Giving up hope for fixing my ingrown hair problem!

[Snackbar]

Hello!
I switched over to using a safety razor for about 1,5 years ago with the mindset off fixing my problem with ingrown hair on my throat. This picture I found on Google is the same problem I am experiencing but the color I am having is more red, more irritation.


http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h153/Zhentar/neckhair.jpg



I tried not shaving for 3 months to let my facial heal as people and a barber had suggested but it did not help. The same problem occurred when I visited a barber whom shaved me with a shavette.


My routine before shaving:

1. Putting safety razor, blade and brush into hot water while I am showering.

2. Hot shower.

3. Assemble the blade onto the razor and fixing a good lather with my shaving brush.

4. Letting the cream stay on for about 1-2 minutes, before the shaving begins.

5. Shaving with the grain, never against it. First round done.

6. Rinse with hot water on my face and applying new shaving cream on my face, while doing this I leave my razor with the blade in the hot water.

7. Shaving with the grain once again and when everything is set and done, rinse with cold water on my face. Finally applying a aftershave.


My current setup:

Merkur 34C
Tabac Orginal Soap
Merkur Super Platinum, I tested about 8 brands and this gives me the least problems.
Edwin Jagger Shaving Brush
Nivea Men Sensitive After Shave Balm





I truly want to solve this problem but I am starting to doubt it, maybe changing up my current setup with these items will help?




Truefitt & Hill Ultimate Comfort Pre-Shave Oil
Mitchell’s Wool Fat Soap
Merkur Progress




Should I change something?
How do I improve my problem or solve it?








Sorry for any grammar fault, English is not my native language.

 

[Graybeard57]

Necks can be tricky, as hair tends to grow in many different directions. Here is a thread with good info:

The Neck Area Shaving Info Thread : post tips, suggestions that would help others.

 

[KeenDogg]

Welcome to B&B. Sorry you are having trouble.

When I think of ingrowns and irritation, my mind first goes to using too much pressure. I also think about making the proper lather to reduce irritation.

If you still have these bumps after 3 months, there may be some dermatological issues there. A good skin doctor may be of help.

I have somewhat sensitive skin. I am allergic to Tabac, even though I love the stuff. I almost always use lukewarm to cold water when shaving. This greatly reduces my irritation.

I would suggest a visit to the shave wiki here for some more technique advice once you get your skin issue looked at. You could also watch some you tube vids to get some good tips. Mantic59's videos really helped me out there.

Kindly,
Adam

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

 

[SpeedyPC]

OR! try

 

[RealPretendPsychic]

I'm right there with you! This was the reason I switched over to safety razors. I still get periodic irritation, but it has improved with my technique. I would recommend trying a slant razor, Italian Barber has a nice budget option (RazoRock 37). I have found this to provide the most irritation-free shaves.

I also use witch hazel before my aftershave and also apply a balm following the aftershave. I don't know if these postshave items help, but I figure, why not!

 

[Lightcs1776]

Welcome to the B&B forums. I don't think your shaving equipment is the problem, although the slant mentioned above might help. Two things that immediately come to mind is pressure and shaving against the grain. I suggest having very little, if any, pressure and skipping the against the grain shaving. Perhaps try across the grain instead and see if it gives you an acceptable shave.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[G.W.]

Nothing wrong with your set-up. I don't personally care for Merkur blades, but if they work for you, then that's all that matters.

Ingrown hairs on my neck have been the bane of my existence since I was a teen. It always looked bad, and it always hurt. It kept me from being able to shave regularly, which compounded the ingrowth and the looking bad. It was not until I switched to a DE razor did everything change for the better.
Some things that I think contribute to my lessened irritation from ingrown hairs:
-Shaving more often, so that I catch the hairs before they grow long enough to become a problem.
-better overall skincare, as part of the whole shaving process
-witch hazel application after the shave.
-alcohol-based AS.

Now when I do get the odd ingrown hair, I can address it promptly since I pretty much never have a sore, irritated neck anymore.

 

[rabidus]

Do you wash your face with a face soap daily, or twice daily? Do you moisturize your face?

 

[SGWB]

You could try using an astringent after the shave. Witchazel, or just rubbing an alum block over wet skin. Astringents dehydrate and reduce swelling, giving the hairs more room to escape the follicle.

The cold water shave, as suggested above, or just reducing to warm water may fix the problem.

 

[Marcos1]

Easiest way I've found to deal with ingrowns is to not shave everyday. After 24 hours just inspect your face in the mirror and with a needle nose tweezer gently release the hair without plucking it. Then give it another day or so to grow out more before shaving over it again. Ymmv but this has eliminated my problem.

