Skin has turned hypersensitive. Suggestions?

Hi folks!
I am not sure why, but my skin has turned hyper sensitive lately. I previously had no problems with Trumper's and Mama Bear shaving soaps/creams, but now it seems that almost anything will irritate the skin. It has lasted over a week. Could be because of a shift in weather from cool to hot here (I have noticed a slight tendency before), but I am not sure. Hopefully it will pass, but meanwhile what to do? Putting oils on the skin seems to help a bit. But do you guys know of a shaving soap/cream that is for supersensitive skin? I seem to remember there was some kind of shaving cream that was not supposed to be whipped up with a brush, just applied like a face cream (thickly I presume). Is this any better?

Meanwhile I will try to mix Trumper's with various things to see if it helps.

Maybe switch brands and see if the sensitivity subsides.

Certain fragrant brands light me up. D. R. Harris Marlborough shaving cream and T & H Trafalgar irritate my skin. I own two Harris soaps which don't irritate my skin so I suspect it's something in the cream I reacted to.

If you don't have to shave daily, switch to every other day for awhile an see if that helps. MWF is a pretty neutral soap, with lanolin, and little or no fragrance, which might help. Maybe wash your shaving brush with dish soap and make sure it didn't pick anything up. Some fragrances can cause reactions with some people, and allergies which were non existent in the past can develop over time. :gl:

This is the mildest soap I have used.

haslinger honig honey

WELCOME TO MY WORLD! My skin is crazy sensitive. I rarely try new soaps because 70% of them light me up. Prorasso White and Green are my go to soaps.

If you have a preshave oil, put some on before each pass. It'll protect your skin from the soap.

Do not wash your face before shaving. I wash the upper part of my face in the shower. I see people recommend washing the beard before shaving but I don't understand why. You are washing your face with each shaving pass. This strips your skin of all its oily goodness.

Shave before exercising or working up a sweat. Some of my worst irritation has been the result of shaving after long bicycle rides. You mentioned the weather has been warming up. Have you been out sweating in the heat?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rolodave

This is the mildest soap I have used.

haslinger honig honey

---

How does it perform?

I use Noxema as a pre shave. Some soaps do not get along with some people. Try something light in scent, or scent free, and see if you get along better with glycerin based soaps or tallow based. Also the type of brush and the amount of time you spend working the brush on your face.

I have struggled with sensitive skin at times in my life.

Here is what I've found:

Get some soap with no scent. The most common irritant is the scent. I agree with a previous poster that MWF doesn't have much scent.

You can make your own pre-shave oil, four parts olive oil to one part mineral oil. You could probably use olive oil by itself if you don't have mineral oil.

The word 'hypoallergenic' is your good friend.

Wet Shaving Products (WSP) has a hypoallergenic soap. I like the ingredient list on this one. I haven't used this soap, but have had good luck with their Formula T soap.

https://wetshavingproducts.com/colle...nt=29918397959

I'm allergic to deoderant, which you really can't skip in the US. I spent a lot of years with irritated underarms until I learned the word hypoallergenic and found some hypoallergenic deoderant.

A caution about hypoallergenic. Small companies may call something hypoallergenic when it isn't, hence my comment about liking the WSP au Natual ingredients. Scent and essential oils are to be avoided. The term essential oils is a marketing term. It isn't a term describing something your skin needs.

Not to hijack this thread, but if you have deodorant allergies or sensitivities then you can use zinc ointment under your arms in place of deodorant and it will be very effective. I use diaper rash cream because it is cheaper than my mother in law, and so am I, or there are other zinc ointments out there too. Gold Bond I believe makes one.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BeJay

WELCOME TO MY WORLD! My skin is crazy sensitive. I rarely try new soaps because 70% of them light me up. Prorasso White and Green are my go to soaps.

If you have a preshave oil, put some on before each pass. It'll protect your skin from the soap.

Do not wash your face before shaving. I wash the upper part of my face in the shower. I see people recommend washing the beard before shaving but I don't understand why. You are washing your face with each shaving pass. This strips your skin of all its oily goodness.

Shave before exercising or working up a sweat. Some of my worst irritation has been the result of shaving after long bicycle rides. You mentioned the weather has been warming up. Have you been out sweating in the heat?

---

I don't think I have been sweating that much.
This reminds me; I actually have the proraso soap somewhere. Haven't used that in a while. I will try to put some oil on first, and maybe not whip the brush around on my face when lathering up, just applying it softly.

Come on over to the cold water side...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MJC

Come on over to the cold water side...

---

I have tried this before, and that really did not work well at all. However, I think using whichever temperature feels best. If it is terribly hot weather, then hot water might not feel great, so I sometimes use lukewarm water.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by trondsi

I have tried this before, and that really did not work well at all. However, I think using whichever temperature feels best. If it is terribly hot weather, then hot water might not feel great, so I sometimes use lukewarm water.

---

I tend to use cool/tap temp. I do use a warm to hot rinse followed by and ice-water washcloth...
But then I use the "James Bond Finish" shower system (cold as you can stand and then some) so I might not be a good role model...

Witch Hazel for an aftershave?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rolodave

This is the mildest soap I have used.

haslinger honig honey

---

It has been a very long time but IIRC, it performed well. BobH uses this soap and really likes it.

I agree with Rezdog on the Noxema. I use it before every shave. It is cheap (<$6.00 usd) and lasts forever. My current jar started the last week of October and is about 1/2 full.

