Infection - I'm stupid...

[Dwyn]

I cut myself a bit on my arm, more absently than anything. It wasn't deep enough to bleed, but I'm pretty sure it's infected. :/

It's red around the edges and swollen. I don't THINK there's any pus, or fluid leaking out of it. Sometimes it has a yellowish scab, and under water it looks like it has a white-ish scab, but mostly it looks kinda open and un-scabbed.

I've been soaking it in warm soapy water twice a day and putting neosporin and band-aids on it. The issue is, I can't go to the doctor because I can't tell my mom. She would DIE if she knew her daughter self-harmed. I was going to tell her about it today, when she started talking about one of my friends whom she knew self-harmed, and how any good mother would disown their child and send them to a mental institution if they did!

I really don't know what to do. Is there anything else I should be doing? What I'm doing seems to have made it slightly less red, but it's pretty much been this way for the whole three or four days I've had it...

[evfreak42]

Hey Dwyn.

First of all...don't soak it in soapy water!!! That could be irritating it more! You should use clear, running water to wash your wounds, and make sure they are cleanly dressed. Neosporin and a band aid is fine, especially if it is not too deep. Make sure it also has a little bit of time to get some air, as well.

Vitamin C and Zinc are great for helping the body fight infections and heal. So, if you can, take some vitamins and/or make sure you're getting good nutrition!

Hope it heals up alright! PM me if you need to talk!

-Alicia :)

[Dwyn]

Hey, thanks for replying!!

I think soaking it did make it worse! But thanks so much for your advice--I'll be sure to get some vitamin C and keep neosporin with me. :)

Thanks! :)

[Bitter_Angel]

As above is correct. :)

[Dwyn]

Okay, thanks so much!

Does anyone know how long I should air it out for, such as overnight? Or should I just let it air for around an hour every day and keep it bandaged all the other times?

[evfreak42]

I would say that probably just taking the bandage off while showering/washing and allowing it to air dry should be sufficient. I wouldn't allow it to come in contact with anything that isn't sanitary/sterilized until it forms a solid scab. Once it scabs and is no longer red, you can stop bandaging/treating it unless the scab gets reopened. If it is kept bandaged with ointment, however, it will likely form more of a soft scab. In that case, as long as it is not red or showing any signs of infection, it should be good to leave the bandage off. Just be careful of it so it doesn't get knocked off.