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Even though the sun is blazing, there is nothing better than hitting the outdoors. But if you're planning to expose your bare skin to the sun, be sure to protect yourself all over with sunscreen. That includes your lips. Forgetting to apply lip balm with a significant amount of SPF can result in sun blisters after excessive exposure. If you happen to get burned on your lips, generally the blister will heal on its own, but these tips will help ease the healing process.
- Let it be: As we said earlier, small, unbroken lip blisters will usually heal on their own over time. To speed up the process, limit your exposure to the sun. Also, try to avoid contact with the blister and keep the area dry. Unless the blister is extremely huge, do not pop it. An open blister could fester and become infected, requiring extra treatment and a longer healing time.
- Keep it clean: Since the burn is on the lips, bandaging could present a challenge. This means that keeping the blister clean is important. Antiseptic wipes can be used, but be sure to watch the ingredients in the wipes. Some antiseptic ingredients can be harmful if swallowed and can't be used on the mouth. To avoid further irritation to the burn, avoid petroleum-based products and lotions that contain benzocaine or lidocaine.
- Ease the pain: Nearly all burns will cause painful swelling of the skin. To reduce this and ease some of the discomfort, take aspirin or ibuprofen. Also, apply cooling gels, corticosteroids or antihistamines to ease the pain and moisturize the skin. Aloe can also be used to relieve the pain on sunburned lips. Avoid moisturizers with alcohol to prevent further irritations.
- Apply antibiotic: To make your healing process a lot easier, use an antibiotic cream like. polumixin or bacitracin. Before applying, clean the blister and dry it completely. These creams or ointments are used to prevent infection in the wound. Avoid antibiotic creams with alcohol or iodine which will delay healing.
- Drain it: If the sun blister on your lip is massive, there is a chance that it will pop on its own. If it doesn't, you may choose to drain it. To drain a large blister, sterilize a needle with alcohol. Then, gently stick the blister, creating a small hole. After draining the blister, clean the area and pat it dry. It is important to keep the flap of skin covering the blister intact to protect the new skin growing underneath.
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