5 Ways to Treat Shaving Bumps Fast
Shaving bumps can happen to anyone, although some people are more prone than others. People with sensitive or dry skin might find that they get shaving bumps almost every time they shave. Although it can technically happen at any time, changing your technique can help to reduce the likelihood that you’ll develop shaving bumps.
If you already have them, you’re probably in search of a solution. Those red, itchy, uncomfortable bumps are unpleasant to look at and difficult to deal with. In the meantime, you can treat your shaving bumps to help them resolve sooner. In the long term, take steps to prevent them. You’ll be thankful that you did.
What Causes Shaving Bumps?
Most men will experience some degree of irritation when they shave, and the logic behind that is simple. At the end of the day, shaving is running a sharp object over the surface of your skin. You’re going to feel it in one way or another, although there are plenty of steps you can take to significantly reduce that degree of irritation.
Shaving bumps are caused by hair that, for one reason or another, is obstructed or prevented from exiting through the surface of the skin. It stays somewhere below the surface, causing irritation and creating a visible bump on the surface of the face.
Men with curly hair are significantly more likely to experience shaving bumps, as curly hair has a tendency to become ingrown when cut in the middle of its growth cycle. The curl in the hair doesn’t unwind as it grows, leading it to re-enter the skin on the way to emerging. This causes a shaving bump that will often be sensitive to the touch.
1. Untrapping Ingrown Hairs
If you can get the hair out from under the surface of your skin, you’ll resolve the cause of the shaving bump. You might feel tempted to dig at it with tweezers or poke it with a needle. This can make the problem worse by causing further injury or irritation. Razor bumps aren’t like a pimple. They can’t be popped.
The best way to coax the hair out from under the skin is to exfoliate. When you remove the top layer of dead skin, you’ll free anything that’s trapped within that layer. This might include the end of your ingrown hair. If your ingrown hair is visible from the outside as a loop, similar to the appearance of velcro, you may be able to gently free it by simply lifting the loop with tweezers.
Use minimal force and don’t pinch the hair, because pinching it can cause it to break. Just wiggle the end of the tweezers to let it loose. If it doesn’t give easily, don’t force it.
2. Cool Them Down.
Cold causes things to contract. If your razor bumps are looking swollen, applying a cold compress for a few minutes can help to take away some of the redness and swelling.
If you’re using an ice pack, wrap it in a washcloth or put it in a clean sock to prevent the cold surface from coming directly into contact with your skin. Put it on for five minutes and take it off for five minutes. You can reapply if the redness of the bump still appears significant.
Just don’t leave the cold compress on for too long. Continuous exposure to cold without any breaks can damage blood vessels in your face, leading to even more redness. Be patient and gentle.
3. Managing Irritants
When you have shaving bumps, your body tries to heal them. In the process of attempting to heal them, it sends out special cells that can contribute to inflammation. If your bumps are red, painful, or uncomfortable, the best thing you can do is products that your skin isn’t sensitive to.
Taking an over the counter ibuprofen can help to reduce irritations from the inside out. Topical treatments like hydrocortisone cream can reduce irritants from the outside in. These are both inexpensive fixes you can pick up at any drugstore.
If you have an aloe plant outside, that will work just as well. Aloe is cooling and soothing. You can take a piece of pulp from the inside of the aloe leaf, put it on your shaving bumps, and leave it there for a few hours. The spots will continuously absorb the moisture from the aloe.
4. Dry Them Out, Then Moisturize
Astringents dry your skin out, but they also reduce inflammation. They can help to mitigate the bacteria on or around your razor bump, reducing the chance that your ingrown hair will become infected.
You can use products specifically marketed as an astringent, witch hazel, or tea tree oil.
Use a cotton swab to apply it directly to the spot and let it sit for about five minutes. Rinse it off with cool water and blot your face dry. After you’ve washed and dried your face, you might notice that your skin is a lot drier on the spots where you used the astringent. This is normal.
Apply a natural fragrance free moisturizer to your face to help restore its balance.
5. Leave Them Alone
Time is the biggest factor in resolving shaving bumps. While there are things you can do to speed up the process, you need to be careful to avoid irritating them while your skin is healing. Don’t shave over them for a few days, stay out of the sun, and don’t pick at your face.
Avoid applying any alcohol based aftershaves or unnecessary products to your skin. Keep using a decent moisturizer. It’s hard, but be patient.
It’s Easy to Prevent Shaving Bumps
Shaving bumps can be prevented by exfoliating your face to remove dead skin before you shave, shaving while your face is wet and hot, using a hot lather, and frequently replacing your razor blade.
If the surface of your skin is warm, wet, and smooth before you shave, and continues to be warm, wet, and smooth while you shave, you’re going to get better results. Hot water helps your hairs to bulk up, making them easier to remove. A sharp new blade will cut them away close to the skin without generating dry friction that can cause irritation.
The Takeaway
Shaving bumps are a common problem that men deal with. They need some time to heal, but you likely have some things around the house that can help to expedite that process. The best way to deal with shaving bumps is to prevent them with a better shave.
LTHR’s hot lather machine helps you get a barber quality shave at home.
Our shaving cream is chemical free and formulated with skin smoothing ingredients like coconut oil, aloe vera, and glycerin to keep your skin smooth and moist throughout your shave. Combine our top notch shaving cream with our lather warmer to amp up the quality of your shave. You’ll be fresh, smooth, and bump free. And you don’t even need to leave your house.
Sources:
Ingrown hair - Symptoms and causes | Mayo Clinic
How to safely exfoliate at home | American Academy of Dermatology
Hydrocortisone skin cream, ointment, lotion, or solution | Cleveland Clinic