As the old saying goes, beauty is pain. Between the plucking, tweezing, squeezing and cramming into highly uncomfortable garments that have become normalized in the world of beauty, it's easy to understand how this phrase became widely understood. Although we've moved past the corset, foot binding and arsenic ingestion of yesteryear, a number of highly painful practices continue to be the norm according to today's beauty standards. Here are five hacks to help make beauty a little less painful.

1. Deodorant can help make your high heels more comfortable.

Fun fact: Blisters are the result of friction caused by the pinch of your stilettos. The continuous rub of your skin against the sides and backs of your shoes irritates your feet over time, causing blisters and cuts. Lubricating your feet with deodorant can prevent this reaction from taking place. If you smother your feet in deodorant it stops the friction from occurring. As a result, your feet won't blister. Toss in some high heel pads to help the pain in your arches and spending the day wearing heels will be a far less daunting challenge.

2. Plucking your eyebrows after showering can help reduce the pain of tweezing.

As you've probably heard, steam has the ability to open up your hair follicles. Consequently, plucking after a warm shower or even after running a warm washcloth along your brows before attacking your brows with a tweezer enables you to pluck unruly eyebrows while minimizing the pain associated with the process. Finish with some aloe vera, to help reduce irritation and redness, and your eyebrow game will be strong, and pain free.

3. Vapor rub can alleviate the pain of under-the-surface zits.

Few common skin afflictions are as painful or irritating as the zits that break out under the surface of your skin. Fortunately, vapor rub contains both soothing and antibacterial ingredients that will help to alleviate the pain and redness while allowing the infection to heal faster.

4. Exfoliating before waxing can prevent the pain of hair removal.

There's a layer of dead skin covering your hair, trapping it in place. As a result, the waxing process is more painful. Exfoliating before your waxing appointment removes this barrier, allowing your hair to come out from the root on the first try.

5. ChapStick can instantly heal a paper cut.

OK, so this hack is a little less of a beauty hack and more of a life hack, however, it is an incredible fact regardless. Adding a swab of ChapStick will help to close a small wound created by a paper cut, helping the injury to heal at a faster rate while eradicating the pain from the cut altogether.