My skin is fairly sensitive. That %$&* Rezdog sent (Henri & Victoria) lit me up like a bottle rocket.

Back to the OP, some soaps irritate and some do not.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rolodave

It has been a very long time but IIRC, it performed well. BobH uses this soap and really likes it.

---

I'm going to give this stuff a try.

I've thought about starting a thread to form a list of soaps that work well for guys like us. The reason I hesitate is I know it will be jacked by all the guys(I know they mean well) without sensitive skin suggesting soaps that feel mild to them.

Another thing for the OP to consider. It's spring. Do you get seasonal allergies? Seasonal allergies can trigger other autoimmune reactions that normally wouldn't be an issue.

I generally do not have sensitive skin and most soaps do not irritate me. That said, Haslingers Hoenig/Honey strikes me as a very mild soap with a light natural honey scent. It is easy to lather and the lather is excellent for me. It just might be worth a try.

I also have Haslingers Schafmilch/Sheep's Milk which is also excellent and has lanolin in it. To me it is basically an easy to lather MWF substitute.

Bob

I had another thought, though it is a long shot as the original poster has been a member for ten years and is a tenured classic shaver.

Have you seen an increase in stress that corresponds with your skin becoming more sensitive. My thinking being that if stressed, you may be pressing harder with the razor, which will cause skin irritation.

There is allergy and hypersensitivity. Allergy is a reaction to a certain substance, like you can be allergic to penicillin. With true allergies you'll have to find out which ingredient both soaps have in common and avoid that ingredient in everything you slap on your skin. If it is a hypersensitivity it is not so much a one single ingredient thing but a stronger than usual reaction to stimuli that your skin does not like. Like acids, alkalis, dehydration, heat, cold, exfoliation etc.

Dissinfect your brushes, use vitamin E cream from the farmacy for 7-10 days(realy helps regenerate the skin faster)...and use some skin friendly edges for a while...also preshave oil and a softer tip brush might help.

I agree about switching to a 48 hr. shave cycle. That's what I do as I find my shaves with straights are a little bit better that way. Another thing that could be causing irritation is the brush as well as face-lathering. I would switch to a brush with soft tips (silvertip or synthetic) if face-lathering, or try bowl-lathering with other brushes for a spell, painting on the lather, to see if that helps.

Thanks for all the suggestions guys!
I actually have been stressed lately. Not sure if that makes a difference, but I try not to put on too much pressure.

Anyway, I think I may have found a solution: I found out that Nivea Sensitive Post-shave Balm has witch hazel in it, so I gave it a try.
I moistened my stubble, rubbed in some of the Nivea stuff and a little oil, and then applied lather carefully on top (painting with the brush rather than rubbing it in). I noticed no irritation during the shave, which was a good sign. Afterwards I rinsed, applied Trumper's Skin Food, more Nivea balm, and a tiny bit aftershave. There's hardly any irritation; only one reddish spot that was still there from the previous shave. This is also my smoothest shave in several weeks, because the skin didn't get irritated and uneven. :)

As I grew older and out of the military I decided to shave less sometimes grows beards and having 2-3 rest of my face. I have tried cold water shaves not for my face and skin, warm to hot water exfoliate skin with scrub pad at least warm cream sometimes I will use gel, with my four directional whiskers I need at least 3 passes one will be ATG.

If you are using an aggressive razor, switch to a milder one.
I have a friend who was allergic to nearly every shaving product he tried. Horrible reactions to everything.
He used the most aggressive razor he could find. "My beard is so tough", yadayadayada.
I told him to get a vintage Gillette and work on his technique. Took over a year to convince him, while I watched him suffer.
He finally gave it a try.
After about three months he was getting nice, smooth, close shaves, and about 90% of his problems with shaving product ingredients disappeared.
Yea, he has some sensitivity. But that aggressive razor was what he was most sensitive to.

Aloha!

I went through a stint about 20 years ago where I was out of town and ran out of my soap and aftershave in a small town. Went to a mom and pop drug store (the only one in town) and got some cheap Williams brand soap and some Clubman after shave. Basically, it's all they had. I sense the Pinaud Clubman after shave was probably 25 years old or more. Literally, there was crusted dust on the bottle and it smelled odd when I opened it. This was a small drug store, the kind that really don't exist any longer, and most of the product was well out of date. Not sure if it was the Williams Soap or the Clubman after shave or both but my skin was raw and sensitive for days. I could not shave the next day nor the day after that. It took a while for my skin to calm down. I actually reverted to a 3 blade deisposable with Barbasol Menthol shaving cream IN THE SHOWER to try and gently shave while I was showering just to keep the whiskers at bay while babying my face. I used to shave in the shower at college and never had a problem with skin so thought that may help. it seemed to help a bit.

But what seemed to really help was using menthol alcohol (the green stuff in drug stores) cut with water as aftershave for a few weeks, so that it's down to about 25 percent alcohol, and the menthol has a cooling effect. This really helped calm down my skin. For a while, I stuck with this concoction as after shave. Honestly, it's probably the cleanest and most healthy as it's just diluted alcohol with some menthol.

Stress sure does influence skin sensitivity. Stress greatly lowers the immune system and throws your body's defense and restoration mechanisms out of whack.

Hope all is good soon.

Mahalo!

-ZipZop