Ingrown Curls
Alaric Montoya

Columnist · Editorial staff

Alaric Montoya

Shapes the publication's long-form features on ingrown hair in textured and curly hair and the people making those decisions.

10 stories by Alaric Montoya

A clinician examining the side of an adult patient's neck and jawline under a bright examination lamp in a consulting room.Dispatch

Shaving Waivers and Grooming Policies: What the Documentation Actually Has to Contain

A shaving accommodation is usually refused or time limited not because the condition was doubted but because the request contained a diagnosis and nothing else. What is missing is a record only the person shaving can produce.

July 26, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

Close-up of a cluster of small inflamed follicle bumps along the neck of a Black man in soft clinical daylightDispatch

Folliculitis or an ingrown hair? Telling infection from a trapped hair on textured skin

A crop of itchy, pus-topped spots is a different problem from a single trapped hair, and on textured skin the treatments diverge.

July 15, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

Folded white washcloths beside a steaming bowl of warm water on a marble counterDispatch

When an ingrown hair becomes a cyst: deep bumps on textured skin

Some ingrowns burrow deep and form a tender, fluid-filled lump that no tweezer can reach. Knowing the difference protects textured skin from the scar that digging leaves behind.

July 8, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

The nape of a Black man with a short coily haircut, seen from behind in soft clinical daylightDispatch

Acne keloidalis nuchae or ordinary ingrowns? Reading the bumps on the back of the neck

Firm bumps along the nape that scar are a different condition, and treating them like razor bumps makes them worse.

July 3, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

A gloved clinician performing a hair reduction treatment on the jawline of a Black man with textured facial hairDispatch

Electrolysis or laser for ingrown hairs on deeper skin tones

Both reduce the hair driving ingrowns. They suit different hair colors and budgets.

July 1, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

An amber dropper bottle of exfoliating serum beside a folded towel and a single-blade razorDispatch

Do exfoliating acids help razor bumps? Glycolic and salicylic on textured skin

Chemical exfoliants can keep follicles clear, but the choice and frequency matter.

June 20, 2026 · 5 min · Alaric Montoya

Soft daylight on a deep-toned forearm with smooth, calm skinDispatch

Caring for the bikini area and body on textured skin

Body ingrowns on coily hair follow the same logic as the face.

April 5, 2026 · 5 min · Alaric Montoya

Close-up of dark post-inflammatory marks along a deep-toned jawlineDispatch

Managing the dark marks razor bumps leave on textured skin

In deeper skin tones, the discoloration is often the lasting complaint.

February 28, 2026 · 5 min · Alaric Montoya

Close-up of razor bumps along the neck and jaw on deep-toned skinDispatch

Pseudofolliculitis barbae in textured hair

A common, scarring condition that deserves real medical treatment.

January 1, 2026 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

A Black man shaving his jawline with a single-blade razor and shaving gelDispatch

How to shave textured hair without razor bumps

Technique tailored to coily hair makes a real difference.

December 4, 2025 · 6 min · Alaric Montoya

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