Did you hurriedly pluck out or shave off hairs on your nipples and now you are being bugged by a painful and unsightly ingrown hair? Then this article is exclusively written for you — below you will find some simple home remedies on dealing with an ingrown hair on your nipple.
However, it’s not just removing nipple hair that can cause such problem to strike. Did you know that friction is also a role player? So wearing a tight bra or shirt is a no-no if you don’t want to have an ingrown nipple hair.
Although it’s true that an ingrown hair — be it on your nipple, underarm, bikini region or elsewhere in the body — won’t put your life in peril, it is something that you have to take seriously. That’s because there is always the possibility of it becoming infected, which can lead to complications such a nasty scarring!
So as soon as you feel some pain or tenderness in your nipple and you look down to find a small red growth due to an ingrown hair, spring into action right away. Try some of the following:
Warm Compress
Speeding up the healing process calls for driving out bacteria, puss and other toxins in the red, swollen and painful bump. One way of doing it effectively is with the use of warm compresses.
There are a couple of ways to have this performed. First, you may fill a glass jar halfway with hot water and then put on its cover. Wrap it in a clean dishcloth and gently place on the problem area on your nipple — let the glass jar come into contact with the ingrown hair for 1 to 2 minutes at a time.
You may also soak a small washcloth in warm water, slightly wring it out, and then fold neatly. Leave it on your affected nipple until cool.
Continue applying warm compresses 3 to 5 times a day until the bump erupts. And when that happens, immediately wash the area with antibacterial soap and water. After drying, apply a little povidone iodine or topical skin antibiotic. Relying on any of the two can help keep an infection from striking, which can complicate matters.
Do Gentle Exfoliation
If the pain is bearable each time you touch the growth, then you may try exfoliating the area in order to drive the ingrown hair out of your nipple. There’s one thing to remember, though: do it gently!
You can gently exfoliate the affected area by adding a few drops of water to a little baking soda. After mixing very well, have the resulting paste massaged on the red and swollen bump using the tip of your index finger. Do small circular motions for a few seconds, and then wash off with water. Perform this once or twice a day.
Once the ingrown hair becomes exposed, perform the skin disinfecting solution mentioned at the end of the very first tip on dealing with an ingrown hair on the nipple.
Pluck the Ingrown Hair
You may also put an end to your ordeal by plucking out the ingrown hair itself, but only if a part of it is above the surface of your nipple. Otherwise, it’s a good idea to stick to any of the first two tips.
Before plucking out the ingrown nipple hair, first dunk the pair of tweezers you are intending to use in a bowl of boiling water. Allow it to stay there for a few minutes. Fish it out carefully and place on a piece of tissue or kitchen paper to let it cool completely. Once already cool, carefully pluck out the ingrown hair.
Once the pesky hair is out, remember to have the area disinfected with povidone iodine or skin antibiotic.
