More than getting my legs waxed, I dread the growth of underskin hair after I get waxed. Underskin hair indeed is a band that most of us have had to experience at some point. They are a curse and make your just waxed legs look bumpy and not so smooth!
What is underskin hair and what causes them?
So basically an ingrown or underskin hair is a hair that instead of coming out of the skin curls and grows back into the skin. And your body now treats the hair as a foreign object which makes them irritate the skin. Ingrown hair tends to form a raised red bump on the skin, similar to a pimple. Sometimes you can even see the trapped hair under your skin. And that is way more gross to see that it is to read. Sometimes all you can see under the bump is a red sore.
They can occur in both men and women and usually occur in those areas where we shave or wax. So women often have the ingrown hair on their legs, bikini line, and underarms while men tend to get ingrown (underskin) facial hair after shaving.
Causes of underskin hair
Dead Skin Cells
When dead skin cells remain on your skin, they block hair follicles from reaching outside the skin and trap them under your skin leading to ingrown hair.
Shaving, Waxing and/or Epilating
Removing the hair very close to the skin can lead to the edge of the growing follicle getting caught instead of growing out.
Excessive waxing allows for rapid growth of ingrown hair.
Tight clothing
If your clothes are too tight, the fabric of your clothes rubs against the skin and causes friction. This leads to pressure on your hair follicles.
Tight clothing encourages ingrown hair growth!
Shaving technique
Doing a close shave can lead to the hair getting caught and growing inwards.
Getting rid of ingrown hair
Ingrown hair is hard to treat and often it seems like they are here to stay for a long long time. We have consolidated the ways you can protect yourself from the ingrown hair.
Remedy #1: Physically removing the hair
Before you remove your hair (shaving, waxing, epilating or whatever else works for you) get a pair of sterile tweezers or a plucker. Carefully lift out the ingrown hair. You can identify them as red or black bumps on your skin. Just bring the hair to the surface and remove them along with your other hair. This technique works for ingrown hair that is relatively near the surface. Exfoliating your skin also brings ingrown hair near the surface but it takes more time.
Physical hair removal
Remedy #2: The skin care regimen
Exfoliating involves removing the layer of dead cells on your skin. Dead skin cells are a major cause for ingrown hair as they cause hair to bend instead of being able to come out naturally. And since their path is blocked by the dead skin cells, the hair continues to grow under your skin. You need to exfoliate daily or once every two days. Also, remember to exfoliate before you remove your hair.
Make your own exfoliating scrub: Here is a simple DIY exfoliating sugar scrub recipe. Mix 1 cup of sugar (preferably organic) with ½ cup each of olive oil and coconut oil. You can add any essential oils of your choice such as tea tree, sandalwood, cedarwood, or eucalyptus to the mix. You can use your scrub daily after taking a bath.
After exfoliating your skin you need to cleanse the hair follicles so as to dislodge the ingrown hair and preventing it from getting caught under the skin. After cleansing, you need to moisturize your skin.
A good skincare regimen will solve your ingrown hair problems
Remedy #3: Hair removal techniques
The way you remove your hair can also affect your ingrown hair.
● When shaving, don’t use a dull blade. Change blades frequently.
● Don’t push the blade too hard on the skin.
● Try using safety blades.
After waxing or shaving, avoid wearing tight clothes as these put pressure and can cause the hair to curl back inwards.
Innovative and new hair removal techniques such as laser hair removal help in removing hair.
Even waxing can cause ingrown hairs as the hair is pulled directly from the root. As the process is so quick, the follicle can get damaged and the journey of the hair won’t be smooth. You are less likely to get ingrown hair if you wax after an interval of 3 weeks. Also, try to pull the wax strips with all the hair in one go as repeatedly waxing the same region could lead to ingrown hair.
So remember the next time you prep for some hair removal time, exfoliate and be gentle!