# tanning beds, man



## kimmy (Aug 23, 2007)

i think i'm going to go to a tanning bed this weekend. it's way too hot to lay out, so that's out of the question until it starts cooling down (which hopefully will be sooon or i'm going to DIE.) 

my legs haven't been exposed to much sun in yeeears, so they take more time to tan. i hate uneven tans, and my arms are probably about 5 shades darker than my legs. can i fix this with a tanning bed or am i screwed? and how long should i be in the bed for? (i don't really get sunburned, if that makes any difference on the amount of time i can tan.) what do beds usually run for rental at a salon?

TIA!


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## MACATTAK (Aug 23, 2007)

I tan in the summer & after not tanning all year, they put me in a bed for 7 minutes & I got nothing.  Let me tell you my skin is pale white.  The next time I went for 12 minutes, then 15...etc.  When you go in, they will be able to tell you how many minutes to start with.  My tanning salon is $21.95 for unlimited use, but if you are going just for a few sessions it gets pricier.  I think for the small bed it's about 10, the larger bed is 15 & it goes up.  The mystic tan is the most expensive, however no harm is done to your skin.  Hope that helps!


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## kimmy (Aug 23, 2007)

thanks. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 yeah i'd love to go with a mystic tan but...way too expensive. i think i'm going to go to the beds once and see how i like it, then maybe get an unlimited thing. i'm so scared to use them after seeing final destination 3, so i'm hoping i can get over that fear with one or two trips haha.


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## MACATTAK (Aug 23, 2007)

You'll be fine.  The beds don't latch or close shut, or anything like that.  I know the first day I went tanning this summer, I kept opening & closing the lid (while I was in the bed) to make sure I could get out...it was fine.  They open really easily & you don't have to close it the whole way down if you don't want to.


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## chameleonmary (Aug 23, 2007)

you might want to read this before you consider a tanning bed:

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegrap...001021,00.html

im all for everything in moderation though, so be careful!


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## angeliquea~+ (Aug 23, 2007)

^^I came in this thread just to mention that.

In case anyone missed the link, this is the story she wrote for today's Herald-Sun






I AM at peace. 

But if I could go back and talk to myself when I was 19 I would tell that girl not to use a solarium -- that melanoma is not a small cancer that you just have cut out and you will be fine. 

I may pass in another week or it could be two. If I really fight it out, I may even have six weeks left. 

It's scary, because I feel myself getting more tired, and each time I feel sleepy it worries me that I might not wake up. 

So far I have lived 25 years. If I am lucky I will reach 26 because my birthday is on Saturday. 

It is a short life, but I have lived it. 

Subconsciously I did know that cancer was involved with solariums because I was aware of UV A and UV B rays. 

But when I was 19, I saw a cheap offer of "buy 10 sessions and get 20". 

The girl working at the tanning salon told me the fastest way to get a tan was to come in every second day and use speed cream. 

My mum told me it was abnormal to get in a box and fry myself, but I told her it was cool and everyone was doing it. 

After the 10th session I was starting to burn and it hurt, so I stopped. But I guess I stopped too late. 
It would be irresponsible of me to blame it just on solariums, because I grew up in St Kilda and went to the beach a lot. 

But you can't tell me the Government doesn't realise the dangers of solariums. 

Young girls need to go out and educate themselves about solariums before they make any decisions. 

Obviously my decision has been made, and I think they should be banned. But now that you know my story and the resulting risks involved, hopefully you will realise it is not worth having a golden tan. 

I am angry at myself mostly, but I can't believe how much the industry is booming. 

A lot of friends tell me I still have a lot of life left in me, but I just live every day as though it is my last. 

I was 22 when diagnosed. I had just finished a Bachelor of Media and Communication and a Master of Cinema at the University of Melbourne and started work as a sports journalist at SBS. 

I was on top of the world. 

But I only got to work for three weeks and then I found out about my cancer. 

I will never get to climb the so-called ladder, and even now I complain about not being able to run the rat race with everyone else. 

I know I would be good at it -- I think I would be great at it. 

I wanted to go to the top, but now feel I have so much potential that will be unused. 

It was 2004 when they found a tumour under my left armpit, which they treated with immunotherapy. 

In July 2005, it came back and this time they treated me with radiotherapy. 

I was cancer-free for a year and seven months, and then in April I found a lump in my neck. I thought they could just cut it out, but it turns out there were seven tumours in my chest and one in my lung. 

Now they have stopped counting how many there are. 

I had all these ideas and in the end I was ready to accept that two years would be more than enough time left. 

