For an enflamed zit on the surface of the skin
This is the wrong way to pop your pimples |
What to do with your blackheads
Proper method of zit removal |
Follow the exact same cleansing and exfoliating techniques mentioned above, also be sure to do a proper finger preparation. Using your bare fingers and nails to press skin together is the absolute worst thing you can be doing for your face because you will break the skin, alter your pore, perhaps even creating a scar, and not necessarily removing the blackhead. The proper way to do it is to place your fingers on either side of the clogged pore and gently pulling the skin apart (away from the blackhead in either direction) and then gently rolling your fingers back together. This will coerce the blackhead to raise itself to the surface, and only then can you gently push your fingers together and extract it on your kleenex. Continue doing this for all of the blackheads you want to remove. Since you have brought bacteria onto the surface of your skin, you will want to use an antiseptic wash or rubbing alcohol to clean the area after you are done.
For those big painful nodules stuck inside the skin
You will either have to wait these out and conceal them with antibacterial concealer, or you will have to visit a dermatologist to have them zapped. However, there is another method that might work for you. If you take a damp cloth or towel which is warm to hot in temperature, you can place it above the pustule and rub it on top until you see some movement. This make take quite a few minutes or until the next day, but eventually it will come to the surface. Some say that wet and warm green tea bags work in much the same fashion, so you can experiment with them if the towel method isn't working for you. Once the pustule has formed a white head you can use the steps outlined in the first paragraph of this article.
There are old wives' tales about using toothpaste or baking sode to dry out the pimple, but you should stay away from these substances because your skin will release even more oils from the abuse these chemicals cause (and you'll get an even worse break-out). If you've tried everything you can and you simply can't get it out, don't attempt to gouge your fingers into your skin because the abrasive and harsh actions will be painful and unsightly. If you are suffering from acne, you will NOT want to use any of these methods because the reason you're getting pimples isn't as simple as a little dirt trapped inside your pores and you should see a dermatologist rather than cause yourself harm. If a pimple is not ready to go, then don't force it, just cover it up and move on with your day. At the end of the day, it's just a pimple, we all get them all the time, nobody's going to judge you. Own it!