 

[Snackbar]

Just wanna start off by saying that, thanks for the replies guys it truly amaze be to get this much feedback!

Necks can be tricky, as hair tends to grow in many different directions. Here is a thread with good info:

The Neck Area Shaving Info Thread : post tips, suggestions that would help others.

Thanks will go through this deep hole off posts

Welcome to B&B. Sorry you are having trouble.

When I think of ingrowns and irritation, my mind first goes to using too much pressure. I also think about making the proper lather to reduce irritation.

If you still have these bumps after 3 months, there may be some dermatological issues there. A good skin doctor may be of help.

I have somewhat sensitive skin. I am allergic to Tabac, even though I love the stuff. I almost always use lukewarm to cold water when shaving. This greatly reduces my irritation.

I would suggest a visit to the shave wiki here for some more technique advice once you get your skin issue looked at. You could also watch some you tube vids to get some good tips. Mantic59's videos really helped me out there.

Kindly,
Adam

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

Thanks for the warm welcome Adam!
I try generally not to have any pressure almost when dealing with the "neck" as you guys call it, I just let the razor glide more or less very slow and short strokes. The lather can be tricky do and I will try to improve that specif area.



It have crossed my mind to visit a skin doctor because even when I WAS NOT shaving at all I still had red "dots" in the area I generally having trouble with so I guess it can have something to do with it?


Hmmm....truly I have no clue because from what I have seen on Youtube and read they all say that the way to deal with sensitive skin is to have warm water. Interesting, I will try lukewarm when shaving, should I also use lukewarm when showering?

I'm right there with you! This was the reason I switched over to safety razors. I still get periodic irritation, but it has improved with my technique. I would recommend trying a slant razor, Italian Barber has a nice budget option (RazoRock 37). I have found this to provide the most irritation-free shaves.

I also use witch hazel before my aftershave and also apply a balm following the aftershave. I don't know if these postshave items help, but I figure, why not!

Hello Real!
The RazoRock 37 seems not available in Sweden (where I live), instead I will try out Merkur 37C which is a slant razor...and I am happy with Merkur

Thanks for the tip!

Welcome to the B&B forums. I don't think your shaving equipment is the problem, although the slant mentioned above might help. Two things that immediately come to mind is pressure and shaving against the grain. I suggest having very little, if any, pressure and skipping the against the grain shaving. Perhaps try across the grain instead and see if it gives you an acceptable shave.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

Hello Light!
I usually do not apply much pressure and when dealing with the neck area I just let the razor glide very slow and with short strokes, almost no pressure at all because I know I will have a difficult time then.

My hair grows "down" if I stroke it with my hand, even with the neck area. If I would shave across the neck it would mean I would go against the grain, it this your recommendation or did I misunderstand something?

Do you wash your face with a face soap daily, or twice daily? Do you moisturize your face?

Hello!
I started doing it recently, using Bulldog Sensitive skin and also Bulldog Moisturiser.

 

[Lightcs1776]

My hair grows "down" if I stroke it with my hand, even with the neck area. If I would shave across the neck it would mean I would go against the grain, it this your recommendation or did I misunderstand something?

Across the grain is more aggressive than with the grain but less than against the grain. Since you found that your whiskers grow downward, shaving from the top of your neck down would be with the grain, shaving from the bottom to the top would be against the grain, and shaving from the side to the middle or middle to the side would be across the grain. If you have a skin issue, it might not help, and the recommendation to have a physician check it out is a good idea. However, if you do one pass with the grain and a follow up pass against the grain, with a good lather between each, it may help lessen the problem. Hope that explains it a bit better.


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[Bevel Boy]

Google BUPERINST 1000.22B or "Navy PFB"...form the pictures and your description you more than likely have what the military calls
PSEUDOFOLLICULITIS BARBAE (PFB) or you guest it - ingrown hairs from shaving. The instruction (BUPERINST 1000.22B) gives some ok guidelines to use. I don't recommend the Rentin-A (burns and besides you may need a prescription for it anyway) and you can use Neosporin for the Vioform-HC.

The best thing for it...don't shave (sucks if you enjoy wet shaving, but it is what it is). Most civilian doc's won't even know what PFB is unless they have a military background (pretty sure the diagnosis "PFB" was invented by the military due to shaving requirements/think I read that in one of my Derm books).

My patients that have a serious case say that they can tolerate straight shaves every 2-3 days without irritation. I haven't confirmed this medically. Take it for what its worth. Also, I'm a straight user so I push it every chance I get.

Unless you get super red skin (like sunburn red), the area feels hot like just that area has a fever, and/or you have a large amount of pus coming out (cellulitis-i.e. skin infection) a Derm doc is probably a waste of money.

