In order to successfully prevent ingrown hairs, you have to stop the problem at the source, e.g. shaving. For those who have curlier hair or thicker hair, ingrown hairs may be more difficult to prevent than for those with finer, straighter hair, but these tips can still help a ton. For instance, many have found that using an electric razor, which doesn’t cut as close to the skin, leaves your skin smooth and shaved, sans irritation. It may seem logical that those razors with 4 or 5 blades are your best bet for the best shave, which may be true for some, but the sharpness of the razors is what sharpens the end of the hair, ultimately causing it to in-grow improperly into the hair follicle.

Furthermore, if you make a point to thoroughly wash your skin prior to shaving, you lift the hair out of the follicle, preparing it to be properly shaved. Also consider shaving in the direction your hair grows, or with the grain, rather than the opposite direction the hair grows, or against the grain. An example would be, for women, to shave with downward strokes on their legs versus upwards ones. In addition, immediately post shave, apply a warm, damp towel to your skin that can soothe and soften any irritation.

Some basic things you can do on a regular basis to treat ingrown hairs, are to apply warm compression to the area and hope that the hair naturally corrects itself; exfoliate dead skin cells frequently; try shaving with the grain versus against it; and invest in a good salicylic acid moisturizer that can soothe ingrown hairs. Because ingrown hairs are usually caused by frequent shaving, some good tips while shaving, are to scrub the area you wish to shave prior to applying shaving cream, avoid the use of old, dulled razors, use only as much pressure as needed with the razor, and keep shaving to a minimum.

Finally, you may want to consider allowing areas you frequently shave to grow out 1 month out of each year. Giving your hair time to grow as nature intended, can ensure that it will continue growing as such after shaving as well. The problem with ingrown hairs is that they curl in towards the skin rather than outwards toward the surface. In allowing your hair a months worth of bereavement, the hair that tends to in grow itself, will return to its natural out grow state.

First, you want to be one-hundred percent sure the bump on your skin is indeed an ingrown hair. Some common places ingrown hairs appear are for men, the beard area, and for women, the legs and bikini zone, so typically, where you shave. Ingrown hairs can look similar to a zit, but rather than dirt being trapped under the skin, there is hair.

Next, wet a washcloth with warm water and apply it to your skin where the ingrown hair is located, softening the follicle, and allowing the hair to come to the surface.

Then take a pair of clean tweezers or a sterile needle and carefully coax the hair to the surface. If the ingrown hair happens to be located in a hard to reach area, ask a buddy to give you a hand. Try to be as gentle as possible by refraining from digging or plucking at the hair. Try your best to just snip out the ingrown portion of the hair, leaving the normal portion in tact. Once the hair is removed, wash the area with warm water and moisturize. This will prevent infection. To finish apply some hydrogen peroxide or other antiseptic to the area.

First, you need to make sure that the products you are using to treat your ingrown hairs contain active ingredients. Salicylic acid has been clinically tested and proven to be the only dermatological ingredient that smoothes and soothes ingrown hairs. Furthermore, you should be using shaving creams that are specifically targeted for people with sensitive skin. Another idea to consider is avoiding products containing alcohol because it dries out your skin, closing your pores, and actually making ingrown hairs worse.

Next, make a point to exfoliate your skin; by doing so you buff away dead skin that can make getting to ingrown hairs difficult. Try using a daily scrub containing non-acnegenic ingredients or once again, salicylic acid. In addition, use a liquid cleanser on a gentle face brush and massage the skin with ingrown hair in a circular motion, which will clear your hair follicles, and allow hair to return to natural growing habits.

Finally, to remove ingrown hairs that already exist, take a pair of sterile tweezers, and very cautiously lift the ingrown hair up and out of the follicle. Refrain from actually “plucking” your ingrown hairs, however, because by doing so the incoming hair will grow in even deeper than before. To tip it all off, gently dab witch hazel to the infected area, which will reduce swelling, redness, and close the pore from outside dirt and grime.

For instance, wearing tight fitting clothes, or rubbing fabrics can cause ingrown hair. Anything that can alter or break hair follicles has the ability to give you ingrown hair. When the follicle is broken off, the sideways hair that grows back becomes inflamed, which is unsightly and can sometimes be painful. Another cause of ingrown hair is dead skin accumulating in your pores, blocking hair from growing properly and forcing it to grow at an angle.

Determining whether or not you have an ingrown hair versus some other skin ailment is a matter of looking at the symptoms. These can include itchy skin, rash-like redness, and hair that do not go away despite your efforts to shave. Common areas for ingrown hairs are, for men, their beard area, moustache area, and back, and for women, legs, arms, and bikini zone.