But I have accepted it, especially now that I am nearing the end and I am at peace. 

When you are someone like me you realise that life is everything and you grab it with both hands and embrace it. 

If there is something that you feel needs to be done, go and do it, and do it wholeheartedly because life is short. 

People ask me how I can still be so happy with all this on my plate. But I have lived my life as a spark. I don't want to live a life where I am living until I am 100 and just flat boring. 

I have always lived my life with compassion and passion. I have never been one to keep my silence about anything I have felt passionate about. 

Melanoma is no joke. And I will keep championing this cause till the day I take my last breath.

----------------------------------------------------------------
I know this sounds preachy and I'm waiting for someone to say "The OP asked about the price of tanning beds not a lecture so butt out", but to be honest I don't give two s****. If the mods think its inappropriate they'll delete it.


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## SparklingWaves (Aug 23, 2007)

Personally, I believe fair skin is gorgeous.  I am telling you that any tanning does do damage.  You will see it later.  I promise.  Fair skin is meant to be protected.  It has only been in the last really 50-75 years that there was this stigma to of being called "too pale".  It was because people were put in a soup bowl of all colors and felt different and were called different.  Fair people are not pale.  We are fair.  That is what we are.  In the past it was a strongly desired trait, "the fairest of the all" in fairy tales.  It was considered a thing of beauty, because you were without damage from the sun.  People actually powdered their face to look like were fairer.

Currently, in some cultures they are bleaching their skin to achieve a fairer look and are actually being poisoned by the products.

The marketing industry is really cashing in on the brainwashing of "being in the sun" is  better for Caucasians with bronzing sprays and creams.  It's a big industry.

No matter what skin color you are fair to ebony, protect your gorgeous skin.  Don't believe the hype.

I am very fair and I gladly show my "white" legs.  I am not embarrassed to show who I really am to the world.  I am a white woman world face it.  I am not going to hide who I am.  And for those who are rich gorgeous darker colors, show your face too.  Don't wear light makeup and bleaching creams.  Be proud of your color. Be who you are and protect your skin people.  You don't get another layer like clothes.  Sun damage is ugly and skin cancer is lethal.  Isn't not worth.

Note:  To those with tattoos, they will fade by being exposed to tanning beds and the sun.  You will need to wear sunscreen on them forever.


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## SparklingWaves (Aug 23, 2007)

I am sorry if I sound like I am preaching, but I have to go to a dermatologist for checkups just because melanoma is in my family history.  My dermatologist preaches to me that I have to wear a hat to just go to the mail box!  Those ladies wearing the bonnets and long sleeves in the old days knew what they were doing.  

Even if you haven't been tanning, but have a family history of melanoma you have a higher chance of getting skin cancer. Please constantly check all you moles and freckles for changes in size, shape, color, symmetry, or bleeding.  Okay, I will shut up now.


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## glam8babe (Aug 23, 2007)

i started off on 3 minutes for a few weeks. then 6, then 9 and now i do 12 and 9 sometimes make sure you put tonnes of moisturiser on AFTER you've tanned to stop your skin from drying out and drink loads of water


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## glam8babe (Aug 23, 2007)

oh and by the way. being addicted to tanning is better than being addicted to drugs and alcohol thats how i see it


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## GreekChick (Aug 23, 2007)

In no way is that comparable...


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## xsnowwhite (Aug 23, 2007)

that was a very sad article!
just use a fake tanner! I use dove energy glow and it looks  SO natural! I can get 3 shades darker from one application! And since all you need is your legs tanned a self tanner seems logical to use.


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## glam8babe (Aug 23, 2007)

the thing with fake tan is that you have to reapply it after so many days.. trust me it gets annoying. i was 14 when i first started wearing it and i used St tropez probably the best fake tan invented and its used by victoria beckham [she obviously gets professionals to put it on her though] anyway i was applying it once a week i loved being so dark but it got so annoying that it got all over my clothes most of the time even if it does say it dries quick, if it went abit streaky one time i had to cover it and look stupid especially in summer, i didnt look natural at all, it cost too much money [£30 a bottle every 3 weeks ... $60 US] got too expensive even though i didnt buy it myself. i then stopped and was sooo glad to see my natural skin, i felt free and better but i was soo pale it made me look fat and terrible. i started using moisturiser/tanning lotion like johnsons holiday skin [was absolutly SHIT, went streaky, flaked off skin after first day. then i used the loreal nutri-glow or whatever its called, was better than johnsons but you cant tell where youve applied it so went streaky most of the time. I think u shud do what YOU want, if you wanna go tanning then do it. only go on once a week because you dont wanna get wrinkles early. fake tan is good once in a while but real tanning is natural looking, doesnt smell, wont streak etc. you only live once so make yourself happy if you wanna look tanned. thats just my honest opinion people!


