With the passage of time and the new-fangled tendencies of the universal striving for an ideal appearance, many have taken for the standard of beauty impeccably smooth skin. There is nothing surprising: the soft silky surface of the skin without a single hair or a gun looks much more well-groomed and attractive than with natural hairy vegetation. This applies to both the faces of men and the legs, armpits and intimate area of women. But how to achieve perfect smoothness of the skin, avoiding irritation after shaving?
Modern methods of depilation
Irritation after shaving is a notorious phenomenon. Often and thickly, men and women experience redness in the area of the razor-treated skin. This can be a small rash, peeling, tiny sores obtained due to mechanical damage to delicate areas of the skin. Depending on the depilation method used, irritations after shaving may be pronounced or less pronounced.
Modern methods of removing unwanted hair from the skin are represented by the following most common variations:
- mechanical depilation - elimination of hair using a razor;
- the use of electric shavers;
- waxing procedures;
- shugaring - hair removal with a special sugar paste.
The easiest and least painful way to eliminate hairline is shaving with a machine. But it is this method that, when used improperly or not properly maintained after the procedure, causes discomfort and skin irritation after shaving.
Causes of skin irritation
There are many reasons that contribute to minor skin deformities and injuries during mechanical action of the razor on the most delicate areas of the skin. They may be due to the following factors:
- the use of low-quality razors - you need to pay attention to the fact that even a disposable machine is equipped with a moisturizing protective tape over the blade, which is specially designed to soothe the skin after machining;
- blunt blade - the most common mistake of many users is the use of a long-dull machine; ideally, disposable machines should be changed immediately after the first procedure, for which they are disposable;
- the wrong technique for using a razor - you need to remove the hairs exclusively in the direction of their growth, so the likelihood of damage to the upper skin will be minimized;
- ignoring preparatory procedures before starting the shaving process;
- neglect of care products after shaving procedures.
How to prevent the appearance of unwanted injuries on delicate skin and how to avoid irritation after shaving? The selected treatment zone plays an important role, since somewhere the dermal surface on the body is denser, and somewhere quite tender and vulnerable.
How to prevent irritation on the male face after shaving?
The face is that part of the body, that is the measure of that source of visual contact, which is constantly in sight and in general view. The face should be as clean as possible, because this is not a leaky sock that can be hidden in the shoe. All shortcomings, all possible irregularities and excesses on it are immediately evident. Therefore, men accustomed to smooth skin are careful to ensure that after shaving their appearance has a perfectly clean and tidy look without a hint of bristles. And much sadder if instead of bristles on the skin appear spotty redness and irritation after shaving on the face.
How can this discomfort be avoided? How to reduce the risk of unwanted small scars? A more careful approach to the shaving process:
- firstly, the skin should be well prepared for the process of mechanical elimination of hair - it will be enough to steam it with a terry towel dipped in hot water and applied to the areas of the forthcoming treatment;
- secondly, the foam or shaving gel used should be applied with a brush, because this means the product will be evenly distributed over all areas of the face and absorbed as much as possible into the steamed skin, facilitating the depilation process;
- thirdly, the final stage of elimination of hair from the facial skin should be accompanied by the mandatory application of a disinfectant in the form of a lotion or gel.
Thus, following simple techniques during the procedure for removing facial hair, skin irritation after shaving in men can be minimized.
How to prevent redness of the skin on the legs after shaving?
No less responsible is the need to approach such procedures and women. They, of course, do not need to eliminate excessive facial hair, since the female hormonal background does not produce as much hairiness on the face as men do - this is so inherent in nature. But, unlike representatives of the strong half of humanity, ladies have to deal with unwanted hair growth in other areas of their body. These are the legs, axillary and bikini area.
How to avoid irritation after shaving legs? Though the legs are certainly not a face, the fair sex is rather sensitive to their appearance and smoothness, especially in the summer, when the time comes for short skirts and shorts. Therefore, it is quite important for modern beauties to feel themselves in a comfort zone, clearly knowing that their legs look perfect. But not always the procedure for eliminating unwanted vegetation on them goes without a hitch. How to avoid irritation after shaving on the legs? It is necessary to be guided by some rules for the proper conduct of razor manipulations:
- it is important to cleanse the skin before the direct mechanical removal of the hair from the legs - it is necessary to go over them with a soapy washcloth and clean it from pollution;
- the skin should be steamed to facilitate the process of further work on hair removal - you can take a bath and soak your legs in hot pleasant water for 10-15 minutes;
- for the shaving process to proceed successfully, you need to apply a tool to simplify the mechanical elimination of hair - it can be either husband’s shaving foam or a regular shower gel foamed on the feet;
- in order to avoid ingrown hairs, the machine should be used in the direction of hair growth - this minimizes the likelihood of microdamage of the skin;
- at the end of the procedure, the worked skin should be soaked with moisturizing milk or oil.
Following the rules of the correct technique for eliminating unwanted hair, you can try to protect the skin from redness as much as possible or even eliminate the possibility of irritation after shaving in women legs.
How to avoid skin irritation in the armpits when shaving?
The armpits are quite soft and tender parts of the body that are to be cleaned of unwanted vegetation. Skin irritations after shaving armpits due to the increased sensitivity of the integument of the upper layer of the epidermis are also accompanied by rather unpleasant pain. Uncomfortable tingling, pinching spasms, itching - all this interferes with normal life and serves as another negative appendage to reddened and irritated skin. How to avoid this?
