In-growing hairs or ‘razor bumps’ are not only unsightly, but they can also be really irritating. Left to their own devices these problem areas can become worse, greatly affecting your confidence and ability to shave each day. When the warmer months come around, it’s only natural to want to feel the wind on your face, which is why treating razor bumps now will pay dividends later.
So, to help you, we now look at the problem more closely, so you know what to do about them when they appear.
Ingrown Hairs Explained
Essentially, razor bumps are hairs that haven’t broken through the skin as they should and have started growing back under the skin. It can easily happen during your daily shave and when it occurs, your skin can become irritated with small cyst-like bumps appearing.
Treating razor bumps is necessary in good time, as the pores in question will remain blocked until they’re freed – risking infection and swelling. The good news is that there are things you can do about it.
Here’s a few for your perusal:
- If you can, try to remove the hair by using another method other than shaving, such a laser hair removal or ‘sugaring’.
- Don’t shave too closely to the skin and minimise the total number of razor strokes
- Shave with warm water and only use a 1-blade razor
- Shave ‘with the grain’
- Never shave with cold water or without cream or shaving gel
- Moisturize the skin after shaving
- Rinse your skin with cold water after shaving
This is a great way of treating razor bumps to begin with, but you can also use cleansing products to further reduce this troublesome issue.
We’d recommend regularly using a blemish-beating cleanser for exfoliation, which contains aloe, lactic acid and green tea. This type of product will help to reduce inflammation, as well as eliminating any impurities that exist under the skin.
Something else you should avoid is picking or touching razor bumps, as it can lead to infection and ultimately scarring which opens a whole new can of worms. An overnight resurfacing cream can help a lot too, so we’d keep applying it nightly until you see things improve.
Treating Razor Bumps Doesn’t Have to Be Painful
If you have one single thing to take away from reading to the end of this blog, it’s that treating razor bumps absolutely doesn’t not have to be painful. Try methods that do hurt, like picking or shaving them away and you’re only going to cause yourself more irritation and more inflammation.
Ingrown hairs represent a minor issue to most people, but if they’re left and not treated properly, they can turn into problems that are more difficult to cope with.
So, our recommendation to you is this – follow our shaving tips, gently exfoliate with a blemish-fighting cleanser and use a resurfacing cream to finish the job off if needed. Do this and you’ll soon say goodbye to razor bumps and hello to smooth, comfortable skin.
