Ingrown hair crisis

Look, it's not about the products you use, it's understanding what your skin can tolerate.


Get yourself a cleanser/toner with a gentle astrigent like witch hazel, forget about after shaves and scrubs for the moment as they can be too harsh. Rinse with warm water instead of cold, slamming your pores shut with an aggressive astringent is probably the last thing you should be doing.

Use the toner/cleanser night and day irrespective of whether you have shaved, keeping the inflammed areas as clean as possible.
 
Your skin has to heal first. I had a nasty skin condition a few years ago and the only solution I found was potassium permanganate - remember O Level chemistry? - Turns the water purple. There's some information here but loads of other resources as well:

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/skin-and-hair/medicines/permitabs.html

Stay off scents and keep it gentle in the shower - maybe just Aqueous Solution from the chemist which is very cheap and will even dissolve in a bath to soften the water.

If you can take them, try regular ibuprofen for a few days-there are opinions that this can be useful for some in helping skin inflammation. If you do go this route don't take it on an empty stomach and if you're asthmatic don't take it at all. Own brands such as Tesco etc are as effective as the 'Nurofen's' at a fraction of the price.

I have particularly sensitive skin around my neck, once I allowed it to heal Mitchells Wool Fat with pre and post Proraso helped greatly as did switching to a mild razor - Gillette Tech, with a sharp blade - Feather or Perma-Sharp.

Although clinically trained I'd rather tell you what works for me so the above is my personal experience, I hope it helps you. If you'd like a bit of MWF and some Proraso to try PM and I'll be happy to oblige.
 
Thanks for the advice guys. Unfortunately my job needs me clean shaven, otherwise I would just grow it for a while and treat it carefully. Unfortunately I would look like David Bellamy gone wrong in about 3 days !
 
You are obviously using enough pressure to cut the hair "below" the skin. You have been given all the advice you need to alleviate that going forward.

To get rid of the bumps you have now is going to take a good scrubbing with a flannel to break the skin to let the hair out. Not pretty, but sounds like your caught between a rock & a hard place.
 
After a patrol, an ex-Puser diesel submariner mate, David, used to get his Missus - well, she insisted before letting him into bed, actually - to scrub him all over with Vim or Ajax and a nail brush (not made of nails! for cleaning finger nails) which opened the pores, destroyed and emptied pustules as well as generally degreasing him and taking away some of the diesel smell. In-grown hair stood not a chance!

George F, 4th Engineer, had a donkey boiler blow-back. Prior to this event, his face was a pimpled and spotty mess. After we removed the bandages, his head and face were without blemish and he even had a little hair showing through. This method of skin cleansing should be considered as highly dangerous, however.
 
Sounds like you have it bad, you need to check the grain of your hair growth and shave 1 pass with the grain. I guess you need to free the hair before it heals, try doing it after work on a Friday to give yourself a couple of days before you need to shave again. Either that or take a couple of days off and give it longer. Try some Magnesium Sulphate from the chemist as a a drawing ointment.
http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-magnesium-sulphate-paste-50g_865677/
 
I used to have an extreme problem with ingrowns and I feel for anyone who suffers with them.

This is what I've found.

You need to let them heal.
You won't like this but get a stubble trimmer and use it on the closest setting which will be about 0.3mm. It's enough to keep the hairs above the surface preventing more ingrowns but keeps the hair short (ingrowns usually occur with thick curly hair, when you let the hair get longer it will curl back towards the skin causing more irritation). This will take a week or too if they are servere.

Now you are ready to shave again.
Don't use the trimmer for a day or so, so the hair can get a bit longer and softer.
Lots of time on preparation. Wash face in shower or bath use something like dove sensitive as pre-shave soap. Leave it on while you wash the rest of you. Rinse with lots of hot water. Don't dry your face, its time for several hot towels, as hot as you can handle.
Now lather with a good soap like MWF or cream Bluebeards Revenge (in my opinion).
Look out for known irritants on the ingredients. Propolyene glycol is a big one (ironically it is in most ingrown creams and lotions lol).
Your lather needs to be just right, now your hair is softened and hydrated you want to keep it that way for the whole shave.
I should tell you to just go with the grain now. Shaving too close is what traps the hair beneath the skin with thick hair.
I don't. I do one ATG pass with a well honed and stropped straight razor. I'm not right but I look 10 years younger for the day!
If you are using a disposable, use a fresh blade.
I rinse well with warm water then alum block. There are mixed views about using alum with ingrowns but it works fine for me.

Now forget about using anything with alcohol in, even witch hazel can be too harsh for some sufferers. You need to moisturise to keep the skin soft. It makes it easier for the hairs to find their way out.
Now you know the post shaving feeling for people who don't suffer from ingrowns. Nice eh! Enjoy it because ingrown sufferers can't shave as often as those who don't. You will have to leave it for a couple of days.

Here are some other tips:

Wash with just warm water for the first 24 hrs, no soap and follow up with asprin. I use the soluble stuff with just tiny bit of water. This should help prevent any hair coming back ingrown from being infected and going red.

Keep you skin hydrated, it makes it easier for the hairs to penetrate.

If you are getting some ingrowns don't shave yet. You won't enjoy it anyway and if you have already got some ingrowns new ones seem to get infected more easily.


I know that was a bit exhaustive, I'm well fast at typing "ingrowns" now lol!
It's just they can be really depressing and if my past experience can help others then that would be great.
 
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