How to Get a Bandage Off Easily

Bandages help keep your scuffs and scrapes clean, but they can cause some discomfort when it's time to take them off. Adhesive can grab onto the fine hairs of your skin and cause pain through as you unwrap it. Fortunately, there are tricks you can use to remove a bandage quickly and painlessly. Work slowly to ensure you don't cause further damage as you remove the bandage, though. Using the wrong materials, or a slip of the hand -- can result in a new injury -- or an irritated old one.

Things You'll Need

• Medical scissors
• Cotton swab
• Baby oil
• Soap

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Press the skin down around the cotton bandage. Slip a pair of medical scissors between the skin and the cotton. Cut away the cotton layer of the bandage to expose the adhesive strip underneath.

• 2

  Moisten a cotton swab with baby oil or another lubricant. Wipe the cotton swab around the bandage and let it seep through the holes and onto the skin.

• 3

  Allow the lubricant to sit on the bandage for five minutes, while it spreads. The lubricant will eat away at the adhesive, making it easier to remove. Pinch one end of the bandage and slowly peel it off.

• 4

  Wash your skin with warm water and soap to remove the remaining lubricant and adhesive. Blot it dry with a towel.