Ingrown hairs are hairs that grow into the skin without poking through the surface. An ingrown hair may look like a swollen red bump or whitehead that appears a day or two after shaving. Often, if you look closely, you can see the offending hair trying to poke through the skin. Your pubic area is particularly prone to this pesky problem, due to the shape and thickness of the hair. Unfortunately, aside from being annoying, these nasty bumps are almost always painful and often embarrassing.
Prevention
Step 1
Replace your razor blade frequently. This will ensure that any hairs cut to below the surface of the skin will be cut sharply and smoothly. This helps the hair to push through the skin’s surface.
Step 2
Use a shaving gel and hot water when shaving the bikini area. This softens the hair, giving you a cleaner shave.
Step 3
Shave the hair with the grain, not against. According to the Mayo Clinic, the cause of most ingrown hairs is the result of shaving that alters the shape of the hair, making it more difficult for the hair to penetrate the skin. Avoiding a close shave is the easiest way to avoid this problem.
Step 4
Try a depilatory cream or other chemical hair removal. This is a gentle way to remove hair that rarely results in ingrown hairs. Try a formula specifically intended for the bikini line for the best results.
Step 5
Consider laser hair removal. While this option is more expensive and drastic than shaving, Mathew Avram, M.D., a dermatologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, suggests that laser hair removal may be the best preventive measure–after all other options are exhausted.
Treatment
Step 1
Apply an antiseptic over the ingrown hair. This reduces inflammation and the chances of an infection and limits the pain and size of the resulting bump.
Step 2
Use an acne spot treatment that contains salicylic acid. According to the Med Help website, this acts as a chemical exfoliant drawing the zit-like portion of the ingrown hair out of the skin. This may expose the hair so it can grow normally.
Step 3
Use warm water to saturate a wash cloth. Hold the cloth over the ingrown hair for a minute to soften the skin.
Step 4
Place the needle slightly under the folded hair and lift the hair out of the skin. Use your tweezers to pull the hair out. This will prevent the same hair, now likely growing downward, from re-entering the skin.
Step 5
See a doctor if a single ingrown hair lasts for several weeks or you continue to have problems with multiple ingrown hairs. Several prescription medications are available that she can prescribe to help you control the inflammation, infection and skin discolorations common with ingrown hairs in the bikini line.
Photo Credit
- bikini image by FotoWorx from Fotolia.com
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