What to Do for Painful Sunburn/blister?

Updated on July 13, 2012
D.B. asks from Grand Prairie, TX
17 answers

My husband has a bad sunburn on his upper back. There is (what he is calling) an open blister that happened today (I think it's beginning of normal peeling-but he thinks it is not normal peeling-but something else. He has small brown spots on sunburned area skin also. He probably was in sun a good hour before he put sunblock on (he has learned his lesson since then!). Stuff he has tried: aloe vera, cocoa butter, ibuprofen, cold pack, antibiotic ointment. Anything else he can do?

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J.O.

answers from Boise on

Vinegar is great. Cooled tea bags....I've used the tea itself a few times. Solarcaine with Aloe is nice also, but the other options are better.

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B..

answers from Dallas on

Calendula. It's AMAZING. If you have a Sprouts, Whole Foods, or vitamin store...go find some calendula cream.

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X.O.

answers from Chicago on

I have had good results by using aloe vera that has Lidocaine in it. VERY soothing!

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D.B.

answers from Chicago on

Aloe for sure. Make sure you get the gel with the most aloe. Another great option is to buy an aloe plant. You can get it at any nursery. If you crack the leaves, the aloe comes out. Its pure so you don't need to use as much. It heals your skin as well as takes the sting out.

Another person said Noxema. I haven't thought about that in years. I remember using that on my sunburnes as a teenager. It is so cool and soothing. I don't remember how well it worked, just how cool it made my skin.

2 moms found this helpful

S.T.

answers from Washington DC on

probably too late to help in this situation, but keep an aloe plant in the house. i just pare back the rind-y part and rub the gooey innards all over the sunburn. it feels and smells funny, but dear gods above, how it works!
my son recently burned his finger pretty badly while cooking. i peeled a piece of aloe, put it on the burn with a bandaid to hold it on, and it was almost healed the next day.
khairete
S.

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A.L.

answers from Las Vegas on

Has he tried the PURE aloe vera? I know that there are many lotions containing it, but it's the pure stuff that you want.... I LOVE it.. Also, Bactine... love love love it for sunburn and other skin abrasions.. to me, it's one of the few meds I always have around the house...

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B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

Ocean Potion with Aloe Vera / Lidocaine / Tea Tree Extract can take the pain out pretty good and is very cooling.
An aspirin helps me better than ibuprofen, but that might just be me.
Were the brown spots on his back before he burned?
He might want a dermatologist take a look at them.
It would be a relief to know they are not melanoma, but if they are, catching it early makes it very curable.
He's got at least a first degree and possibly a second degree burn (it's an injury) - his skin has to repair/heal itself.
Drinking plenty of water and taking some vitamin E might help him and he should keep it out of the sun till it's healed - it would only damage it more.
Besides sunblock, a tee shirt or rash guard helps enormously to keep from getting burned.

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W.H.

answers from Sacramento on

noxema. it feels sssooooo good on a sunburn! put it in the fridge so it's nice and cool.

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A.F.

answers from Fargo on

Lavender essential oil (must be essential oil, not fragrance oil), 10-15 drops in a spray bottle with water and mist on the skin.

Raw coconut oil. This isn't like other oils and will not hold the heat in.

White vinegar- you can also use in a spray bottle to use on large areas of affected skin.

Raw aloe. Aloe loses its healing properties after 24 hours of being cut from the plant so you will need fresh aloe.

So sorry that your husband is so uncomfortable! I hope he feels better soon!

1 mom found this helpful

D.F.

answers from San Antonio on

You got some good suggestions already. I just recently sunburned my legs. Really bad, it hurt to walk to wear jeans to sleep on. I went on-line and looked up home remedies. I did the vinegar, aloe vera, and coconut oil. The vinegar took the pain away. I used the coconut oil twice a day. Here I am exactly one week later and my legs have started to peel but not that bad.
Also I love this website for home remedies.
www.earthclinic.com
Check it out! I like it because it gives feed back from users like you and i that tell if the rememdy worked for them or not.
Good luck!!
D.

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M.C.

answers from Washington DC on

we do the cooled tea bags. works wonders. there are some after burn gels with tea extract in them that work well also.

C.C.

answers from San Francisco on

Aloe with lidocaine in it. You can get it at Target, or probably any drugstore. We have also had success with baking soda in lukewarm bath water.

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C.K.

answers from Miami on

Ice Block is the best thing ever for any kind of burn. It works on sun burns and other kinds of burns. In my opinion it beats the pants off of aloe vera (which for years was my go to burn remedy). While the aloe soothes, it stinks. The Ice Block, soothes, doesn't stink and actually makes my skin heal faster. I keep it in the kitchen because sometimes I am a little clumsy taking things out of the oven and will burn the top of my hand on the racks. I'd get him some and he should feel better right away,
http://www.allergystore.com/iceblock-sunburn-relief-gel.htm

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S.H.

answers from Dallas on

White vinegar. I soak paper towels and then lay it on the burned area.

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T.D.

answers from Dallas on

Diaper cream will take the sting out also vinegar

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S.E.

answers from New York on

aloe gel is great but my fiance always says it makes him sticky.. i keep it in the fridge so its cold i think it works but he prefers solarcane its got somthing in it that kind of numbs the skin a little

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