Disclaimer: this is just recommendations I have from my non-medical school experience treating military guys for 15 yrs. I can practice medicine on AD military folks (kind of like a PA) but have no civilian credentials...take what I say as educated suggestions.

 

[Snackbar]

Across the grain is more aggressive than with the grain but less than against the grain. Since you found that your whiskers grow downward, shaving from the top of your neck down would be with the grain, shaving from the bottom to the top would be against the grain, and shaving from the side to the middle or middle to the side would be across the grain. If you have a skin issue, it might not help, and the recommendation to have a physician check it out is a good idea. However, if you do one pass with the grain and a follow up pass against the grain, with a good lather between each, it may help lessen the problem. Hope that explains it a bit better.


Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

I got ya now
Will try cold shaving and next shave going to shave across the grain and update the thread once again

Google BUPERINST 1000.22B or "Navy PFB"...form the pictures and your description you more than likely have what the military calls
PSEUDOFOLLICULITIS BARBAE (PFB) or you guest it - ingrown hairs from shaving. The instruction (BUPERINST 1000.22B) gives some ok guidelines to use. I don't recommend the Rentin-A (burns and besides you may need a prescription for it anyway) and you can use Neosporin for the Vioform-HC.

The best thing for it...don't shave (sucks if you enjoy wet shaving, but it is what it is). Most civilian doc's won't even know what PFB is unless they have a military background (pretty sure the diagnosis "PFB" was invented by the military due to shaving requirements/think I read that in one of my Derm books).

My patients that have a serious case say that they can tolerate straight shaves every 2-3 days without irritation. I haven't confirmed this medically. Take it for what its worth. Also, I'm a straight user so I push it every chance I get.

Unless you get super red skin (like sunburn red), the area feels hot like just that area has a fever, and/or you have a large amount of pus coming out (cellulitis-i.e. skin infection) a Derm doc is probably a waste of money.

Disclaimer: this is just recommendations I have from my non-medical school experience treating military guys for 15 yrs. I can practice medicine on AD military folks (kind of like a PA) but have no civilian credentials...take what I say as educated suggestions.

So I looked up what you wrote and some stuff is aligned with my shaving problems some are not...I truly do not know what to do except try other methods because I do not like having a beard and clean shaving is a must to be.


Will update the thread to see if anything helps!



Thanks everybody for the support and all your answears!

 

[FarmerTan]

Easiest way I've found to deal with ingrowns is to not shave everyday. After 24 hours just inspect your face in the mirror and with a needle nose tweezer gently release the hair without plucking it. Then give it another day or so to grow out more before shaving over it again. Ymmv but this has eliminated my problem.

+1!

 

[Slick&Smooth]

Get a Schick injector I2 or L1 and don't look back. Much easier than DE shaving, in my opinion. Use the schick injector blades from amazon, they come in packs of 7 and last 10+ shaves.

 

[ItsTaz]

Easiest way I've found to deal with ingrowns is to not shave everyday. After 24 hours just inspect your face in the mirror and with a needle nose tweezer gently release the hair without plucking it. Then give it another day or so to grow out more before shaving over it again. Ymmv but this has eliminated my problem.

Another +1.

Switching to a DE razor eliminated my regularly experienced ingrown hairs. At times, due to a not so good shave, I can feel some whiskers irritating my neck the following day. Finding the offending whiskers is pretty easy and lifting them out of their undesirable growth path keeps a nasty ingrown hair from developing.

 

[FarmerTan]

Get a Schick injector I2 or L1 and don't look back. Much easier than DE shaving, in my opinion. Use the schick injector blades from amazon, they come in packs of 7 and last 10+ shaves.

+1, great GREAT idea. Hadn't even thought of that.

 

[Linus]

I'm rather new to DE shaving but also started due to irritation and ingrown hair. At first DE did deliver better results but at times I still had irritation. I discovered that I did not do proper beard mapping. Make 100% sure about the direction of hair growth, this was my problem in the neck aria. I now shave ATG and have no irritation. Something else that I found eliminated the rest of my irritation was hair conditioner. I apply it before shaving, let it rest and work up a lather with my shaving soap. I apply the shaving soap lather by hand over the conditioner. The shave is much better and I have no tugging of my beard. I also only shave one pass never more, I do not get a BBS shave but I have no irritation or ingrown hair. I found that if I shave more than once pass I have more irritation and a day later ingrown hair. Hope this helps.

 

[Brandon191]

Cris at Another Cut Above on Youtube really likes a product called "The Cool Fix" and says it really helps his ingrown hairs.