How to Prevent Ingrown Hairs After Epilation

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When hair grows back into the skin while removing hair using wax, razor, or epilator, it results in ingrown hair. Ingrown hair causes inflammation, pain, and tiny bumps, and in some people, it may also cause hyperpigmentation or darkening of the skin.

Have you ever had ingrown hair? Do you know how to prevent it? If not, this article will help you to know how to prevent ingrown hair after epilation.

It is better to take precautions before an accident occurs. So, why not take care of your skin instantly after epilating unwanted hair to prevent ingrown hair growth.

 

What is Ingrown hair?

Ingrown hairs

Ingrown hair is common after epilation, and people identify it through a raised red bump on the grown hair. It may also appear on the neck, scalp, face, armpits, chest, back, and pubic areas. You may feel discomfort and itchy in the affected area. The ingrown hair usually cures itself; otherwise, you may need to consult a doctor in severe cases.

Mostly it appears on people having curly and coarse hair. And if you do not have curly and coarse hair and still get ingrown hair bumps, then the technique of using your epilator may be wrong.

Now, ingrown hair may also come in either of its two types, Extrafollicular penetration or Transfollicular penetration; after epilation, when the tip of hair grows along its natural curvature and penetrates the epidermis, it results in Extrafollicular type. And when the tip of hair fails to exit the epidermis layer and starts growing curving inside, it results in Transfollicular type.

 

How to prevent ingrown hairs?

How to prevent ingrown hair

There could be many ways to prevent ingrown hair, but this article is focused mainly on preventing ingrown hair after epilation. So, first of all, you should buy an epilator of good quality. An epilator of poor quality may break your hair rather than pull it out from the roots, which promotes the broken hair to grow back into the skin. To know more about the ways to prevent ingrown hair after the epilating process, read on!

1. Proper use of an epilator

Epilator works similar to waxing, but the only difference is that an epilator is an electrical device and does not remove cells from the epithelium. Therefore, the technique to use it differs from wax.

An epilator also pulls out hair from the roots and is more convenient to use than wax. But to use an epilator, you need to hold it at a 90-degree angle. Remember not to press the device towards your skin and hold it loosely. Then move the epilator gradually in the direction of your hair growth. The epilator will grasp multiple hairs simultaneously with its tweezers to pull them out.

 

2. Shower before epilation

You can shower before the process to prevent the risk of ingrown hairs. It will also make the process easy, convenient, and less painful. If you do not prefer to shower before epilation, you can soak the area you want to epilate with a warm wet towel.

While showering, you can use a pumice stone to scrub the skin and include it in your daily bathing routine. Pumice stone helps in removing hair and also dead skin. The scrubbing scraps off dead skin and lets the ingrown hair come out by unclogging the pores.

 

3. Gentle use of an epilator

If the epilator glides easily on your skin, it will become easier to remove hairs from its follicles. Try not to put a lot of pressure on the device and hold gently to let it move on its own, removing multiple hairs together.

And do not pull the area you are epilating with your fingers, as when you stretch your skin, the pores open wide and increase the risk of cuts and hair tips growing quickly back into the hair follicles.

 

4. Exfoliate the skin

You can exfoliate your skin before or after the epilation process. Exfoliation removes the old dead skin cells from your skin’s surface. And it could be done anywhere on the body you wish to.

The dead skin blocks the hair follicles from growing out of the epidermis layer. Therefore, exfoliate using a natural exfoliator or with the one you get with an epilator. As said before, a pumice stone could be a natural way to exfoliate. Or loofah, dry body brush, sugar and olive paste, or baking soda water paste will also do.

 

5. Moisturize after epilation

Usually, people use moisturizers to prevent irritation after epilating the hair. But, it also helps to prevent ingrown hairs. How? The soft cream soothes the newly epilated part of your skin and prevents the dry skin from clogging your pores and hair follicles.

It would be best if you use non-comedogenic moisturizers. Glycolic acid is also a replacement for it. But avoid using alcoholic products or perfumes on the skin. You can use alcohol to clean your epilator each time after use.

 

6. Wash your skin after epilation

If you are not epilating your hair in the shower, you should wash your skin after the epilation with warm water. Not only will the pores open up, but also it will prevent the chances of ingrown hair by removing the lingering hair and the bacterias. If not shower, you can rinse off your skin with a warm wet cloth and then apply creams, oils, gels, or moisturizers.

Do not apply moisturizer directly on the skin without washing the bacterias and the lingering hairs stuck on the skin. It might increase the chance of ingrown hairs.

 

7. Improve skin routine

Clean and smooth skin reduces around 50 per cent chances of ingrown hair. Therefore, improve your daily routine and start taking care of your skin by regular exfoliation and moisturizing, especially if you are prone to ingrown hairs.

You must use natural soaps or products to body wash your skin regularly in the shower. It will wash away the dead skin and will clear out your pores.

 

8. Avoid tight clothes

Your skin needs some space to breathe after you pull out hairs. And when you wear tight and skin-touch clothes instantly after epilation, it puts pressure on the skin. It may cause ingrown hair as the hair doesn’t get space to regrow and therefore pull itself back into the skin to grow, resulting in ingrown hairs.

 

9. Clinic treatments

Some people prefer the chemical peel-off processes to remove skin layers and get a youthful look. If you are comfortable with chemicals on your skin, then chemical peeling can be one of the options to prevent ingrown hairs.

If you already have ingrown hairs, you can apply benzoyl peroxide or tretinoin to the affected area to cure it. Also, some natural healers like tea tree oil are good for curing ingrown hair.

To quickly get rid of ingrown hair the moment you see it, warm compress the area. It will help the stuck hair to get out of the skin layer and grow naturally. If you start feeling uncomfortable and symptoms of ingrown hair have worsened, consult a skin specialist and intake oral antibiotic medicines or undergo any other medication your doctor suggests.

 

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Conclusion

Ingrown hairs are a common problem in many people and occur because the hair grows back into the skin after hair removal. It mainly happens with people having curly and coarse hair. If you are one of them and use an epilator, there are ways to prevent ingrown hair.

The foremost reason behind ingrown hair could be the way you use an epilator. So, use it properly, hold it at 90 degrees, and moisturize your skin after epilation. Rinse the skin and apply moisturizer if you do not epilate in the shower. Exfoliate regularly and improve your daily skin routine. These all ways may help you prevent ingrown hairs.

We hope you found this article helpful, and do not forget to share your experience of reading this article with us in the comment section below.

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