Zits- to pop or not to pop?

I've been a lifelong anti zit-popper, lol. I would rather deal with the whitehead, red blotch, or blackhead until it's worked itself out of my skin. I want to avoid any scars possible. There was an ugly whitehead on my chin this morning and it was actually painful so I popped it. Eeeek! Now it's red but at least I was able to cover it with makeup. What do you do- pop or not?

I usually pop.  My reasoning is that my skin is full of puss that isn't supposed to be there...so I get rid of it.  Then I clean the area with hydrogen peroxide and soap.  So far, I haven't gotten any scar tissue from it.

i pop everything. i haven't got any scars, either.

It's funny. Two replies so far and both are from men! My husband is a zit popper too. I wonder if it's a gender thing? :P

I was told that it is OK to squeeze the white pus out of a spot but stop before you get any clear or red pus out.  I don't know if that's actually true but it has helped me.  I get the occasional whitehead still and this seems to get rid of them quicker.

Make sure you have clean hands before doing this.

pop because i think a big white nasty zit on my face is nasty.. and i hate seeing it on other people too and just want to scream to them "ewww pop it!" lol..

no scars yet

Pop that sucker.  It's an attention stealer; I can't help but stare at a whitehead on someone's face.  It's soooo distracting to me. 

I am for pop. My zits locate mainly on my nose, and it's just overly disgusting leaving them that way.

But I clean my hands or any tools I use to pop that nasty pus out before and after, and would wash my face thoroughly afterwards, then apply some anti-zit medical gel on my nose.

No scars so far.

I pop em but I feel guilty when I do =\  Probably just because my mom looks at me and goes, "STOP PICKING!"

I don't really know what scarring from that would look like but I do have some larger pores from doin that in some spots. 

maybe this is weird, but popping whiteheads is like my freaking crack.

i can't help it, i just have to pop it or i will keep thinking about it and wanting to pop it like crazy. and when i do, i usually keep trying to pop it some more until it feels flat and becomes a scab. i try to tell myself to stop but frankly i just can't. it's so weird ]:

i tend to leave the red ones alone, though. they don't bother me much.

i cover everything up with foundation anyway :x

i can't seem to get rid of whiteheads unless i pop them.  anything red though, heals itself so i leave it alone. i don't use heavy foundation, but if i popped a zit, i'll try to avoid putting any thing on my face but clearosil...i'm afraid of contaminating it.

luckily i haven't had any major breakouts in a long time.

The main problem with this habit is that it leaves a small bruise under the skin.  The redness from that takes a while to fade.  It's been a long time since I've had bad skin, but I do remember.  The new acne products on the market now are very effective, I understand.

You can try bathing them with hot water (not too hot) to open and drain them.  It's a lot more gentle than squeezing.  Don't forget to use an antiseptic to avoid infection!

i pop it, but never before i go out somewhere lol. usually i'll pop it before i take a shower, so if there is any bleeding it'll stop by the time i get out. i haven't really gotten any scars, and once i get rid of the whitehead part it's SO MUCH easier to cover with make up.

fortunately the acne medication stuff i've been using is like heaven in a bottle.

and, maybe this is a freaky habit, but i've used needles to pop my zits before. i take a new needle out of the sewing kit, rub some sanitizer on it (usually like purell or something), and then poke a little hole in the white part, and let the puss drain out. it usually works better than popping for me. don't know if it's "bad" for me or not, but it hasn't ruined my skin yet!

I don't know what it is but I almost enjoy popping my zits, lol.  I leave the red ones alone unless they hurt so bad that I have to dig them out.  I am yet to have any scarring and I've been picking at my zits and blackheads since I was 12.  I scrub my face with this strong scrub (none of that stupid "gentle" crap, why bother, I want to tear my face up so I can get to new and clean skin) and I still get a zit or two on a occation (especially on days that I am working and it's really freakin' hot).  Just pop them, you most likely won't get scars unless you rip a big chunk of skin off.  lol

'I'm a popper you're a popper, wouldn't you like to be a popper too!'

Seriously, only in case of dire emergency!  That giant one right in between your eyes(the 3rd eye) or the one smack dab on your chin when the rest of your face is blemish free.

I have to pop them. I don't get them often but when I do, I sit in front of the mirror and squeeze every little bit out hahaha and at night after I wash my face, I sqeeze my blackheads

ijiwarushizuka- I enjoy it too! I know thats so weird... and even stranger, I pop and pick my boyfriends face! hahaha so so so so weird

I get the large, painful zits that look like bad bug bites until they form the whitehead.  My Mom always told me not to pop them because of scarring, but I eventually did anyway.  The redness and swelling went down faster and as long as you just get rid of the whitehead it doesn't scar. 

I'm a popper. I will pop it if I see it, and if you let me get close enough to pop it. I only pop the people I know-know.. But if you ask me too, and it's bugging you..... I will pop that sucker. No scars yet. I have steps and rules. . 1. You must pop them at home, and no where else. People pop them anywhere.. EEW! 2. Every tool must be clean.. Needle or what ever you use.. Clean the tools as if you was a doctor.. That's when scars come in.. Poppin them with un clean hands, and picking at them with objects that are not clean.. If you pop them, and clean them right away they will heal a lot better, and you squeeze  them until they run clear or run with a little bleeding. That mean it's all clear..

I pop them. I can't stand doing it cause it grosses me out but it grosses me out even more having it on my face!!

I used to pop them, but then my esthetician told me that picking at your skin can actually damage the layers way underneath, and the scarring can show up 5-10 years later, yikes! Or maybe she was just trying to get me to leave my skin alone, haha. Either way it worked! 

POPOPOPOPOP. Thats what I do. Or else they take forever to go away.