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## MACATTAK (Aug 23, 2007)

Quote:

  I think u shud do what YOU want, if you wanna go tanning then do it.  
 





  What's good for one person, may not be good for another, but it's their choice.


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## BeautyPsycho (Aug 23, 2007)

I used to go tanning few times, just to be dark(er) and look healthy... Lets be honest, tanned body looks leaner and better... Yes, I loved how I looked... but first of all- it wasn't cheap, 2nd- its not healthy cancer is scary and it can happen to anyone, but we always think its not gonna be us... also, I started thinking about me aging, and I realized I wanted to look good when I'm 30 and 40... why would I sacrifice that for something that is trendy now?


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## SparklingWaves (Aug 23, 2007)

One of my best friends in the world was 104, I kid you not.  I loved this man.  He was so with it.  I was taken aback by what he said one day, because he didn't drink "whiskey", smoke, gamble, commit adultery, or even fly in an airplane in his life.  He said, "I wish that I had taken better care of myself in my youth. I never thought I would live to be this old."  

I learned so much from my friend, because he saw so much in his life - death, sickness, wars, storms, and even courtyard hangings of murderers. Some may have just seen an old man, but I could see a much younger man trapped in those little clear blue eyes of his.  He always let me know how much he loved me and told me, "I am going to be put on that hill soon". I miss him so much.  I think he was here so long to teach the youth many messages.  I feel like I learned so much from the wisdom and experience of a wise elder man.


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## kimmy (Aug 24, 2007)

i don't have a problem with fair skin, my sister has very fair skin and i think it's gorgeous. but i have an olive complexion and my skin not seeing sun makes me look unhealthy and that's not a look i find attractive. i get enough sideways glances due to my weight, i don't need an unhealthy complexion adding to the under breath remarks about how there must be something wrong with me. it isn't the media telling me i need a tan, it's just that i like a healthy glow because it makes me look...well...healthy.

my dad has skin cancer, but it isn't melanoma. it's a much less threatening type, but he taught me to pay close attention to my freckles and marks to make sure they aren't growing or reshaping. he and my sister have fair skin, they're more of the irish blood whereas my mom and i are more of the cherokee blood and have never had any kind of sensitivity to the sun. i know that doesn't make me exempt from the dangers, but i know what to look for and trust me, i'll be watching. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




i am glad that article was posted though. i know there are alot of risks involved here, but i'm not planning on going three or four times a week (especially not after reading that article, oh my!) i just want enough sessions to even everything out. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 i'm not to worried about looking good when i'm 30 or 40 because honestly, in my line of work we aren't promised a tomorrow so...carpe diem, you know? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




i'll definately look at some self tanners too now though, i had no idea they really worked!


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## MACATTAK (Aug 24, 2007)

What line of work are you in?  Just curious


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## kimmy (Aug 24, 2007)

criminal justice.


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## angeliquea~+ (Aug 24, 2007)

Kimmy, thanks for taking the time to read the article and re-consider! I was a bit worried about what the reactions would be to it (I've seen a couple of anti-tanners get attacked in tanning threads!), also I was a bit worried that people wouldn't like having the article jammed down their throats that way. But if it makes only one person reconsider getting a natural tan then it was worth it!

At the end of the day its up to you what you decide to do, but again I'm just grateful that you read the article and had a bit of a think about it!


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## Dreamergirl3 (Aug 24, 2007)

You could probably even out if you really watch your tan and pay close attention to it's progress. Also, since you mentioned your arms are darker etc., you could try wearing a strong sunscreen on areas you don't want to tan. Granted, SOME tan will develop even with sunsceen, but it'll come much slower...so yea you could try that and see if it works out. And always wear a chapstick with sunscreen when u go! 

As for how long you could stay in one, the employees should be able to help you out with that since it really is more complicated than it seems lol! A good salon will 'skin type' you. Basically, they'll have you fill out a questionnaire about like you're ethnic background, how easily you burn etc. and asses you on that. It's not completely necessary but good for people new to tanning. Then, they're are the types of beds...your average 20 minute base bed up to bigger, stronger and more elaborate beds. The time you stay in a bed depends on your skin type and the kind of bed. Check around to find a reallly trustworthy salon, and that the employees are well educated. SmartTan certified salons are great, you can see if there's one in your area here
http://tanningtruth.com/slnfind/

and please please use an indoor tanning lotion if you go! but i'd advise against buying them in salons, because they can range from 15-100 dollars! (average ones here are about 20-50$)I buy mine online for half the price they charge in salons, so you could do that too.

