Logic has failed me again

I have been wetshaving with a DE razor for about two weeks now. Logically, nothing that I have changed in my shave routine should have caused my beard to grow thicker or faster.

When I was a Mach 3 & goop user I only saw a slight amount of stubble after two days - I could easily go three days without shaving. Now I see moderate stubble about 12 to 16 hours after a shave. Also, my stubble has become a lot more course. Evern worse (or better?), I looked in the mirror (4pm) and noticed stubble starting to appear - I was very BBS this morning (8am)!!! What is going on?? Is it because I am "exfoliating" everyday by scraping my face with a sharp hunk of metal? Is it because I am washing my face more? Using shave soap? Does Aqua Velva make hair grow faster? I am confused. LOGICALLY THIS SHOULDN'T HAPPEN!!!!!!

Don't worry - logic fails us all from time to time. There are a number of possible reasons, but I think that shaving more often encourages faster hair growth. Or you're treating your face better and the hair is growing more freely. I was close to BBS this morning and now I've got some serious stubble.

It might be that because your no longer pulling the hairs with the first blade, pulling them out a little bit more with the 2nd blade and finally whacking it off and having it pop back down below the skin layer using the Mach III.

Your also not scraping your skin off any more using a DE, (at least the goal to aim for), and just cutting the hairs off at the skin line. So yeah, you may have a beard growing back some stubble sooner, but, you no longer chance in-grown hairs and trading razor burn for having to shave more often seems like more than an even trade.

Not so strange. I noticed many times that when I shave every day, beard grows faster and thicker. When I shave every , say, 3 days, everything slows down, no matter what razor/technique I resort to. Even with the electric razor. That's not a problem, it's only the way someone reacts to regular shaving. BTW, when I shave regularly, my skin is way better and perfect. When I shave every second or third day, I am always fighting ingrown hairs and bad irritation on the neck. Wetshaving solved all my problems, I miss only a day 24:30 hours long...

Thomas said:

Don't worry - logic fails us all from time to time. There are a number of possible reasons, but I think that shaving more often encourages faster hair growth.
SNIP

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I can only assume that it's time to start shaving my head five times a day.

Sign Me "Q Ball"

Shaving more often causes your hair to grow back more quickly. The more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.

Healthier kids, animals, cells, skin, beard grows and regenerates faster and better. Good logic, isn't it?

Shaving has no effect on the quickness or thickness of hair re-growth. A quick Google search will confirm this fact.

Straight Arrow said:

Shaving has no effect on the quickness or thickness of hair re-growth. A quick Google search will confirm this fact.

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I agree entirely but there is one thing that gets me with regard to thickness.

When I started shaving there was little more than a bit of bum fluff on my face. It didn't take long to turn into proper stubble. If I had not started shaving would I just have a long soft fluffy beard?

I know a couple of guys that don't shave for religious reasons and their somewhat ammusing attempt at a beard is very thin and soft. I reckon if they started shaving it would soon become thicker and wirier.

So,

Shaving has not impact on the speed hair grows but (at least in the beginning) does cause hair to grow back thicker.

Puzzled - I am

Cheers

Mat

PZBarber said:

I agree entirely but there is one thing that gets me with regard to thickness.

When I started shaving there was little more than a bit of bum fluff on my face. It didn't take long to turn into proper stubble. If I had not started shaving would I just have a long soft fluffy beard?

I know a couple of guys that don't shave for religious reasons and their somewhat ammusing attempt at a beard is very thin and soft. I reckon if they started shaving it would soon become thicker and wirier.

So,

Shaving has not impact on the speed hair grows but (at least in the beginning) does cause hair to grow back thicker.

Puzzled - I am

Cheers

Mat

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I think this has more to do with age than the actual process of shaving. I.e. if you never shaved from the moment you first started getting facial hair to when you were 30, you would have a really long beard that would get gradually thicker as it got nearer your face. That's my logic anyway

Hi;

If shaving causes hair to grow back thicker and more dense, then I will start shaving my bald spot.

BobS

i realized the same thing, but i think it is just the method that makes a particular type of hair growth stand out more than another.

-dp

and I also agree with the exfoliation claim...your skin and pores are healthier which could have some effect. I also agree with the statement that the DE doesn't pull the hair out before cutting it, so while a DE shave will be as smooth as a mach 3 at first, the cut hairs are still closer to the surface and thus emerge sooner following a DE shave than a mach 3 shave. This is great for me because I love to have a face that NEEDS a shave when I shave, and I (usually) want to shave every day.

I noticed the same thing when I started shaving with a DE and the only conclusion that I can come to is that I am playing much closer attention to my face and the closeness of my shave.

I have noticed that the hair grows back move evenly for me not faster though. This is especially true since I started with straights. My BBS last well into the night and there is no sign of stubble until next morning

I have always believed what I read that shaving does not alter speed of hair growth. Recently, however, I shaved off my goatee that I have had since I was in my teens.

I hated my new look so I immediately started growing it back. The only problem is that the hair on my chin is now growing at a MUCH SLOWER rate than the rest of my hair on my face that I usually shave. I am now convinced that shaving increases the speed of hair growth and changes its texture.

That's not going to stop me shaving though and if my DE means my beard grows faster, I think that it is a fair trade-off for all its benefits over the Mach 3.