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Acne or in grown?

I seem to keep on breaking out after shaving. Looking to see if these are in growns or acne
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I will follow this thread with interest because I also get those very easily.

I believe they are ingrown hairs (also called razor bumps). Do you go against the grain in this area? How often do you change your blade?
 
What razor are you using?
Stop shaving against the grain. Use a tech with your favourite blade, a boar brush and cold water. If possible shave once every 48 hours.
 
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If you’re comfortable with a straight stick to the single passes.
you may not feel totally smooth but you will look passable.
Use a boar for a month with your favourite soap.👍
 
take this as it is, one data point: i haven’t figured it out fully yet, but I tend to get more of these when I shave daily with an aggressive razor like the R41 or when I was shaving daily with straights, and also when I frequently go against the grain

Over the past year I have significantly reduced it shaving with a single pass and using a more forgiving DE razor, like the Henson or a vintage Gillette Tech/Super Speed

also, I fully discontinued the use of aftershave balms, and now use only alcohol based splashes
 
take this as it is, one data point: i haven’t figured it out fully yet, but I tend to get more of these when I shave daily with an aggressive razor like the R41 or when I was shaving daily with straights, and also when I frequently go against the grain

Over the past year I have significantly reduced it shaving with a single pass and using a more forgiving DE razor, like the Henson or a vintage Gillette Tech/Super Speed


100% this. Get yourself a tech. How long have you been using a straght/ DE?
 
How long "after shaving" (measured in minutes)? Do you feel pain when moving/touching? Do you feel itching? Do you still get such pimples if you stop shaving for a week? Do you only get them where you shave?
If it is acne (best diagnosed by a dermatologist), any shaving-related suggestions are unrelated. If not, see the posts above - you need to be more gentle to your skin; meaning, among others, use a mild razor.
 
I hope you find a solution.
I get ingrown hairs if I over-shave a spot, overuse a blade or use a blade that is "not sharp enough" (for me), or when the air is hot and humid for a longer period. (I toss blades after 3-4 uses. I think some people would happily use my tossed blades for another 3-4 shaves at least).
I noticed that if I get spots, it takes 1-2 weeks until it fully back to normal, even if when the hair is already out.

which blades do you use?
 

rbscebu

Girls call me Makaluod
@_edz_ your "acne" is being caused be bacteria getting into the whisker hair follicles. What should solve your problem is:
  • Wash your face well with a bath soap using a scrubbing cloth (I don't know the proper term) to exfoliate the skin.
  • Rinse your face thoroughly with fresh water to remove all traces of bath soap.
  • Apply your lather and shave with your straight razor going WTG only.
  • Rinse your face thoroughly with fresh water to remove all traces of shaving soap and pat dry with a clean towel.
  • Apply an alcohol based aftershave.
Once the above is working for you without any "acne" issues (it may take a few shaves) you can include an XTG pass with your shave and from there, later on, you can try an ATG pass.
 
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Acne can occur in more places on your face than shaving bumps, like your forehead or around or even on your nose. If you're breaking out exclusively where you shave, and never anywhere else, it may be ingrown hairs or an allergy, not acne. If your skin does not clear up in a day or two, you should seek out a medical professional.

The picture above is from Gillette's web site. Bumps can occur from a couple of causes, the middle and right picture show some common ones. If you have very curly hair it may be the middle picture, but from your posted picture, it may well be what's shown in Gillette's picture on the right. When I've gotten shaving bumps with my very curly hair, I usually wash my face very well with quite warm, but not super hot, water, twice a day, gently pat dry, apply an astringent like witch hazel, and let my face rest for a day or two and my bumps clear up. If the bumps appear only after using a particular product, you might also have an allergy. Did you change anything in your routine?

Good pre-shave preparation is important and a good way to lower your chances of getting bumps. As noted above, shaving only lightly with the grain for a while may help, too. Letting your lather have some time to work, apply and then wait a few minutes to let your beard really soften. Shaving too aggressively can result in cutting your hairs below the skin surface, leading to the result in the right picture. Face lathering with a brush too vigorously might also irritate your skin- been there and done that.
 
