Archive - Life Traveller. Been Somewhere. Going Somewhere.

I know the medical profession seems to disapprove of people poking about their spots, zits, or whatever else you like to call them, but I evolved a method and maybe the time has come to share it, since I've never seen it recommended anywhere. I know I said I thought it up myself, and I did, but if I can think something up, so can anyone else, especially as it's such a simple way of dealing with the problem. Anyway, here it is:

Get a bottle of Surgical Spirit, cotton wool and a sharp needle (a hypodermic needle is best, if you can get hold of one, as they're very sharp and you can do a proper cut instead of just a puncture, which you have to try and tear apart). First of all the spot needs to have at least a bit of a head. Hands need to be washed - anti-bacterial soap is a good idea - and dried with a clean towel. Now using the clean cotton wool, douse the spot and the needle with the Surgical Spirit. Gently insert the needle into the skin covering the top of the head, from the side, not stabbing it from the top. When the needle comes out at the other side, push it upwards to tear the skin apart. (The hole needs to be big enough for the stuff to come out, otherwise you're just squeezing it back into your face.) Squeeze out the contents of the spot, making sure you get all of it out, and that usually includes a semi-solid little bit at the end. Actually, squeeze it until only blood or clear liquid comes out. Now more Surgical Spirit. This will hurt, but make sure you get plenty in. If it isn't hurting, you aren't doing it right. Leave it to heal, and don't cover with concealer or makeup.

This is the method I used to deal with my spots when I was in my teens and early twenties, and it worked very well. I know that the medical profession fears that people poking about in their spots can cause infections, but if you're scrupulously clean, this won't happen. Of course, if you aren't scrupulously clean and you do get an infection, don't blame me - you are responsible for your own actions. I have given you advice based on a tried and true method (which my children also used), how you apply it is up to you.

This method has been used by people who have the usual amount of spots - if you have serious acne, then you need antibiotics and should see a doctor. As for scaring, if you're worried about that, neither I or my children had any as a result of using this method, but I can't guarantee that you won't have any. You shouldn't though, as you're only piercing the top layers of skin and going no deeper.