Those painful, itchy red bumps that appear on your bikini line after you shave or wax are called ingrown hairs, and they are the result of hair that grows back into the skin rather than outside of the skin. Ingrown hairs are particularly common in the bikini area because the hair there is coarse and curly. Luckily there are some ways to prevent ingrown hairs in the first place.
Step 1
The best way to avoid ingrown hairs is to not remove hair in the first place, because long hairs do not become ingrown. However, if you do need to remove hair but want a sure-fire way to prevent ingrown hairs, you can also use laser hair removal, an outpatient procedure that kills the hair follicle so that it does not regrow at all.
Step 2
If you must shave or wax the area, it helps to use new, clean razors and shave in the direction of hair growth, according to Cosmopolitan. Use a washcloth or soft-bristled toothbrush to massage the area you are going to shave or wax before doing so, as this can help exfoliate skin so that it is less likely to harbor ingrown hairs, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Step 3
Use over-the-counter exfoliating creams on the bikini area before and after epilating. These include creams containing glycolic acid, salicylic acid or retinyl palmitate. A portion of all retinyl palmitate molecules convert into retinoic acid, which is known to help remove dead skin cells.
Step 4
Apply a prescription cream containing retinoic acid (Retin-A) to the bikini area once a day. Because these creams contain a higher percentage of retinoic acid than over-the-counter retinyl palmitate creams, they are more effective, according to the Mayo Clinic. However, they are also more likely to cause skin irritation. According to Cosmopolitan, prescription corticosteroid creams can alleviate the inflammation associated with ingrown hairs, and topical antibiotics will treat infections that develop if you have scratched the affected area.
Step 5
If some ingrown hairs are particularly bothersome, you can remove them using a sterilized needle. Insert the needle into the loop formed by the ingrown hair, then pull the loop gentle to remove the hair from the skin.
Things You'll Need
- Washcloth or soft-bristled toothbrush
- New razors
- Over-the-counter cream containing salicylic acid, glycolic acid or retinyl palmitate
- Prescription cream containing retinoic acid (tretinoin)
- Sterilized needle
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