If you've ever popped a pesky pimple, you know that the instant gratification isn't always worth the redness and swelling that follows. Still, resisting the urge to nix an unsightly blemish can take a lot of self control.
As someone who's been struggling with unexpected breakouts lately, Drew Barrymore knows this internal battle all too well. She just told fans about a way to banish blemishes while avoiding some of those inconvenient side effects.
Over the past few days, the actress and makeup entrepreneur behind Flower Beauty has been sharing some of her beauty tips on Instagram as part of her annual "#BeautyJunkieWeek." Over the weekend, she turned her attention to skin care.
"I don't know why — whoever is in charge of feminine situations up above — but I can't stop breaking out lately. I don't know what it is. I don't know if it's hormonal, I don't know if it's weather, I don't know if it's diet," the actress said in a video posted to her Instagram page.
Inexplicable breakouts can be a total pain, but Barrymore feels a little bit better knowing she's got a creative skin care trick up her sleeve.
"So, something I want to share with you guys that I totally learned last night: I have always heard about ice, ice, ice. So I got this huge zit, thank you, and then popped it — best ever — and then I put ice on it," she said. "And this morning, it's better."
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Adding a bit of ice didn't make the zit magically disappear, of course. According to the actress, it's still "bright red and hideous and, like, scabbed over and not going to be easy to cover." But the ice did reduce the dreaded swelling that comes after popping a pimple.
"I mean, this should have lasted another day, but by tomorrow, it's going to be gone. Where, in reality, I would have woke up, there probably would have been more infection and then I would have, like, dealt with that all day, and then I'd still be, like, kind of at square one. But tomorrow the scab's gonna come off. It's going to be flat," she said.
Barrymore also has a plan to combat that annoying post-popping redness: "That Visine trick works, too," she said, referring to the eye drop brand. "Put the Visine on the redness, and I swear to God, it really lightens it up."
Dr. Alan Parks, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of DermWarehouse, told TODAY Style he doesn't recommend popping your own pimples because it can lead to scars. But he did admit that Barrymore's method had some merit to it. "Ice will help with swelling, but not much with discoloration," he said.
As for Barrymore's Visine trick? Well, Parks suggests using it sparingly.
"Visine is a vasoconstrictor, which reduces redness, however, putting it on injured or inflamed skin could lead to possible allergic or irritation reactions," he said.
It can be tempting to take acne into your own hands but you should consult the pros when possible, Parks said: "The best course of action is to see a dermatologist. You can have these lesions injected with some cortisone medicine."
Still, it's nice to know that ice is a great DIY option to help combat swelling!