Not long ago I found myself growing a beard for the first time in my life - and doing so on the advice of my doctor who asked me to stop shaving while an eczema like inflammation was being treated. This was a novelty. Not only have I never grown a beard before, but neither did my father or any of my male relatives, so I had no fund of beard-growing lore to fall back on. I have spent the last couple of weeks finding out the hard way by trial and error what is involved, and would appreciate any other tips people could pass on.

Growing a beard seems to be quite a painful process at first. You suffer from intense itching which can apparently last from 10 days up until a full month or so. This happens because shaving stubble has quite sharp chisel-like ends which will abrade the the skin as it begins to grow out. It is also very stiff, and as it begins to grow, those sharp ends can curl around and puncture the outer skin and lead to the problem of ingrowing hair. This itching tends to be even more painful if you already have inflamed or sensitive skin.

I have read about something called a ’90 Day Rule’ which advises people not to trim and shape a new beard for at least the first three months. This is so you can establish the natural line and density of the hair.

Quite a few sources recommend using Beard Oil to soften the growing beard and ease the initial itching, but the problem I found is that most of the commercially available ones which are based on jojoba nut oil contain fragrances and other additives which can cause strong allergic reactions in sensitive skin. Pure olive oil is a little too viscous and tends to clog the skin pores - unadulterated sunflower oil is said to be a lighter and better alternative but should be used in very small amounts (3 drops or so) and warmed in the hands first.

It seems that I need to avoid all forms of skin washes or creams that contain artificial fragrances or ethyl-alcohol to avoid irritating the skin, and rely instead on neutral wet-wipe cleansing tissues of the type women use for cleaning off makeup, and to use only pure vegetable soap when washing the face  -  (Some sources recommend pure Aloe Vera liquid soap).

Would stubble shaving with an electric shaver that does that be an alternative? You can vary the length setting. I'm thinking it gets you away from directly scraping your face. I had a similar problem and full beards are hard work and annoying for me. I keep mine about 2mm. Any longer and my face feels prickly but I have very stiff face hair.

Edited 7 hours ago7 hr by StringJunky

1 hour ago, toucana said:

(Some sources recommend pure Aloe Vera liquid soap).

This works pretty well for me:

1 hour ago, toucana said:

Growing a beard seems to be quite a painful process at first. You suffer from intense itching which can apparently last from 10 days up until a full month or so.

I've had multiple beards (though tidy short stubble has been my dominant mode) since age 17. They biggest help imo is a gadget called a beard scrubber which you gently massage your face with 2-3 x/wk. Doesn't need special soaps or other potential irritants.

Living a large fraction of my life on a cold windy semiarid steppe or montane region, beards are also a good seasonal adaptation. Winter beards have far less prickle factor.

2 hours ago, toucana said:

I have spent the last couple of weeks finding out the hard way by trial and error what is involved, and would appreciate any other tips people could pass on.

After many years of working in the chemical industry, being part of the 'fire brigade' and the possibility of having to wear respirators or supplied air, I finally have the opportunity to grow a 'goatee' now that I've retired.
I trim it every other day, as I like a 'neat' appearance ( unlike Clint ), unfortunately there is a large amount of gray in it, and with my poor eyesight, trimming is quite a chore.
Its been two weeks now and it's growing in nicely, especially once I start adding a little color.

My advice ? Trim as often as you need, and keep skin dry/oil free to prevent ingrowing.
Tre pain/irritation will 'make a man out of you'.

I'm also thinking of shaving my head for further effect.

1 hour ago, MigL said:

After many years of working in the chemical industry, being part of the 'fire brigade' and the possibility of having to wear respirators or supplied air, I finally have the opportunity to grow a 'goatee' now that I've retired.
I trim it every other day, as I like a 'neat' appearance ( unlike Clint ), unfortunately there is a large amount of gray in it, and with my poor eyesight, trimming is quite a chore.
Its been two weeks now and it's growing in nicely, especially once I start adding a little color.

My advice ? Trim as often as you need, and keep skin dry/oil free to prevent ingrowing.
Tre pain/irritation will 'make a man out of you'.

I'm also thinking of shaving my head for further effect.

Are you "breaking bad"? 😉

Thank you for  all your various suggestions. Plenty of food for thought and further experimentation there.

Beards have an interesting social history (in Britain at least). They became fashionable in Victorian England in the wake of the Crimean War which was fought between 1853-56 - mainly because the appalling  conditions and extreme cold which gave us such novel woollen garments as the ‘Cardigan’ and the  ‘Balaclava’ also led to an official relaxation of military field regulations that normally forbade soldiers from growing beards.

In the wake of the Crimean War, so many military veterans returned home sporting long beards, that beards now became a symbol of military valour, and many patriotic civilians and public figures such as Charles Darwin took to wearing the longest beards they could possibly grow. It took another generation, and the passing of the Victorian era, for such long beards to be seen as an old-fashioned affectation.