To pop or not to pop, that is the question?  Dermatologist for the most part say not to pop. I disagree.  This post will explain the different types of blackheads and pimples there are and how you can properly extract them.  I can explain on a professional level (esthetician to esthetician) and an at home level what to look for while performing your own extractions.  Disclaimer this is all knowledge I have gained while working on clients and also personal.  Not to be recommended as medical advice. I’ve always had the opinion to pop pimples but correctly.  My thought is that pus represents infection.  If you have infection where is it going to go if you don’t pop it?  It can stay in the skin and infect more pores.  If you do not feel confident to pop your own pimple then I would recommend booking a facial that includes extractions and letting a licensed esthetician who is trained on extractions to help with your blackheads and pimples

Note to avoid clogged pores and pimple issues with the skin I always emphasize that one should drink 8 glasses of water a day.  If your looking for a good filter this company offers good water bottles and pitchers that filter water. (Affiliate Link)  https://clearlyfiltered.com/?cjdata=MXxOfDB8WXww&cjevent=2d4f2d6229ed11f0835504340a82b82a

Blackheads

What are black heads?  Why do they exist?  How do we extract them or “clean the pores?”  Basically you have to visualize your skin with a bunch of tiny micro circles which would be considered your pores.  Sometimes those circles get clogged.  Now I’m going to try and go into more detail here because there are a lot of facets and entities to clogged pores.

How a pimple can form or develop-

First you have your basic blackhead, let us use the nose as an example.  When you look at your nose you see tiny little microscopic circles or holes.  Some people you cant really see with the eye but once you put pressure on the nose area white pus can come out.  Some people have larger pores and when you apply pressure a light brown or beige color comes out and that is a little more dirt so we can call that  a blackhead.  Then there is a third level of blackhead.  This is when the skin has grown over the pore so when you push on it nothing comes out.  To extract this type of blackhead you need a lancet (or a sterilized needle). Because the skin has grown over the pore you need to create an opening which is why you need the needle or lancet. Just a tiny poke and it should open that pore up. It is strange because usually you get a pustule if the skin grows over a blackhead and it gets infected.  Then pus grows under the skin and then you get the pimple bump.

Milia

Milia are a special type of pimple that I would recommend having removed by a licensed esthetician that is confident to remove the milia.  Normally a milia is a very small white bump that does not grow to a large pimple and stays in the skin.  It does not come to a full head.  Essentially a milia is similar to a black head but it is a tiny whitehead.  The only way to remove a milia is to poke a hole and let the pus out because the way the milia is formed is by skin covering the pore.  Milia are usually found on the skin next to the eyes which is delicate skin.  The reason these pimples form is because a lot of times the eye cream is to thick.  Milia can be found on other parts of the face but usually the cause is heavy molecules in the eye cream.  You want to be aware of your eye cream ingredients and not have to heavy of oils or mineral oil on that area of the face.

Hormonal Pimples

Hormonal pimples are the type of bump you will experience around that time of month or when your ovulating.  They can be a bump that never comes to a pustule head.  You want to be aware of the bump and not try to pop it if it does not come to a complete head.  It technically can just be a hormonal bump but if no pus comes in the pimple it will leave when the hormonal fluctuation is finished.

So essentially every pimple starts with your pore getting clogged.  If you understand from the paragraph above either you have a black head and you want to clean your pores or if you don’t address a clogged pore it can get a little bump and create pus.  So step one, clogged black head.  Step two, if you don’t get that clogged blackhead cleaned out, your skin can create pus and then you have what you would call a pimple or a pustule.

 

 

Large Pimple? What is it?

Taking this further because this is my observation while doing extractions on my own skin and hundreds of clients.  Have you ever had a large bump and a pimple is forming?  You know its coming and you know its growing and it is going to be big?  A douzy of a pimple right there on your face or forehead. You can feel the pressure building and it can be painful.  You can see pus starting to form and your getting ready to pop that pimple.  Finally you see enough pus and you go for it.  Then what happens?  You think you popped the pimple and the next day you wake up and look in the mirror and!!!!!…….MORE PUS!!!!  Now what happened?  You thought you popped it?  How can there be more pus?  Better yet you go to pop again and hardly anything will come out?  Oh this gets annoying. It can take days for this one to heal.

Breaking down this type of pimple for you so that you can understand what happened?  I explain it this way to my clients all the time.  So imagine again your tiny little pores.  Your blackheads. Now not one but imagine 3 little blackheads are getting infected.  So they grow into a big pimple but at different stages.  I like to say there neighbors.  Its like one neighbor is full of pus and ready to go and the other one is behind by a day and the third another day.  Those are the worst type of pimples to deal with but essentially that is what is happening.  So one pore is full of pus and ready and the others are behind but the bump on your face is in the same area.  The best way to get this type of pimple popped (technically about a 3 in 1) is to wait until the pimple is really ready to pop.  Almost like the first part of the bump is turning from white to yellow.  That way the neighbors are caught up.  Then again you want to use a lancet to create an opening for the pus to exit the skin. If you wait that extra day you can almost always get your pimple popped better and cleaner and not have to try and re-pop.

When popping a pustule or pimple lancets or a clean needle are necessary.  You need to create a little opening so that the pus has an exit for the skin.  If not, you can put pressure and the pus can go under your skin causing bacteria under the skin and more break out in that area.

One more thing I want to add here.  Yes we are all different.  Our bodies are different and we react to things different.  One thing that always will help your pores to be clean is drinking 8 glasses of water a day.  That just helps your lymphatic system clean and filter your skin from the inside.  On that note it is perfectly natural if you go to extract your blackheads that different colors come out.  For example an auto mechanic that works around grease can, more than likely, have black coming out of their pores when extracted.  Someone working around dirt and dust normally have brown coming out.  There can be different levels of dark to light brown.  Then some people you go to clean their nose pores and they have a light green to white coming out.  I’ve seen it all because its a combination of your external environment “landing” on your skin and your internal environment and how your skin handles filtering or cleaning your skin.