Looks like you have a swirl pattern of growth in that area (I have the same situation). So no matter what direction you shave in, you are shaving against, with and across all at the same time. Determine which direction is with and minimize the against—I get razor bumps/irritation in that area when it’s hot and humid and I’m expecting to be sweating a lot (I.e., beach) and avoid shaving that day if possible or stick to a single pass and a mild razor and just accept less than a BBS result.
 
Exactly same I am facing. What have helped me greatly is folllowing :

-mid aggressive razor (Tatara Nodachi OC in my case)
-2 pass WTG shave
-max 3 shaves per blade
-mid sharp blade (permasharp super, BIC, Gillette Platinum/Rubie, Rapira Plat lux)
-wash face with mild soap (I use MWF bath soap bar)
-pre shave, let it sit on moist face about 3 minutes before lathering (Proraso green, Myrsol Emulsion (best I think, not if lanolin allergy), Santa Maria Novella)
-VERY wet lather, more on the slick side than cushioning. Brush it gently all over face, let it sit, brush it more, add water if gets dry. Needs to be very wet, slickness is felt in brush strokes. Do not rush the lathering process. I usually take about 5 minutes or more.
-soaps with not too much oils and skin caring ingredients(Cella brick(best of the best), Arko, La Toja, Speick cream, MdC(especially Natural), Nordic Shaving Company, Santa Maria Novella)
-Boar brush (Semoque). I have high quality badgers but rarely use them as boars seem to give me more enjoyable face feel
-lukewarm water all the shave. Never too hot. Cold might be better in hotter weather.
-Aftershave splash (Myrsol, Floid, Hey Joe, Santa Maria Novella, Proraso Green)
-No balms except Santa Maria Novella Non Alcolica Emulsion, Myrsol Emulsion (good stuff, can use pre and after so one bottle goes for both and is cost effective), Vifrex gel, 444 but it leaves a bit of a sticky feel for hours.
-Gentle (!) Exfoliating wash few times a week. I usually do it morning if I have shaved last evening. Never combine exfoliating into shave routine. It will irritate further. Also never exfoliate too often or too much. You can feel it in your skin when you need to just let it be for awhile.
-shave frequently, if there is a week of growth that surely will give me spots. Daily or a few times a week.
-give your skin some moisture between shaves. Not too much, but once in awhile. Many moisturizers I have tried have been too harsh or pore clogging so I have had best results with pure shea butter (prefer Nilotica) and pure mango butter. They will leave your face greasy for hours but if done in the evening maybe two three times a week it does not matter.
-after shave, if a bump(or developing one) can be seen, instantly cover it with pure mango butter and continue to do so few times a day. Has been most effective bump treatment on my skin yet. It is not instant relief but helps greatly to reduce the risk of inflammation of the bump. Which is quite usual for me.

I have been able to reduce my bumps from every shave several inflammated bumps that last for months to a one or two occasional bumps that cure in a few days to few weeks with this.

This is just my experiments, these can be very tricky depending on personal skin conditions and such. I do experiment many variables and take some hit on the journey but these are which give me all the time best success with this issue.
 

KeenDogg

Slays On Fleek - For Rizz
Use no pressure, try something with witch hazel or alcohol. If it doesn't clear up in a few days, see a dermatologist. They are experts, we are not.
 
I agree with the dermatologist suggestion. Something that worked for me, is a plain witch hazel splash followed by pure argan oil after the witch hazel dries. Argan oil is non-comedonegenic (is that the word?)-- it doesn't promote pimples, anyway, and it supposedly strengthens hairs and promotes growth. (not sure if that has been studied rigorously or not or if it's mostly a marketing claim). I have far, far fewer ingrown/irritation pimples after adopting this regimen. Maybe it strengthens the hairs enough that they can pop out rather than getting trapped. Not sure. My chin often looked a lot like the photo you shared-- it also has whiskers growing in every direction, so pretty much any pass will be ATG for a portion of them.
 
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