How Do You Treat Ingrown Hair?

Ingrown Hair
May 10, 2023

Ingrown hair is not only unsightly, but also quite uncomfortable. Anyone can get it; however, waxing, shaving, tweezing, and wearing tight garments considerably enhances the likelihood.

While there are techniques, tricks, medicine, precautions, and more for treating ingrown hairs, it is preferable to avoid them altogether. But, before we reveal the key of completely eradicating ingrown hairs, let’s first define the condition, its symptoms, and how it affects us.

What Exactly Is Ingrown Hair?

Ingrown hairs are those that grow inside the skin rather than breaking the surface and growing outside. It is medically termed as “pseudofolliculitis barbae” and most usually arises after shaving, waxing, or tweezing.

Shaving causes the cut hair to curl and grow inside the skin. The surrounding area becomes red, itchy, irritating, and inflamed as it becomes trapped beneath the skin. Because the body detects it as a foreign thing, an immunological response is triggered.

itchy, irritated, and inflamed. This is because the body recognizes it as a foreign object and initiates an immune response.

The main reason a hair follicle cannot break free and becomes imprisoned is congestion. When dead skin cells stay on the skin, they can clog pores and create a physical barrier to hair growth. Wearing clothing that is too tight can produce friction between the hair and the skin, causing the hair to spin around and push back into the follicle.

While ingrown hairs can occur in everyone, certain people are more prone to them. This is due to the importance of growth direction and structure in their development. As a result, those with thick and curly hair are more likely to get ingrown hairs.

Ingrown hairs are more common in the pubic region due to the coarse and curly nature of the hair.

What Is the Impact of Ingrown Hair on the Body?

Aside from the pain and discomfort, ingrown hairs are normally harmless and will resolve on their own. If they don’t, you might have:

  • Bacterial and fungal infection (as a result of scratching the infected region)
  • Razor nicks
  • Skin discoloration
  • scarring that is permanent
  • Keloids are raised scars that are darker than the surrounding skin.
  • Grooves (fine depressed scars)
  • hair thinning
  • hair follicle annihilation
  • Skin that is darker than usual (post-inflammatory)
  • hyperpigmentation)

The pubic area, armpits, legs, and face (beard area) are commonly affected. They can, however, appear on other parts of the body such as the chest, scalp, back, inside the nose, brows, belly, and buttocks.

Some specialists believe that ingrown hairs might develop to pilonidal cysts. These cysts are filled with skin debris and hair. They appear between the buttocks and near the tailbone. They can be excruciatingly uncomfortable and even swollen, and the only therapy is surgical removal.

What are the Reasons?

In fact, when hair is removed, it tends to regrow. Most shafts grow smoothly through the skin and present no difficulties. Others, though, may develop beneath the skin, particularly after shaving, as clipped hair may curl and begin to grow back into the skin.

The body reacts to it as if it were a foreign object after it grows back into the skin. Certain symptoms, such as discomfort, itching, redness, and swelling, begin here. In most cases, no therapy is required. It frequently resolves on its own without therapy. Avoiding waxing, shaving, or plucking ingrown hairs is the best approach to avoid them. If an ingrown hair becomes infected, you should see your doctor for a prescription. Antibiotics are essential in serious illnesses.

What Are the Signs and Symptoms?

If you experience any of the following symptoms, you may have ingrown hairs:

  • Small lumps filled with pus or resembling blisters
  • Small swelling pimples where you shave, wax, or tweeze
  • Small pimples that are deeper in colour than the surrounding skin
  • Itching
  • Itching or burning
  • Loop-shaped hair is so named because it curls and grows back into the skin.
  • Chronic pain that lasts a long time
  • Irritation

Ingrown hairs might appear as red, itchy, or elevated areas. The trapped hair is sometimes apparent. The little lumps are known as papules, while the pus-filled ones are known as pustules. Hyperpigmentation occurs when the skin surrounding an ingrown hair darkens. An ingrown hair is sometimes confused for a pimple since both are red lumps with white pus.

How Can Laser Help Remove Ingrown Hairs?

The issue with ingrown hairs is that they reoccur. You can only get brief relief from topical applications of steroids, chemical exfoliants, antibiotics, and retinoids. They do not completely fix the problem.

One treatment, however, provides a long-term, and for some, even a lifetime, solution to ingrown hairs.

The key to flawless, trouble-free skin is laser hair removal. Ingrown hairs are no longer an issue with the laser process. This is because the laser targets the hair follicle’s root, addressing the problem directly at its source.

The laser destroys the follicle, and once damaged, it can no longer create hair. The damaged region will heal, and because the follicle is dead, you will no longer experience ingrown hairs.

The magic, however, does not happen all at once. A series of therapy sessions, often eight or more, is required for complete eradication. With each treatment, you will see a reduction in hair growth, and those that do grow will gradually become thinner. This is due to the fact that the size of the follicle shrinks with each laser treatment. However, keep in mind that ingrown hairs may persist until the follicle is entirely destroyed.

At SEV Laser, well-qualified, trained, and experienced nurses perform the operations, ensuring that clients have the greatest results with the least amount of discomfort. If you are thinking about Laser Hair Removal in Soho, NY, you should definitely think about SEV because of its exceptional service and outcomes.

You can also read about: Why You Should Shop Local: Beauty Store Near Me

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