To get the best results with the smallest number of treatment sessions, please pay attention to the following guidelines as you work with us:

1. Avoid waxing / sugaring / plucking / EpiLady and electrolysis
Because the laser beam seeks out and destroys ACTIVELY GROWING hair roots, it is important (if you want to get the best value from your treatment) NOT to wax / pluck / sugar / use EpiLady-type pluckers or have electrolysis for at least FOUR WEEKS before laser treatment. These things temporarily remove the pigmented part of the hair follicle which the laser needs to use as a target when it destroys the hair follicle.

2. Tanning should be avoided!
The Candela GentleLASE is safe and effective laser for most types of skin. Many Italian, Greek, and East Asian have been successfully treated with the Candela GentleLASE.
BUT: the lighter your skin color at the time of treatment, the better the laser beam can get through the skin to the hair roots, where it is needed.

If you avoid tanning and stop using artificial "tanning" creams for six weeks before treatment, you will get the maximum possible benefit from each treatment session. People with very darker skin need extra sessions to reach their desired degree of long-term hair reduction.
It is also a good idea to minimize tanning for a few weeks after laser treatment, to reduce the chance that your tan will be somewhat uneven. Protect yourself by using a sunscreen on all treated areas before, during and after treatments.

3. Shaving or clipping the hair?
Shaving or clipping the area to be treated is not a problem. In fact, we like the areas to be shaved the day of treatment or the day before. Some people find that the skin is less sensitive if it is shaved at least a few hours before treatment. Another advantage of shaving the area to be treated BEFORE you come in is that YOU can shape the area to be treated exactly the way YOU want it to be. This is of particular importance in areas like the sideburns, temples, and bikini line.
Excess hair must be removed from the treatment area before treatment, because hair ABOVE the surface of the skin will simply absorb and waste laser energy and keep it from getting to the hair roots, where it is needed. 
Contrary to popular belief, shaving DOES NOT make hair grow back thicker, faster, darker or more profusely! So go ahead and shave before treatment, and between treatments!

4. Bleaching?
Because the laser beam only acts on the hair ROOTS, it is OK to bleach hair in the areas to be treated because bleaching will not affect the color of the roots. We do prefer that you stop bleaching before your first visit so that we can see the hair to be treated and give you an accurate evaluation.

5. Timing:
It takes 4 to 8 weeks for the next crop of hair roots to become active and develop pigment which is the target for the laser. So, to get the best value from your treatments, you treatments will be scheduled at 4-8 weeks intervals.
There is no harm in having treatments MORE FREQUENTLY than every 4-8 weeks, or having treatments less than 4 weeks after waxing, plucking, etc. - but this is less efficient, and could increase the total number of treatments needed to get a good result.
Also, while there is no harm in waiting MORE THAN 4-8 weeks between treatments (for example, if there has not been much regrowth after your last treatment), there is usually no extra BENEFIT to waiting longer than 6-12 weeks between treatments.

6. Medications?
There are a few medications which should not be taken while you are getting laser treatment. Anabolic steroids should certainly NOT be taken unless medically necessary, because these can increase male-pattern hair growth in some cases. We cannot treat you if you are presently or have recently used Accutane or Bactrim. Women who take injections of Climacteron (testosterone & estradiol) as part of therapy for menopause and to increase libido often experience unwanted hair growth, which can be treated with laser hair removal.

Medicines which inhibit hair growth (for example, spironolactone, Diane-35 birth control pills, Euflex, Androcur and Vaniqa cream) might slightly reduce the pigment in hair roots and make laser treatment less efficient, but this seldom interferes with the effectiveness of laser treatment. Laser hair removal can certainly be done WHILE you are on those medicines, if you wish. These "anti-androgenic" medicines produce gradual but temporary effects, and will not remove unwanted hair from areas that are independent of androgen regulation.
Pretreatment with medicines like Acyclovir, Valtrex or Famvir may be necessary if you tend to get a lot of cold sores in the area to be treated.