After shaving my head, I get this red irritation on the back of my neck. How do I get rid of this?

Question

I am directing this question mostly to people who actually shave their head or know someone who does. I have been shaving my head for a good seven months or so now, and I have not been able to find a solution to clear up this irritation I get on the back of my neck, right where the head and neck joins. It's kind of like a rash with bumps, sometimes even producing whiteheads. This skin ONLY gets irritated on the neck area; no where else on my head breaks out. I have done everything I have read to try and prevent this, but nothing seems to work. I have used over-the-counter razor bump treatments, I used Aloe Vera gel everyday, I have tried using face cleanser on it, I bought a whole line of Neutrogena for men razor creams and skin healers, but NOTHING works. I always use a fresh, sharp razor, I shave most often in the shower under warm water, and I use shaving gel for sensitive skin. My head would look perfect if not for that redness on the neck. Anyone who can help I'd appreciate it.

I'm not really too eager to try any more products unless someone can atest to the fact that they actually work in this situation. The guy recomending the Tend Skin product seems pretty confident, but I'm still not confident this product would work, as NO others have. Also, I DO shave my head against the grain, which may or may not be the primary cause of the irritation I am getting. Shaving with the grain just doesn't shave close enough and you can feel all the stubble when you rub your hand in the opposite direction of the grain. It's not smooth all over, it's half smooth, half stubbly. There's also too much shadow in my opinion. Appreciate the answers so far, but I still haven't heard from anyone with first-hand experience.

Answer 1

Tend Skin Liquid Aftershave

been using it on my neck area for about 3 years now... Tend Skin is the best product for shaving... period. It's really powerful stuff though, so make sure not to overdo it (it can be tempting).

Apply it using a cotton pad, and only coat the area ONCE with it (your skin WILL peel excessively if you overdo it). and make sure the area is DRY before applying it. Your neck will clear up within days, if not overnight.

Search Tend Skin Aftershave for more information and specific instructions for use. i buy mine from Bargain Side (linked below). they sell it cheap.

and also, always shave with the grain, and shave SLOWLY. that may just clear up the bumps on its own. best of luck

EDIT: A lot of people use Tend Skin to treat razor bumps. Those who don't use it are the ones who still have the bumps.

I think the problem is that you shave against the grain. Shaving with the grain should give you an extremely close shave... use the Mach 3 razor, if you don't already, and let ur shave gel soat in for at least 3 minutes before you shave... but if you really are insistent on going against the grain, you're gonna need Tend Skin aftershave even more, because shaving that way REALLY irritates the skin...

and you don't have folliculitis, its just razor bumps/ingrown hairs... also, you can comprimise and first shave with the grain, then shave it sideways to get even closer, that's the way i do it...

Answer 2

What you are experiencing is called folliculitus. Its and infection of the hair follicles. I had lived with for about 2 years before I finally went to a doctor. I was prescribed Bactroban and the irritation was cleared up in about 5 days. I don't know of anyone who's had it and didn't need a prescription medicine to clear it up. You can prevent it by making sure your shaving equipment is as sterile as possible. Also, use an alcohol to clean you neck after you shave and then a astringent to close the pores so they don't become infected from hats or shirt collars.

Answer 3

Sounds like you're getting ingrown hairs. What happens is that because the hair there is so short, it gets caught under the skin and doesn't grow out of the skin, but grows within it. This happens especially if you have curly hair. It has nothing to do with how sanitary you are. It's just how your hair is. I have read about this for a male friend of mine before, and basically they say that you can probably get someone to sterilize some needle nose tweezers to pluck them out, but the best way to really keep them away is to keep your hair longer... sorry for the bad news... However, it would be good to make sure that your skin there is clean at all times so you don't develop an infection. Good luck!

Answer 4

DO NOT USE CHEMICALS! and no moisturisers with perfumes or colouring. the red dots are ingrown hairs trying to push trough. it looks like a disease or a really bad rash. if you use a damp face cloth and a hot water bottle and heat the area a bit (not to hot) 2-3 times a day for 15-20 minutes the pores of your skin will open up and the hairs will come through. it will probably take about 3 weeks or so and don't worry about what the hairs are going to look like. their usually blond and your just going to shave them off anyways. or you could go to a dermatologest and pay out the nose for something that wont work. the choice is yours friend, it dosen't hurt to try, see if it works. you might be very happy. good luck.
ps. it works for those red dots on legs and arms. and if you do moistureise, use water based creams and/or sun tan lotions only.

Answer 5

This happened due to the way that your head was shaved. Your skin is very sensitive. Try not doing anything to it, just leave it alone. It may be irritated because you are touching it too much and using too many products. You are not giving it a chance to breathe and heal itself.

If that does not work then I suggest seing a dermatologist!

Answer 6

Rash On Head And Neck

Answer 7

I would suggest you try using Jojoba Oil as it is almost identical organically-speaking to sebum, which is the natural oil produced by your skin. As well as being a great natural moisturizer it can also help with acne, Jojoba Oil penetrates into the skin without clogging pores and is suitable for all skin types it contains vitamin E and antioxidants which are great for fighting aging signs and moisturizing the skin.

Studies on jojoba oil show that it has the ability to prevent skin from becoming too oily. This is due to the fact that putting jojoba oil on our skin can trick our cells into thinking they have produced enough oil. Remove any surface dirt from your skin, then put just a few drops of jojoba oil into your hand and rub it into your skin when you start to work jojoba oil into the skin, the oil penetrates into the pores. As jojoba closely resembles

your skin's own oil, moisturizing with jojoba oil sends the message to your pores to stop overproducing the sebum that causing the oily skin.

Answer 8

try this...it couldn't hurt. my husband used to get rashes when he would shave his beard the part that goes around the chin down the neck. well he changed his water tempeture and the direction he saved there. I believe he heats up his razor to start then rinses it in cold to continue.. Don't know what that is suppose to do. Try to go the direction the hair grows so that your not pulling the hair out.

Answer 9

I would suggest finding a head moisturizer for bald people. No joke... it's out there. Aveeno is a really good daily moisturizer as well, rub that on your neck daily. It should help!

Answer 10

my ankles use to do the same thing and i just put noxema on them and next day it would be gone.