STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

member · Hermes

Please Help My Enormous Zit

Chic · Marc Jacobs

Put ice on it at night and then buy some Origins Spot Remover and don't touch it anymore....I know it is so tempting but that will just make it worse. Then wait....

scarlett · Marc Jacobs

i feel your pain! i think it must be on its way out if there doesn't seem to be anything left in it. have you tried putting visine on it? that can help temporarily tone down the redness. try not to touch it anymore (i know that's hard) and it should calm down.

jj · Kate Spade

Ok, I know some folks may disagree with me, but you've gotta stop touching in. If it's "open," put a little neosporin on it to keep it from getting more infected.

Minor hijack: I was able to conduct an experiment this weekend to support my no-touch theory. I woke up on Saturday with a honkin' zit on my chin. It was a perfect whitehead, just screaming to be popped. But I didn't and just put BP on it 2x a day. Now it's Tuesday, and it's gone - completely gone. Hooray!

-- Edited by jj at 12:32, 2006-01-31

member · Hermes

I'm really trying not to touch it, other than to put medicine on it. It's still huge, despite it being a white head twice and me popping it. It didn't go down in size at all. Last night, I tried putting alcohol on it and nothing. Ugh

Scarlett - I don't see how there could be nothing left in something so huge!!

bebegirl020 · BCBG

if it stays this way for a while longer without coming to a head again it *might* turn into/already be a cyst. go to the dermatologist and they will give you a shot of cortizone (not sure if thats how its spelled) and they suck out all the extra zit and junk (if thats what you have).

jj · Kate Spade

bebegirl020 wrote:

if it stays this way for a while longer without coming to a head again it *might* turn into/already be a cyst. go to the dermatologist and they will give you a shot of cortizone (not sure if thats how its spelled) and they suck out all the extra zit and junk (if thats what you have).

I've had that done, and it totally works. If I've gone at lunch, the zit/cyst will be gone by the end of the day! Even if your derm is booked, beg and plead - it only takes a minute, so you'll be in and out fast.

member · Hermes

Going to my derm. would be my absolute last option - he is about 45 mins away from me and you have to book him long in advance...

tri_sarah_tops · Marc Jacobs

These are my favorite spot treatments. A few days ago I had a zit on my chin that was a lot like the one you described. Between the two products, it was gonein like two days.

Mario Badescu drying lotion and DDF Sufur Mask

Sulfur Therapeutic Mask

jaymiek · Coach

If nothing happens to it with all that Tazorac you put on it, I'm thinking it might be a cyst. I use Tazorac and it is pretty potent. I had the same problem- a white bump that wouldn't go away no matter how much medication I put on it, and I went to the derm and she told me it was a cyst. She basically gave me a cortisone shot and had to scrape all the gunk out, and voila- it was gone!

Elle · Hermes

Someone else had this problem a couple of weeks ago - Hermione shared a trick that helped her alot: Put a spoon in the freezer until it's really cold, and then apply it to the area using a tiny bit of pressure. You might have to do it a couple times, but there's something about the cold + pressure that really takes the swelling down.

scarlett · Marc Jacobs

shopchicago33 wrote:

Scarlett - I don't see how there could be nothing left in something so huge!!

I am still a proponent of leaving it alone, although to be honest I find that almost impossible to do myself! If you want to see if something is left in it, soak a washcloth in very warm water and then hold it on the zit for a while. That can help raise the gunk to the surface. I agree that putting Neosporin on it will help, and you can use hydrogen peroxide on it too to clean it before doing so.

Elle · Hermes

scarlett wrote:

...and you can use hydrogen peroxide on it too to clean it before doing so.

Use Alcohol instead - hydrogen peroxide can cause scarring.

Starstuff · Kenneth Cole

along those lines, I've heard that if you do want to pop it (and I have very little self-control when it comes to those things, so I usually do), then take a q-tip and break it or cut it in half, and use the padded ends to apply pressure. I've heard that even if you wash you hands before touching your face there are still a lot of bacteria that live under your nails, and you don't want them getting in your zit. If it does pop, clean it out with hydrogen peroxide and then apply medication...

If you can wait for it to disappear on its own, though, you'll eliminate the possiblity of scars,