What to avoid when you have a pimpleUpdated a year ago
Pimples demand gentle care. Harsh treatment can worsen the inflammation, making it harder for the skin to heal and often immediately worsening the pimple.
- Impulsive popping: While it’s possible to pop some pustules without worsening the situation, the situation gets dangerous when the popping is impulsive. Applying too much pressure, using dirty fingernails, or attempting to pop deep cysts can be very traumatizing to the skin, and may even lead to a worse infection below the skin.
- Touching: Touching your pimples beyond what’s needed for basic care is a bad idea. Any pressure or friction, whether it’s your hands, phone, or a pillow, can make the inflammation worse.
- Aggressive cleansing: Scrubbing the skin or using harsh cleansing agents is another thing to avoid. Gentle cleansers with a slippery texture will keep your skin clean without forcing you to scrub. Make sure to also avoid high-pH soaps, since they can increase the skin’s pH and help the acne bacteria proliferate more easily.
- Attempts to dry out a pimple: Avoid trying to “dry out your pimple” with clay masks, toothpaste, alcohol, or any other DIY remedy. This approach isn’t rooted in science and is unlikely to help your pimples heal faster.
Be gentle with your pimples
The urge to pop pimples or slather them with high-powered spot treatments makes sense! When you see a pimple, you want it to disappear as soon as possible. Severe breakouts with dozens of pimples are even worse.
However, it’s so important to strike a balance with pimple care, prioritizing products that exfoliate and renew while still keeping inflammation to a minimum. That means sticking to a gentle routine and keeping your skin nourished while targeting your pimples with a few key active ingredients.
Ultimately, consistency and targeted treatments are the key not just to getting rid of pimples, but also to prevent them from recurring.
At Protocol, our line of exfoliating and skin-renewing products is developed with all skin types in mind. By keeping your skin regenerating in the best way possible, it can keep you looking clear and blemish-free. And if the occasional pimple rears its ugly head, you’ll now know exactly what to do.