Can you get laser hair removal over a tattoo?
A common question, in a nutshell unfortunately the answer is no. Where there’s a will there’s a way… so let’s explore what you can do instead!
At Pulse Light Clinic we only use the best laser hair removal equipment, which is great news for unwanted hair, but bad news for a wanted tattoo! Our lasers are gold standard, due to their strength in searching for pigment, they will also target tattoo pigment as well as hair pigment. “I don’t care about the tattoo”, you say, “just laser over it”. Unfortunately, the depth and energies are not tailored to tattoo removal so it isn’t an option!
How to remove hair from tattoos, you ask?
Here are the most common options available for you:
Option 1 Remove the tattoo
A little bit drastic but definitely something we have had clients do, whether it’s laser hair removal for men or laser hair removal for women. Many clients decide to remove their hair permanently after they have already been tattooed. A lot of men suffer with coarse hair on the upper body and may have a tattoo on the shoulders, back or arms that is in the way of lasering the hair. In this case if you aren’t attached to that tattoo any more but the hair is becoming a nuisance, at Pulse Light Clinic we can remove both simultaneously! Each time you book you can have both treatments as the intervals are similar, at around 8 weeks. Once the tattoo is faded sufficiently to laser over with our Gentle Max Pro laser hair removal system, we can start removing the hair from the tattooed area! We have the latest technology for tattoo removal for all skin types, with our Picosure Pro, Picoway and Revlite lasers.
Option 2 Electrolysis
This option is a little less drastic but could slightly damage the tattoo where the hair follicles lie. Instead of hair removal over a tattoo ‘s, we can pulse energy down a needle that is placed inside each hair follicle over the tattooed area and permanently remove the hair this way. This can sometimes fade the ink over the follicle, have no fear, (once you have finished electrolysis) you can have your tattoo artist re-ink the area so it’s nice and fresh once again!
Option 3 Avoid!
At Pulse Light Clinic we are experts in both laser hair and tattoo removal. We have techniques to avoid tattoos, yet treat as close as we can to your tattoo, WITHOUT damaging it! We can typically get as close to 1 cm from your tattoo with our laser hair removal machines. If you are looking to go for laser hair removal over tattoo ‘s but don’t want to damage it, this is probably the best option.
Laser hair removal on tattoo? No! Laser hair removal around your tattoo? Absolutely! Book a free consultation with one of our experts, being trained in both treatments they will be able to provide expert advice on how to tailor the treatment to your wants and needs.