Another note to estheticians performing extractions, smells can come out of the pores when extracting and cleaning blackheads.  Common ones can be a smoker.  As your cleaning the pores and performing extractions you can usually smell like a fresh cigarette smoke smell.  I’ve also had clients who love garlic and as I’m cleaning the pores a garlic smell is present.  Just note if you notice any smells it is natural as your doing extractions.

How To Properly Extract

In the Spa Room-

Note if your reading this and not an esthetician you can always learn how you should be receiving extractions properly to know if the technician is missing any steps.

Step 1)  After properly cleansing the skin and performing a form of exfoliation you normally would use a steamer to soften the skin.  Some spas have stopped using steamers and they use a type of disincrustation formula to soften the skin.

Step 2)  Once the skin has been prepped either by disincrustation or steam its time for extractions.  You normally can use a magnifying lamp if available but either way you want to make sure you have enough light to see the skin.

Step 3) You want to make sure to have the proper protective gloves or finger cots on. I personally prefer to use either a tissue or 4×4 to perform extractions.  I wrap the tissue around my extracting fingers and it helps to keep the gloves from sliding and as you are doing the extraction it cleans up what ever is coming out of the pores. You can also use a comedone extractor tool.  I have used these on occasion but because they are metal they can hurt and also leave the skin more red.  The best one I have found that can work is a thin wire one. The less metal the better.  Also as far as lancets go you want to make sure that legally your state allows you to use lancets.  If someone has a large pustule on the face and you cannot use a lancet I usually leave it alone.  You don’t want it to turn the skin super red and have the pus release under the skin.  If you feel that you can get it by popping off the pus top then go for it but just take into consideration that the skin can be more red.

Step 4)  After you have finished extractions I usually use a toner on cotton and wipe the face.  You want to feel like you gently cleaned the skin.  If the spa you work at has high frequency then this is the time to use the violet wand which is anti bacterial.  Some spas have LED and if you’ve just done extractions you would want to use the blue light to calm the skin.

When performing extractions on a client or on yourself the key to a successful extraction is to see the angle of the pore. Meaning, if you see a pustule what angle is the pus at?  This is the proper direction to put the pressure and push the pus up and out.

At Home Extractions-

1. If you are going to attempt to clean your black heads or pop any pimples at home I always recommend after a shower as you need to soften your skin first.  If you have a mini portable steamer that can also help.  Also boiling water in a pan and covering head with towel but be careful not to put your face to close to the water as that can feel like burning.
2. As far as a lancet goes I’ve seen them for sale at CVS or you can order online.  If you don’t have a lancet you can use a sewing needle with a thin point and make sure to wipe with rubbing alcohol before you use.
3. Now the crucial part.  I always suggest wrapping tissue around your fingers to not rip your skin.  The tissue protects the skin.  If you use your finger nails you can end up squeezing and slipping and cut the top layer of the skin which can cause scarring.
4. As you attempt to pop the pimple use your lancet or needle and find the tip of the pimple. Poke just a tiny hole in the pimple and apply pressure at the bottom of your pimple closest to your face to let the pus out.  You know when the pimple is finished emptying when a clear fluid comes out.  That is your lymph cleaning everything out.  If you get just blood there is usually more to pop and you attempted to pop the pimple to soon.  You always want a clear fluid to pass through to show the pus has all come out.
5. Same thing as in the spa setting you want to use something to clean the extracted area.  Toner on a cotton pad is good.  One of my favorite toners is Cranberry Toner from Arcona. https://www.arcona.com/product/cranberry-toner.html   Cranberry is antibacterial and will help the extraction to heal and cleans it out.
6. If you are bleeding try and hold a tissue to coagulate the blood so that you don’t leave a huge mark.  (Not sponsored I just love this product for all skin types.) The cranberry toner helps with this step. https://www.arcona.com/product/triad-pads.html

Conclusion

My final thoughts on extractions.  After reading through this article you might think that popping a pimple is invasive.  As I said most dermatologist recommend not popping a pimple.

Another suggestion for someone who wants thorough non invasive extractions is to book a hydrafacial.  The hydrafacial machine performs the best extractions and shows you what was removed in the gunk jar.  You can check the hydrafacial website and find a location near you.  I would highly recommend this machine facial for extractions (not sponsored) https://www.hydrafacial.com/find-a-hydrafacialist/

Do I believe in spot removers and overnight pimple remedies?  No.  I know there are a lot out there to choose from and people recommend salicylic acid.  I was using a spot treatment on my pimples when I went through my acneic phase.  I would feel a bump coming on, put the salicylic acid on the bump and the next morning I’d wake up and still have a bump that never came to a head.  I  didn’t like that because again I always feel you need to extract out what is in the pore.  It didn’t make sense to me to know that something was growing in the pore and it never came to a full head to pop?  I found out a few years later that salicylic acid is basically diluted aspirin.  You need to be aware of the source and you want the salicylic acid to come from the white willow bark which is natural and better for the skin.

I hope you find this article helpful on what to do with a blackhead or pimple and how to properly extract them.  If you are a parent with a teenager who is going through hormonal changes and may have some breakout hopefully these tips can help you.  As I always emphasize drinking water would be step one to help clear skin up naturally.  Bottled water or spring water is best but if you need a good water that is alkaline and antibacterial with healing properties you can check out the Kangen water info here  and learn about a new type of water to help your skin and heal your skin. https://missellen.kangendemo.com/