How to Deal With Ingrown Body Hair

One of the lesser-considered hazards of shaving is ingrown hair, when your hair curls back into the follicle as it grows in, resulting in a pimple-like bump on your skin. But there are fairly pain-free things you can do to prevent and treat your ingrown hairs.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Take care of the ingrown hairs you already have. If the hair is fairly close to the surface, apply a hot cloth to the affected area several times a day for about 10 minutes. This softens your skin and allows the hair to break through the skin. If the hair is deep set, sterilize a pair of tweezers and a safety pin in rubbing alcohol. Then, gently poke the area with the needle to let the pus out. After that, use the tweezer to gently pull the top of the hair to the surface of your skin.
2. Prevent it from happening again by shaving correctly. By shaving in the direction the hair grows in instead of against it, and applying a cool cloth afterwards, you can do your part to ward off ingrown hairs.
3. Exfoliate your skin to keep dead skin cells away, making it easier for hair to grow through your skin. Use a scrub weekly or as recommended on the product packaging.
4. Allow your hair to grow a little longer before shaving to help prevent your hair from becoming ingrown.
5. Consider more permanent measures if ingrown hairs are a constant problem. Lasers have been improved greatly in the past few years and can now be used to remove hair permanently. Check the yellow pages or go online to find a doctor in your area that performs that procedure.

Tips & Warnings

• Sometimes ingrown hair is just simply out of your hands, especially if you have particularly course or curly hair.