuals. So, it might be too painful for some while bearable for others.
Which Pain-Free Method of Hair Removal can be Used for Results as Good as an Epilator’s?
If the pain of epilation does not seem to go away even after trying all tips and tricks, it is your sign to choose another less invasive and more gentle method of hair removal.
One such method is IPL hair removal, especially with devices like Ulike Air3 IPL handsets with specific integrated technology that uses a sapphire system to reduce the temperature. Consequently, the pain is alleviated and the user feels a cooling sensation on the skin. Furthermore, check out epilator vs IPL hair removal if you want to find out more about the comparison of both methods of hair removal.
Conclusion
Pain caused by epilators should never stop you from trying this hassle-free method of hair removal at home. Rather, you can try out several methods to reduce this pain. Our favorite methods to soothe the discomfort of epilation include taking painkillers; lidocaine gel to numb the pain; exfoliation and warm baths to open the pores; trimming and regular epilation to reduce the pull on the hair; and distraction.
Moreover, do not forget to choose a high-quality epilator suitable for your skin type and area of treatment. Lastly, you can always shift to a nearly painless method of hair removal like IPL when the pain is too much to take.
