How To Treat Your Hickeys
There are certainly a few reasons you could be concerned about people seeing your hickeys. When it is on your neck, it may be noticeable to your co-workers. This can be embarrassing, especially if you work in a conservative environment. If people notice the hickeys in your neck, they may jump to conclusions in what caused it. They might assume you had a one-night stand or a very passionate relationship.
Hickey are the most frequent hickeys and are often the effect of a tight embrace when two bodies are pressed facing each other. To get these hickeys, your partner must be holding you very tightly and close when kissing you.
When you have these hickeys, it could signify your partner is passionate and intense but additionally that they may be only a little aggressive or rough in their approach. Bruise hickeys can be an indication that your partner is new to relationships or inexperienced in love.
How fast do hickeys go away?
Everyone's healing time varies, but dermatologist Mona Gohara, MD, associate clinical professor at Yale, says you can expect your hickey to stay for one or more week. And while there's nothing you certainly can do to eliminate a hickey overnight (sorry, just being real with you—bruises can take a minute to go away), there are a few things you certainly can do to help increase the procedure a bit. Here's everything you should try:
Apply a cold compress or spoon to your hickey ASAP
Alright, when you do anything, grab a clear spoon and throw it in your freezer for eight to ten minutes. Then, while your hickey is ideally relatively fresh, firmly press the cold spoon on the top of affected area. It may feel kinda uncomfy, but even derms agree that you need to trust the process. “The cold may help minimize the blood seeping out from the vessels into your skin,” says dermatologist Doris Day, MD, adding that it is in addition crucial to repeat this once or twice through the day to help keep swelling down.
Treat your hickey with Visine
Yes, Visine, as in a person's eye drops. Dr. Gohara says applying a pat to your bruise a few times a day may help constrict your blood vessels and make your hickey less obvious. Just ensure you aren't utilizing it on any open wounds or cuts—only straight-up bruises—in order to avoid any possible irritation.
Skip the fundamental oils
Speaking of irritation, it's probably best to prevent essential oils (like peppermint) as it pertains treating a hickey. Dr. Gohara says they aren't really your best choice for getting rid of hickeys—particularly when you've got sensitive skin. "Essential oils are prone to cause dermatitis," she says. "They could increase blood flow, but who wants a hickey and a huge rash too?" There is an exception though, which brings me to...
Try an arnica cream in your hickey
"Arnica is a flowering herb that's been useful for bruising for tens of thousands of years," says Dr. Gohara. The healing powers of arnica are chalked up to at least one of its primary elements, helenalin, which Dr. Gohara says can be an anti-inflammatory that helps calm your body's natural swelling response. Try treating your hickey with a topical arnica cream once per day before swelling and bruising subsides.
Conceal your hickey with makeup
I am aware this isn't everything you actually want to hear, but when in doubt, the simplest (and fastest) way to cover up a hickey has been your favorite concealer or foundation. Blend your go-to formula on clean, dry skin with a damp makeup sponge and lock it all in with an instant dust of setting powder. Desire a rec? I'm a lover of Dermablend Cover Care Full Coverage Concealer (pictured above) and Maybelline New York Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circle Treatment Concealer.