You wake up one morning and before you even look in the mirror, you can feel it. Lurking deep under your skin, foreboding and slightly tender: a cystic pimple.
But how can you flatten it out before it grows even bigger? Whether you have a special event coming up, or just don’t want to deal with a hard painful lump under your skin, there are ways to shrink a cystic pimple if you start early.
How to Get Rid of a Cystic Pimple
Chronic cystic acne will need to be treated medically by a dermatologist to prevent acne scarring. But if you occasionally get a deep cystic pimple, also known as a blind pimple, in spite of a regular acne treatment in your routine, there are a few options to help quickly flatten a cyst. The most important thing to do is keep your fingers away and do not try to pop a cystic pimple!
Keep in mind that outside of a cortisone injection in a dermatologists office, nothing will take a cyst quickly down to zero. However, taking action early to bring down the inflammation, you can make a cystic pimple less noticeable and shorten its lifespan on your face.
Pimple Patches with Microneedles
A hydrocolloid pimple patch is our favorite spot treatment, but for cystic pimples under the surface with no open head, the standard patches won’t do much besides keeping your fingers off of it.
Fortunately, a new generation of pimple patches with tiny dissolving microneedles that you press into your cyst can deliver treatment such as salicylic acid to the source of the problem under the surface of your skin. Using a microneedle or microdart pimple patch as soon as you feel that familiar deep soreness developing is what we find to be the most effective way of treating a deep cystic pimple. Keep some always on hand so you can use one right away and keep applying them every night until your cyst has flattened.
Benzoyl Peroxide
The inflammation of a cystic pimple comes from your own body’s reaction to the acne-causing bacteria that have grown out of control under your skin. Spot treatments with benzoyl peroxide can target the bacteria and bring down inflammation in the area.
Look for treatments that contain micronized benzoyl peroxide for better penetration into your pores or use a benzoyl peroxide face wash, but leave it on your skin for a few minutes before rinsing off. Benzoyl peroxide does have a bleaching effect so be careful not to touch fabrics while using it.
La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo Spot Treatment with 5.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide and LHA
Cold Therapy
Icing is a common way to bring down inflammation for many injuries, and a cystic pimple will also benefit from this technique. While icing will not treat acne or kill off the bacteria in a deep pimple, it can bring down the redness and swelling of the inflammation and also help with any pain. Use a cold pack or wrap ice in a clean towel and apply it to your pimple for a few minutes at a time with breaks in between. To avoid damaging your skin, do not apply ice directly to your face or do cold treatment for longer periods.
Hydrocortisone
To temporarily bring down the redness of a cystic pimple you can also try applying a layer of hydrocortisone cream to it. Hydrocortisone is a steroid cream that is available over the counter in 1% strength and can be helpful to reduce inflammation. Overuse of hydrocortisone can lead to skin thinning and perioral dermatitis, so apply hydrocortisone just as a spot treatment on a cyst and be careful to only use it for a couple of days.
Vanicream 1% Hydrocortisone Anti-Itch Cream Maximum OTC-Strength Formula for Sensitive Skin
Green Tea Bags
If you are a tea drinker and have green tea bags at home, you can enjoy a mug of tea while giving your cystic pimple a little spa day. A black tea bag will also help reduce redness and swelling if that’s what you already have on hand. Green tea contains polyphenols that have anti-inflammatory properties. Brew your green tea, then remove the tea bag and let it cool down before holding it up to your pimple. You can also try alternating your tea bag compress with cold therapy to bring down inflammation quickly.
Dermatologist Treatment
If you have an important event coming up and can’t risk having a cystic pimple, the fastest treatment is to see a dermatologist for a cortisone shot. By injecting diluted kenalog directly into the cyst, you should see it flatten in 48 hours. However, be aware that a risk of the cortisone shot is atrophy which can leave an indent where your pimple was. While a rare side effect, you should save a cortisone shot for special occasions or for particularly large cysts that are at risk for scarring rather than as a regular treatment.