As in all previous cases, it is necessary to learn how to properly rid delicate skin of unnecessary hair:
- pre-prepare the site selected for processing - a light peeling will allow you to exfoliate the dead cells of the dermal cover and clean it of the remnants of the antiperspirant clogged in the pores;
- pour warm water to soften the skin before cleansing hairy vegetation;
- apply a shaving agent and carry out the appropriate actions using the machine in two directions of hair growth in the axillary zone;
- dry the treated areas with a towel and apply talcum powder, soothing the skin, and by neat massage movements resume the blood circulation in the worked out area;
- do not apply deodorizing agents for a while to avoid redness and pain.
It is important to note that the cooling cream, which has a soothing and tonic effect, helps from irritation after shaving in the armpits.
How to get rid of redness and rash in the bikini after shave?
The most piquant, most inaccessible and most sensitive part of the body in terms of razor processes is the bikini zone. Irritation after shaving in the intimate zone is the most common problem, since the direction of the hairs there is not uniform, but mixed, and the inaccessibility of the deep region does not allow you to see and cover all the surface necessary for study. And this often leads to mechanical injuries, cuts, imperfections and microscopic injuries to the dermal cover in the groin area. In view of this, people often turn to specialists for help - modern medicine and cosmetology provide a wide range of services, which includes such procedures. But how to shave the bikini area yourself? And how to avoid irritation after shaving in the intimate area? The process of removing hair mechanically at home involves several steps:
- skin cleansing with mild cosmetics;
- scrubbing - the use of a fine-grained loose scrub will help rid the surface of the skin of rough peeling and raise hairs, which will undoubtedly facilitate further shaving;
- applying shaving products to the surface of the bikini area - you can even leave it there for a while so that it penetrates as deep as possible into the upper layer of the epidermis and softens it, thus minimizing the possibility of irritation on the skin after shaving;
- accurate hair removal with a high-quality and not blunt blade - for convenience, you can place a mirror near yourself so that you can see the area necessary for processing completely;
- the application of antiseptic agents - it is necessary to disinfect the surface of the skin, since the susceptibility to bacterial effects is especially increased after such procedures.
Using electric shavers
Whatever harsh critics of the present say about such a device as a razor, it should be noted that there is practically no irritation after shaving with an electric razor. If the shaver is of high quality (and there are a dime a dozen of them on the market of household electrical appliances), then the danger of its use is practically reduced to zero. Its only drawback is that it is not able to get to hard-to-reach places like a regular razor does. The head of the machine cannot, in equal degree with a conventional razor blade, rest against the skin so as to cut off unwanted hairs directly in the area of contact with the skin. But due to this, the dermal surface of the treated areas is not exposed to the risk of microscopic injuries, as is possible in the case of using a blade.
Epilator application
The use of unnecessary wearable hairs of an electric epilator as a liquidator is much less common among women than the use of a mechanical method of vegetation removal using a machine tool. Irritations after shaving with an epilator are as persistent as when using a blade, but this is a much more unpleasant procedure for pain. In fact, the main disadvantage of using this appliance is that it is intended only for girls who have a high pain threshold and are not afraid of tingling unpleasant sensations. The essence of the epilator mechanism is to pull out the hairs with hundreds of small tweezers located on the constantly moving head of the appliance. And the main advantage of its use is a long break between the depilation procedures, as the hairs break out with the bulbs, and new ones grow back much later than after shaving with a machine, and it is much softer.
Wax Treatments
Some girls are very uncomfortable with irritation after shaving. What to do if mechanical methods lead to terrible redness and the appearance of micro-wounds, and the thought of an epilator and pain does not allow you to purchase this device?
You can use the services of a specialist in waxing hair removal from the body. Typically, waxing involves applying relatively hot melted wax to the skin and peeling it off with special paper or fabric strips in a sharp jerk. This is also not very pleasant manipulation in terms of pain, but it is performed abruptly and, unlike the epilator, removes hundreds of hairs from the surface of the skin with one jerk. At the same time, the result is amazing: incredibly smooth and soft skin remains in its "bald" look for several weeks. And the regrowing hairs with a repeated wax procedure are eliminated much easier because they become soft and very thin, in contrast to the coarse prickly bristles formed on the day after processing with a razor.
In order to avoid bacterial contamination, after the end of work with wax, a cooling cream from irritations is applied to the skin. After shaving with wax strips, the upper skin becomes very smooth, soft and pleasant to the touch, since wax removes with the hair the thinnest film of the keratinized skin. With the proper operation of the burn master, this technique does not leave.
Shugaring
A good alternative to wax is a newfangled procedure called shugaring. It involves the use of special pasta, purchased at a beauty shop or made personally from sugar and citric acid. Such a paste is nothing more than a frozen caramel, which, under the influence of the temperature regime, is kneaded in the hands, applied against hair growth in the desired area and, with sharp jerks, is removed like wax in the direction of hair growth along with hair follicles.
The main advantages of this procedure are as follows:
- the absence of ingrown hairs (provided that the procedure is carried out correctly for all points of the instruction);
- hypoallergenic (not prone to allergic reactions, since the paste is based on natural products - citric acid and sugar);
- duration of exposure (for several weeks after the procedure, the legs remain smooth);
- possibility of application at home (pasta is easy to prepare and use on your own).
After shugaring, it is necessary to cover the skin with a soothing cream. After a few days, it is recommended to treat the skin with a scrubbing agent to prevent possible growth of hairs into the skin. If shugaring was carried out in a bikini area, you should give preference to natural cotton underwear, rather than synthetic fiber fabrics - they can cause irritation on the skin. It is also worthwhile to refrain from visiting a bathhouse or sauna, as temperature changes can heat up the treated surface and adversely affect the skin with open pores, which will undoubtedly lead to its redness and inflammation.