There is normal acne, and then there are those pimples that come along only once or twice in a life time. You wake up a day or two before a huge event, and there is a big pimple right there on your face. You might think that this gigantic blemish is just terrible luck, but they are often caused by the stress of the important event that you have coming up. Whether it be a big first date, your wedding day, an important presentation at work, or your high school prom; that big pimple needs to go. Pictures are always a part of important events, and you do not want that monstrosity on your face to be what you see each time you look back at that day.
The first stage of damage control depends on how long you have to get rid of a big pimple. If you have between three days and a week before it absolutely needs to be gone, then you do not want to take any drastic measures. Most people panic and decide to pop the beast right away, even when they have plenty of time to take care of the problem in a safer fashion. This can often compound the problem making the area much more red and inflamed, which makes it even more noticeable than it was before. It could also lead to scarring, which would make a one day problem last a lifetime.
If you are two or more days out than applying a spot treatment that contains salicylic acid is usually the best course of action. You will also want to make sure you are giving your body the right stuff it needs to produce excellent looking skin. This means drinking lots of water (at least 8 glasses a day) and eating foods that contain high levels of antioxidants such as blueberries. A natural acne spot treatment that has many people swear by is tea tree oil. It has anti-bacterial properties and is strong enough to penetrate the oil in the skin, to get to the root of the problem.
If you only have two days or less to deal with this problem, you may want to consider some more drastic measures if you feel it is super important. We advise that you consult a dermatologist before doing anything drastic.
One of these is the use of hydrocortisone cream as a spot treatment. Hydrocortisone cream is a topical steroid that is typically used as an anti-itch medication. There are some side effects of prolonged use of hydrocortisone cream, including increasing the number of breakouts you have as well as thinning the skin. However, it should be safe to use this as a treatment for a big pimple once or twice. This topical steroid will quickly reduce the size and redness of the pimple. Hollywood celebrities have been known to go to a doctor and get a cortisone shot to get rid of a big pimple quickly before an event, but this is not cheap.
Most big pimples are accompanied by redness that makes the stick out like a sore thumb. There are a few simples ways to reduce this acne redness on or before your big day. A typical over the counter redness reducing eye drop will work on a pimple, just like it would for your eyes. Combining that on a chilled rag or cue tip is a fast way to both reduce the swelling and redness of the area.
Personally, I would never advise or consider popping big pimples, but I know many people will do it anyway. This is especially true when you get desperate before a big event. The only pimples that you can even consider popping are the ones with a big white center. If a pimple is all red and does not contain any puss you can do serious damage to your skin by attempting to pop it (which will not work anyways). Pop big pimples at your own risk, but if you do make sure that you look up the proper way to do so that will limit the irritation and chances for scarring. Using aloe vera afterwards will help heal the area quickly and will hopefully significantly reduce your chances of getting a permanent scar.
Comments on this entry are closed.