How to avoid breakouts after waxing or threading
To stay hairy or risk breaking out? This is just one of the many dilemmas that those of us with acne have to grapple with in our daily lives and like any other type of breakout, it’s not as simple as it seems. Acne is a multifactorial disease so even a breakout that surfaces after waxing or threading isn’t actually caused by waxing or threading: these are just some of many potential triggers that can ignite an underlying genetic condition called Retention Hyperkeratosis. Read on to learn more.
WHY DO I BREAKOUT AFTER WAXING OR THREADING?
There are typically four potential triggers that spark breakouts after a hair removal procedure:
There is a comedogenic product that is being applied to your skin before or after the procedure that is clogging your pores and planting new acne seeds in the skin.
The irritation from the wax itself or the hair being pulled out of the follicle is causing existing acne under the surface of the skin to become inflamed.
The friction caused by the hair being ripped out of the skin is irritating your follicles and causing something called “acne mechanica” which is a form of acne caused by pressure and friction on the skin.
The bumps on your skin might actually be a rash (e.g. contact dermatitis or folliculitis) caused by irritation from the wax or bacteria rather than acne.
TIPS FOR REDUCING HAIR REMOVAL BREAKOUTS
The single most important tip I give my clients about preventing hair removal acne is to make sure that whoever is performing the hair removal does not apply any potentially pore-clogging products on their skin before or after. As we discuss in our e-course, it only takes one ingredient in one product to touch your face one time for one second to break you out which means that you need to literally check the ingredient lists on any toners, creams, powders, solutions, sun protectants etc. that they want to put on your skin. The best thing to do is to bring your own acne-friendly products because even if you check their products, there is still a risk that they contain undisclosed pore-clogging ingredients.
Make sure the area is cleaned before and after with a gentle but effective acne-friendly toner. You definitely don’t want to use an active toner that contains any exfoliating ingredients because this can increase irritation and even potentially cause a burn from the wax. You also want to make sure the toner doesn’t contain any comedogenic ingredients. If you are on our program or using our product kit then spray a little bit of Clarifying Toner onto a clean cotton pad and gently swipe over the area immediately before and after the procedure.
If you have access to ice, gently swiping a clean ice cube directly on the area for 2-5 minutes after toning can help reduce the irritation caused by having the hair pulled out of the follicle. Unfortunately, having hair ripped out of your skin is going to be irritating for the follicles regardless but this can help minimize the irritation.
Do not touch your face before or after. After a hair removal procedure, your follicles are open so it’s important that you don’t touch them and potentially get bacteria or other debris inside of your open pores.
WHAT POST-CARE INSTRUCTIONS SHOULD I FOLLOW?
As I mentioned above, you should bring an acne friendly toner that doesn’t contain any active ingredients like our Clarifying Toner so you can clean your skin before and after. You should also bring a soothing gel or moisturizer like our Aqua Gel to apply after you tone to help soothe any potential irritation. And then you finish with a broad spectrum SPF of at least 30 to apply after the gel/moisturizer dries. You should apply these products with gloves so bring your own or ask whoever is performing the procedure (or you can just ask them to apply these things for you with a fresh pair of gloves). Avoid applying makeup for the rest of the day and if you were waxed, avoid using any active products for the rest of the day as this can burn and further irritate your skin. If your skin is still tender, irritated or sensitive the next day, avoid any active products until your skin has calmed down.
HOW TO TRULY GET RID OF HAIR REMOVAL BREAKOUTS
The tips I listed above might help mitigate potential breakouts from waxing or threading but, as I mentioned above, the underlying cause of any type of acne regardless of what triggers it is a genetic condition called Retention Hyperkeratosis. So the only way to truly clear the skin from the inside out in a long term and sustainable way is to target both the triggers and the underlying cause using a multi-phase and multi-targeted approach which is what the AES method does. To learn the roadmap for doing clearing acne for good using a prescription free method, check out our e-course The 8 Steps To Clear Skin.