From your name I will safely assume you have a red beard . The thing is red facial hair is very coarse, just ask your barber. When you ATG you get the super smooth feeling because you are slicing off the whisker below the skin, What happens is the Blade pulls the hair and when it springs back it is below the surface of the skin. The hair , which is curly , grows back into the skin thus causing an infection. Trust me, even though anyone can say that over the net . I have red facial hair and I have the same issue. African American men also have an issue with this because they have very curly facial hair as well. Try doing WTG and XTG, or even WTG.
The N/S & S/N technique would still give me some ATG in some spots but I will try to limit it to those anyways to get my neck accustomed to it. And cold water shaves are not for me, blade skip city in my experience.
X2 I tried some of that Burt's Bee stuff. It really irritated my skin on my face, and it bit me a new %&$* Also it was like it was feeding my psoriasis. Since I started using Shaving Soaps the psoriasis has virtually gone away. Also have you tried any Pre-Shave oil. It has also helped me.
Nivea Sensitive Balm causes heat and itching to my neck and jaw. If I use anything with alcohol after the Nivea I break out in hives. Lose the Nivea first.
