Thread: HELP : Should I straight shave ? Or shouldn't I ...

Hi folks,

First, sorry for this too long story, but I cannot make it shorter, if I really want you to help me I have to tell you the whole story ... So I will :

I'm a dark haired 26yo guy, military. So I HAVE to be clean shaved, every other day.

I first began shaving with an electric, but aiming for a better shave, and when I became a military, I started wet shaving with a M3 and canned goo. With normal acne, as a lot of teen have, shaving bumps and others were almost transparent. Until the day I cleared up my acne with some antibiotics.

The only remaining trouble areas were my cheeks, and my neck. I have a SO HARD beard, and hair growing flat against the skin, that my derm said I had folliculitis, the kind of sick that black men often suffer from !!
He adviced me for doing some laser hair removal, to see if it improves.

I chose IPL, and a device I could buy to make it by myself at home, and finally, it makes the thing a lot cheaper !!!

Currently, I have done about one year of IPL :
- The moustache and the chin are terribly difficult to treat, but it improves from a session to another
- The cheeks are "almost clear" ( *We 'll see below )
- The neck is clear, and there is no trouble.

So, you should wonder " What does he post here, if he does not shave anymore ?? "

Here is the answer :
On the cheeks, hair need a lot of time and IPL sessions to definitely disappear. That does mean that they become thinner and thinner, at the point that they have a lot of pain to get through the skin as they regrow, 5 or 6 weeks after the IPL.

So, as you can imagine : Bumps, zits, redness ... And logically : Scars.

However, I have a good routine : I clean my face up every night with a glycolic face cleaner, I even bought the Anthony Logistics ingrown hair treatment, but this does not make the trick ...

So, I tried DE shaving, with a badger brush and a ToBS cream.
But I have never had as smooth a shave than with my M3 and a gillette gel ... And I find that the creams let my skin a bit greasy too, which tends to confirm with the hours passing by !!

When a visit my doctor for another reason, I had the occasion to show him the spots, he told me about acne. BUT, I m pretty sure it's not, but it's some kind of ingrown. ( I have also the problem, minor, on the chest and the legs when I wax them ). On the rest of the face, it's clear, with not any pimple !!

So, FINALLY, I come to the end :
I wonder if I should continue the IPL, with the goal to eliminate every hair, which is, I'm pretty sure, the only solution I could get to definitely get free of this issue,

OR

Try to get a better shave, with a straight for example ( I can get one in my family if needed ) and give up IPL ...

Please guys, help me, because ths is progressively ruining my life and of course, my confidence ...

First off: welcome!

second: Long story, good story . I don't know if straight razor shaving will mitigate all the troubles you have. If your hairs have the tendency to grow into the skin, full removal is the only option.

You wrote that DE shaving gave you a smoother shave, but did it also lessen your problems? If so, a straight shave could(with the proper technique) give an even better result.

A straight razor shave gives you a mild exfoliation, which could also help you.

Good luck

Disclaimer: I have not seen you nor am I a dermatologist, your results may vary. Possibly my advice won't help you one bit.

Thanks !!

No, I said, in fact, that I could not get a smooth shave with DE, and badger brush and co ! But I stayed stuck with the bumps and others ...

I tried the following :

- with a shaving gel and a Gillette Sensor, I can get a very smooth shave on areas such as mustache, or chin, with few irritation, and no ingrown. But if I wanted to get a close shave on the cheeks, I would have to go ATG, which increases the risk of ingrown, so I don't.
- with the same razor, and an " old fashioned preparation " ( meaning : badger brush, hot towel, and shaving cream ) : I cannot achieve the same result. The razor does not glide as easily, I am not close shaved, and get more irritation ...

My apologies, I misread it then. Than I cannot give you a sound advice. You could try to get a SR shave from one of your family members and see if it helps you, nothing ventured nothing gained. Unless you believe it will be bad for your skin. I can't really think of anything more .