Oh and about the burning, be careful! I'm Latina and hardly burn in the sun as well but I've been burned a few times in beds from overexposure (i thought i could stay in longer since I don't burn... 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 wrong)

hth!


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## Kiseki (Aug 29, 2007)

Like everything in beauty, it comes and goes.

Darker, tanned skin shows less irregularities, doesn't make dark circles stand out like you're a raccoon, yada yada, we all heard this song before.

Until you see a porcelain girl on the cover of Sport's Illustrated you'll know that tanning is the way to go (for the majority), plus we all want what we can't have. Fair-as-snow people would like complexions that their skins will never have, no matter how much tanning salons they go, it just doesn't work that way. Asian beauty has porcelain-like complexions at their utmost beautiful. It's like the old "I want what I can't have" or "the grass is always greener on the other side". 


I do understand kimmy when she says that people look at her thinking she's unhealthy, I get the same reaction, the other day I was buying concealer and the girl offered me some Chanel self-tanning lotion because I looked so unhealthily pale... which I didn't, I just looked pale, that's all.

I would advise you to resort to makeup or skincare to warm your complexion, but like everything else in life, you'll have to make your choice fully aware of what it implies.

I'm sorry if this sounds preachy, but I too lost friends to cancer and tanning salons are one of my peeves.


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## Staceypie0616 (Aug 29, 2007)

You are comparing drug addiction to exposing your body to the possibility of skin and other cancers???? huh?

My advice: buy Loreal glow for olive skin and moisturize daily. 


"There are a thousand reasons to see a Dermatologist. What's yours?"


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## kimmy (Sep 16, 2007)

i went to a bed the other day for 6 minutes. i saw a little bit of a change in my legs, which is good. very slight...but a difference is a difference. this is still what i'm working with though (just so you can see how much it's gonna take to even myself out hahaha)




so i'm thinking of using some 45/50 spf on my arms next time and maybe going for 15 minutes...do you think that'd even it out a little better?


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## little teaser (Sep 16, 2007)

Quote:

   Originally Posted by *MACATTAK* 

 
_





 What's good for one person, may not be good for another, but it's their choice._

 
i agree


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## Dreamergirl3 (Sep 16, 2007)

you prob shouldn't jump from 6 minutes to 15, I think that's putting yourself at a great risk of overexposure (from itchy, tight skin, to a full blown sunburn). Your skin needs time to adjust. You should increase your time by 3 mins, 4 at the most.
Its usually recommended to increase by 1 or 2, though, each session. It's really the best for your skin. A gradual, slow increase in color is great! remember, just because you're not burning doesnt mean your skin isn't getting too damaged too fast. I know its hard when sometimes your mindset is to get dark and fast, but do it as safely as u can! It's the best for you and your skin 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




I think the spf thing is a good idea, def worth a shot. good luck with your glow!


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## NutMeg (Sep 16, 2007)

I definitely wouldn't jump it up... An impatience to go that fast will probably result in more damage that what you're already getting. Keep it in small increments until you get where you want to be.

I also feel that I should "declare my allegience", so to speak, with the anti-tanning group. That being said I'm not going to preach to you about how to take care of your own body, as long as you are informed.


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## _trimm_trabb (Sep 17, 2007)

Another vote for anti-tanning...if not for your own health or for your own skin, at least for your wallet. What a waste of money (in my opinion). I just hate seeing older ladies that you know could have beautiful skin, but they have all those spots and speckles on their decollitage or deep wrinkles on their face from tanning when they were young.

Honestly, the health & beauty marketing industry has us (women) cornered. They have us paying to spend time in premature aging- and wrinkle- inducing beds, then spending hundreds of dollars on designer wrinkle creams and anti-aging potions, or furthermore, botox!.

Can't we all just skip this expensive process? Just wear sunscreen and avoid tanning for now and save yourself the big bucks later!

/end.


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## Gloriosa (Sep 17, 2007)

California Sun do a tanning lotion specifically for hard to tan legs... I can't remember what it's called, but you could probably find it online somewhere. And yes, wear a high SPF on the places you don't want tanned. I always use one on my nose, lips [and nipples! shh.] 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




It'll probably take a fair while for your legs to reach the deep colour of your arms, but once it's all evened out you can keep it that way, i suppose.

Also... I hear you on the olive skintone thing. I just look sallow without a tan, and I have different pigment in different places so it's glaringly obvious when I'm pale.


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