OUCH. Hot day in the sun and you got sunburned. Now what? Sunburn is honestly the worst part of spending the day outside at the park, pool or beach. It hurts, It itches and then it peels. No fun there. Me being the Irish girl I am, burns bad, every summer. Luckily once I get a good tan I no longer burn but the beginning of the summer, those first few beach trips… I’m looking like a lobster. So over the years, just as I have perfected my packing list, I have indeed learned to care for sunburn pain quite well. This is the ULTIMATE tip to relieve sunburn pain almost instantly.
The SECRET to a pain free burn….
Baking Soda Bath
YUP, you read that right. And if you think you didn’t, read it again because baking soda is the key to instantly feeling better and soothing the tender skin. Baking soda helps level out PH levels in your skin. When those are level, your skin will reduce inflammation…causing the redness and pain to subside. Depending on the severity of the burn, it might not take away the pain completely but I promise you, it is gonna help tremendously.
This does require a bathtub, which can be kinda tricky because I have been to hotels/houses that only have showers (You can skip down to secret number two if you don’t have a tub).
Start to fill up the bathtub with cool/warm water. Not hot but also not freezing cold. You want the water to be a comfortable temperature that you will be able to sit in for about 20 minutes but not adding extra heat to your already inflamed skin. Once the tub is about half full start adding in the baking soda. I use about half a box. I stir a bit with my hand and then let the water mix it together as it continues to fill. Once the tub is full, climb in and relax. It can be a little difficult and uncomfortable to make sure every sun burned area is covered in water but just do your best.
After the 20 minutes, dry off by patting your skin. Rubbing is only going to cause you more painl. Once dry, take some aloe (whether it be fresh from the plant, lotion or gel) and apply to all burned areas. APPLY A TON. Seriously saturate yourself in it. Then apply loose clothing. All about minimizing the irritation.
I DON’T HAVE A BATHTUB SOS NOW WHAT?! TIP #2
BLACK TEA
Well my friends, this one is a little trickier but still easily accessible and helpful. Tea bags. Bring a pot of water to boil and then steep the tea. I would recommend 2-3 tea bags for one mug of water, so adjust your tea bag quantity accordingly. You’ll need more water if your whole body is burned or if you burned very very badly. (This is why the baking soda bath is the easiest method) Once the tea is steeped, let it cool. You can add ice cubes to help speed up this process. I always put it in the fridge too because I’m #impatient. Once the tea is cool enough for your skin, sponge onto the areas of need. You can apply the tea with a sponge or a washcloth.
One summer when I was in Hawaii for vacation, I burned so bad I ended up getting blisters. We had no bath tub and my mom had to go down to the hotel restaurant asking if they had tea bags for us since they had none at the shop. While I took a cool shower, my mom got a towel soaked with tea. Then I just laid on the bed, and she laid the towel on my back. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
The baking soda does work more effectively I believe, but sometimes it’s not an option. So tea it is.
I hope if you ever have to apply this, you are sunburn pain free after these tips:) If you have anymore life saving sunburn tips please comment them down below so we can all put them to use!
Love,
Em
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