That is a very strange condition you have... and stranger than that is the fact that you say that you got better shaves with a cartridge than with a DE with proper cream. But a lot of factors come into play here...
Are you sure you lathered properly? Did you lather on the face or in a bowl? Did you apply the lather by "painting" it onto your face or did you do so in circular motions?
I'm sorry to ask all this but I guess that you should give the DE a second and better chance before you move into straights. The reason is simple - straights are indeed better than DEs or anything else. But the learning curve is a bit steep and with the sort of problems you have, it may become even steeper. I'm sure that you will succeed in the end, don't get me wrong. It is just that I think you should consider giving the DE another chance before you move on to a straight razor.
Straight razors can be very punishing in the begining - it all gets blissfully better, of course - especialy if one has very tender skin... as the one that results from laser treatments.
Just my 2 cents, of course...
But hey, WELCOME to SRP! You'll find this to be a great community. And never hold back a question or a doubt you may have - these guys know everything!

Hi,

thanks for welcoming

To answer your questions :

1 / I'm lathering in the bowl, then on the face
2 / I used to apply by painting moves, as circular motions seemed to irritate a lot my skin before she even met the blade !!

Originally Posted by gringo84

Hi,

thanks for welcoming

To answer your questions :

1 / I'm lathering in the bowl, then on the face
2 / I used to apply by painting moves, as circular motions seemed to irritate a lot my skin before she even met the blade !!

I just asked about your technique because if the lather you make is too wet or dry it will not work properly.
So... does your lather have the consistency of whipped cream? That is what you should aim for anyhow.
I have to say that if your skin is irritated by a badger brush exfoliating your skin a bit while you apply the lather, I'd say that you really have some sort of strange problem with your beard. There are some brushless creams around that you should try. They seem to be good and provide an alternative from the canned goo and the traditional creams and soaps...
Hope this helps.

It sounds like using a straight might help you, but it depends on what you are going for. If you are looking for a completely smooth shave every day, it may not be the best option going on what you have been saying. If you are looking for a good, presentable shave, then it might be good. A good WTG pass will almost always be more than sufficient to be within regs if you are on duty.

I can not and could never shave ATG every day, my face would not tolerate it. I was in before I switched to a straight razor, but with a cartridge I just did a one-pass shave, skipped the weekends and then had a ATG shave Mondays.

Again, it depends on what you are looking for. A straight will certainly help with irritation and bumps, but you may want to stick with a one or two pass shave with it. Not the ultimate shaving Nirvana, but well within any regs.

Originally Posted by http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001826

Pseudofolliculitis barbae is a disorder that occurs mainly in black men. If curly beard hairs are cut too short, they may curve back into the skin and cause inflammation.

I know it may be difficult as active duty military but have you gotten a second opinion from another Dermatologist? The reason I ask is if your skin is already so sensitive that doing circular motions with a wet lather brush causes irritation, I would be incline to treat that issue first. The other treatment for hair removal may be causing damage to the skin that is not being aloud to recover well enough between sessions. In that case any shaving would only cause more irritation. I do know from experience that the light treatments do not mix well with a number of the topicals that would be used for treating bacterial or fungal folliculitis, that you may or maynot have.
Your Doc should also be able to right orders permitting you to not shave for a period of time till the situation with your skin can be treated properly.

If "I" were going for a second opinion I would take everything with me all the meds, the machine everything. Explain the procedures you have been using, and all the issues you have, ask lots of questions. With the light treatments they do need to be adjusted to individual needs as even the lamps for seasonal affective disorder can burn the skin if used to long.

I also am not a Doctor or a Black Male, however I do not think Straight shaving will be a magic cure for your issues. The learning curve in the beginning is tricky enough for many people with no underlying concerns and it is possible that for you closer may not be a good option.

Good luck and best wishes in your treatment.
Thank you for your service.

Welcome to SRP. I'm sorry to hear of your problems.

You did not mention much about your preparations. Here are my suggestions of things you might try, that may help enhance your shave experience.
First, I would recommend that you shave only after a shower. Second, use a shave oil. Third, use a quality natural shave soap and a good brush, with sensitive skin canned goo is not for you. Fourth, try a wedge grind for your straight, it will cut straight through even the coarsest beard. Fifth, do not go ATG if it bothers your skin - do not opt for silk smooth shaves but choose in stead to go with the lightest approach still passable in your service. And finally, take good care of your skin after the shave. Perhaps an alcohol based splash to properly clean up and disinfect, followed by a natural moisturizer. Use some butter in stead of lotion, as lotions often contain many chemicals.

Best of luck!