What is Razor Rash on the Neck? How does it form?

Razor Rash on the Neck: Essentially, Razor bumps are ingrown hairs that result in inflammation to the surrounding area. Medically speaking, this rash is known as pseudofolliculitis barbae. Held hairs inside the skin normally trigger an immune response in your system.  Your body sees held hairs as foreign objects. And then, this produces an inflammatory reaction that end up in bumps.

How to heal a Razor Rash on the Neck?

While shaving with a razor is inexpensive and quick method to remove hair growing on the neck, using a dull blade or a riddled with bacteria may cause shaving rash on the neck unfortunately. Razor rash on neck causes pain and itchiness as well as unsightly shape until it’s healed. Treating your face and neck with home remedies and basic grooming products, you will get silky texture to your skin after your morning shaving.

It’s recommended to give yourself few days before you get your beard shaved again so that your neck can get healed. In case the inflammation is very severe, you have to wait few weeks before shaving it again otherwise it will get worse.

Apply a layer of 1% of hydrocortisone cream on the inflamed area, and the swellings will be reduced and the bumps will be cleared up faster.

To keep the bacteria from growing on the inflected area, apply some benzoyl peroxide on the rash over the period of few days.

Clean your neck twice a day with antibacterial soap in order to clear up any bacteria which the bacteria doesn’t clear out.

Each night, it’s a good idea to moisturize your neck. By this, you add vitamins into the skin and make it harder to reoccur again. After the rash disappear, keep moisturizing your skin to keep it healthy.

Warning:

Don’t shave your beard again until the rash is totally cleared up otherwise the rash gets worse.

Things You’ll Need

• Hydrocortizone cream
• Benzoyl peroxide
• Antibacterial soap
• Moisturizer
• Shave gel
• Single-edged razor
• Moisturizing after-shave gel
• Hydrocortisone cream
• Tretinoin cream
• Adapalene cream
• Tetracycline
• Erythromycin

Preventing Razor Rash on the Neck:

Before start shaving, it’s a good idea to take a shower. The heat and moisture you get from the shower soften the beard and open the pores, so that you prevent formation of bumps.

Move the razor with the grain direction. By doing this, you shave in the same direction the hair grows. Closer shaves normally helps to get rid of curled hairs backed in the skin and cause formation of the bumps.

While shaving your beard, use light strokes. Pressing the head of the razor gives a closer shave than simply running the razor along the skin. Close shaving can help get the hairs held and backed in the skin.

Once you finish shaving, rinse all the gel on your skin and apply a moisturizing aftershave. This alleviates the irritation may result after shaving.

Treating Razor Shave:

Apply a warm and moistened washcloth on the affected area on the neck. This soothes the irritation results from the shaving. Additionally, it may help open the pores so that the curled hairs grow normally.

The night before shaving, apply glycolic acid ointment in order to exfoliate the skin and reduce chances of razor bumps.

Apply Hydrocortizon cream on the razor bumps; this relieves the inflammation and improve the appearance. You can consult your doctor for tretinoin and adapalene. Both kinds of medicines are derivatives of vitamin A.

To improve the inflammation and irritation, try an oral medication of tetracycline or erythromycin.

Answer and a Question:

Charles Culverwell, from UK, asks:

“I have been wet shaving for about four months now. I have a Futur, 38C barber pole, Gillette ‘1964’ superspeed, and an Edwin Jagger DE89. I use Taylor of Old Bond St Shaving Cream. Despite varying the razor and the blade (feathers or derbys usually) I still get irritation at the base of my neck where the last bit of hair is. The direction of growth is a bit strange as it goes sideways. I have tried going up and down but still find I get a red ring like I’ve had a rope around my neck. This issue continues to my Adam’s apple area which I can’t shave across the grain without huge irritation and bleeding! Could you please suggest anything else to try.”

AARON SAYS

“Mr. Culverwell, I certainly understand your frustration, the hair on my neck grows in the same way changing direction to grow sideways at the collar line. This growth pattern does make it difficult to shave, however let me share some techniques and products that I have found that have helped.
First use a shaving oil whether by itself or as an under layer to theshaving cream. This keeps the skin and hair extra moist leaving it much easier to shave. The oil also adds an extra layer of lubrication helping the razor “glide” instead of catching and causing irritation or redness.
Second use stretching techniques to keep the skin flat and taught. A flatter surface is always easier to shave and you can accomplish this by stretching your neck up, turning your head side to side, or even using your opposite hand to pull the skin down or to the side. This step reduces the curves in your skin giving the razor a flatter, easier surface to shave.
Lastly use a good quality post-shave balm, not an alcohol based lotion on freshly shaved skin. The moisturizing and healing agents found in post-shave balms will greatly benefit your skin in combating and healing from razor burn, rash, ingrowns and other issues that plague the shaver. There are many balms out there to choose from including The Bluebeards Revenge, Proraso, Taylor of Old Bond Street, Men-U, and Edwin Jagger just to name a good, select few.
I hope these tips help with your shaving, if you continue to have problems please write again and we will troubleshoot some more!

The post How to heal a Razor Rash on the Neck? appeared first on All Rash.