I so get the desire to de-goop. That little blackhead burrowed into your nose looks like it has taken over your entire face (but trust me, you are the only one who can really see it). That huge pimple on your chin is begging to be popped. Keeping your hands off your face? It’s. So. Hard.

The self-proclaimed Cosmetic’s Cop Paula Begoun has extraction advice for her readers posted over at her blog The Beauty Bunch. Paula doesn’t have much use for estheticians, and she believes that we all can DIY our pimple popping and blackhead squeezing.

And, hey, maybe we can! But her advice is wrong.

First, don’t use a comedone extractor. This is a tricky tool to master, and I have had extensive damage done to my skin by a trained esthetician using one of those suckers. You are way better off using the sides of your fingers (no nails, and fingers clean and wrapped in cotton or gauze pads, please!) or two Q-Tips.

With sufficient skin prep, blackheads often slip right out with the fingers and some light pressure. But skin prep is not, as Paula suggests, a little bit of a water based cleanser scrubbed with a washcloth around the area.

You need to soften the oil, which is done by using a highly alkaline solution left on the area for several minutes with steam applied. A face wash in tepid water means you will have to exert more pressure to pop those suckers out. That can lead to damage.

You need good magnification to see what you are doing and to follow the pore’s direction.

If you pop a pimple, make sure it is fully drained. If not, it will come back with a vengeance.

Never, ever EVER try to pop a pimple without a head on it. Period. Do not try to lance it to get the goop out. Leave it alone. You can scar (and I have the ice pick scars to prove it from my wandering teenage fingers).

When you are done, swab the area with witch hazel or tea tree oil. That stuff you just took out is bacteria, and without this step, it can spread all over your face.

Self-extracting is not something I recommend, but I am also realistic and know everyone gives it a go at least once in their lives.

Do you see an esthetician faithfully? For clients who see me regularly, I am happy to extract a pimple and give a quick high frequency between appointments if a pimple is making them crazy. Yours may very well have the same policy. It’s worth finding out.

Maybe it’s the change of seasons, but I have been seeing a bunch of “deep cleanse” your skin stories floating around the blogosphere and in the lady mags. What the hell does “deep cleanse” mean?

One of my facial pet peeves is the “deep pore cleansing facial” offered on just about any spa menu I have read.  These are the facials that promise to banish blackheads with scrubbing, loads of steaming and (most likely) really painful extractions. Most “deep pore cleansing” facials on a spa menu are the basic facial–clients like the sound of “deep pore cleansing” mainly because they bombarded with stories about those evil blackheads. It sounds good, right? A deep pore cleanse is exactly what I need…

The DIY deep cleansing I’ve been reading about include an exfoliating scrub as well as tips to add in a salacylic or glycolic toner to help pull out the blackheads. For some skin, this is too much exfoliation. With skin already rubbed and scrubbed, the addition of acids may create irritation. In skin care, there can be too much of a good thing.

Blackheads are inevitable. Anything we put on the skin has a potential to clog the pores–regardless of the product claims. Add into the dirt and pollution our skin encounters minute to minute… You get the point. You’re gonna get blackheads.

But this idea of deep pore cleansing is a bit of a myth. You can do things to soften the skin to help release the blackheads, but a facial should not be like car detailing. In my opinion, gentle is always better.

For DIY blackhead attack, I prefer a gentle exfoliation in a steamy bathroom followed by a clay-based mask on affected areas to help pull the dirt out of the pores. I usually do not recommend a full face of clay. This is all skin type dependent, but generally I hit the nose, chin and forehead (sometimes not a full forehead either) with the clay and use a moisturizing mask in the other areas.

Look for exfoliating products that use jojoba beads or oatmeal as an exfoliant. Stay away from crushed nuts, like almonds, as well as apricot pits (yes,that means that god awful St. Ives that is inexplicably adored by so many). The edges of scrubs with crushed hard bits are razor sharp causing tiny cuts in the skin.

If you are splurging for a pro-facial, please remember that blackhead removal should not be unbearably painful. You should not have lancets poked directly into your pores (oh the stories I have heard about one celebrity facilist). If the blackheads don’t slide out easily, they are best left for another day.