I have a confession: I have never shaved my body hair before. I’ve mostly waxed and used a depilatory creams for emergencies. The women in my life (mom, cousins, friends) don’t really shave and I’ve never really considered it an option.
But then I attended an eye-opening session on shaving with actor Kriti Sanon, dermatologist Dr Rashmi Shetty and makeup and hair expert Namrata Soni last week. During their candid discussion, I learnt that Kriti and Namrata have been shaving for years and swear by the technique. Both these women knew a lot about shaving and shared their personal experiences with hair removal, especially shaving.
9 things about shaving I learnt from the experts
1) All three experts said that shaving is completely safe.
2) Namrata and Dr Shetty mentioned that dermatologists advise patients to shave instead of wax for patients afflicted with certain skin conditions or undergoing certain treatments.
3) Shaving does NOT make hair grow back thicker or darker.
4) Shaving is less painful than waxing, if you’re careful.
5) Shaving is super quick- you can do it in the shower or just before a party.
6) As long you calm your skin post-shaving (with calamine, aloe vera or a soothing moisturizer), you don’t need to worry about itches or rashes.
7) Since shaving doesn’t involve chemicals like depilatory/ hair removal creams, it won’t harm your skin.
8) No ingrowths if you shave correctly! (This often happens when I wax.)
9) You can shave your bikini area if you really want to and you’re comfortable with it.
Now that I’m hearing some positive (read non-scary) things about shaving, I’ve decided to give it a shot over the next few weeks. I will be taking up the Subscribe To Smooth Challenge and try shaving! Stay tuned for my experiences with shaving.