Painful legs after shaving - someone please help!!!

[ReapWhatYouSew]

The older I get, the more trouble I seem to be having with hair removal and this year it has been unbearable. I never had this problem in my 20s so can someone please tell me where I'm going wrong.

After shaving my legs - in a hot shower with a good razor and aloe vera shaving gel - the next 48 hours are nothing short of agony. They are very itchy and feel like they're burning, even find myself waking up at night scratching. I am currently just not shaving but not ideal for swimming of night out. Has this happened to anyone else? I feel like I'm suddenly allergic to it. Any solutions?? Any help would be gratefully appreciated.

And I don't have ingrown hairs either. I forgot to mention that in my OP.

Is the shower too hot? Try lukewarm instead. Allergic to aloe Vera? Moisturise afterwards? Or oil them?

OH is allergic to the aloe vera 'flavoured' Vaseline deodorant so it might be the aloe vera.

I use hair conditioner to shave mine, make sure the razor blades are changed regularly too, we tend to press too hard when they're blunt.

Also, if the shower water washes any of the gel off you'd be shaving dry and that would really hurt

I would say its the shave gel. Try shave oil and moisture after.

Are you moisturising thoroughly after shaving?

Moisturise even.

I have problems with my legs too, sometimes I wonder if it's the razor!! I can't do my legs in the shower, so once a week I have a really hot bath, and after a soak I shave. I use the Gillette gel for sensitive skin, and after I use either aqueous cream or my son's eczema cream, Epiderm. Nothing else, as anything else stings/hurts like mad! Thought it was just me.......!!

Which moisturiser do you use?

Australian body care hand and body lotion is the only thing that stops me stretching my legs to bits after shaving. It's tea tree oil but stronger concentration the most stuff you can buy.

You can buy it on Amazon.

Lush do a 'body butter' called king of skin which was the only thing that stopped my legs stinging when I used to shave them. You just rub it on after shaving them rinse it (but don't wash it off properly) with warm water.
I also shaved them with lush soap 'figs and leaves'.

I get this too unless I use an electric shaver (mine is a cheap one from m&s but it's just died so I'm looking for a new one). Have seen them in superdrug,they aren't v expensive. On the odd occasion I shave using a razor I'm in agony for days!

Thanks for all your replies.

It isn't the aloe vera as I've tried other shaving foams and using hair conditioner. Also change blades really regularly too. One thing I don't do is moisturise which - judging from the advice - everyone seems to think is key. So I will give that a go.

What are thoughts on epilating or waxing? Would it be as bad? Can you get as close with am electric shaver these days? Bizarrely I don't get the mad scratching under arms or bikini line.....

It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one too!

Def moisturise afterwards! I shave mine in a hot bath, and don't bother with gel or anything but I have to always use a moisturiser afterwards. Bath def kinder than shower, plus it's an excuse to timetable in a nice weekly soak

Whatever it is, they are a bit over sensitive! You could try Aveeno to wash/ shave with and then Aveeno lotion as a moisturiser after. It takes the sting out of everything and really sorts out eczema. Might blunt the old razor a bit faster but worth it to sort things out