If ingrown toenails
are hereditary in your
family--like mine--it is
unlikely simply cutting
the toe nail straight
across will help.
Even the smallest
ingrown can hurt enough
to keep you from
sleeping well. A long, hot foot bath
might be the solution! A
foot bath serves more
purposes than just a
tactical approach to an
ingrown toenail.
Foot baths help relax
the body, increase
circulation, and draw
toxins.
If you suffer from
ingrown toe nails,
consider investing in a
$30 or so foot bath and
good nail "pliers."
You can also just use a
basin and keep adding
hot water. Soak your feet in hot
water, (as hot as you
can stand it without
burning yourself) and
even add some tea tree
and geranium essential
oils to help soften the
skin further.
Tea
tree oil also
reduces the risk of
infection if you are
really bent on "going in
for surgery" while on
your own couch.
Geranium essential oil
is excellent to help
numb (in my personal
opinion.) I use it as a
topical anesthetic. Add
at least a cup of
Epsom salt to
really soften the skin
and nails, as well as
help draw toxins from my
body. Salt also
reduces infection risk.
Getting the nails soft
is key to success.
I am far too much a
coward to do this
without soft nails.
The longer you
soak--the softer your
nail. I give it a
solid 30 minutes, if not
longer, and watch a
program to stay busy.
Or, I work on my laptop
as I am right now!
After you’ve given your
feet a good soak, see if
you can pull the
embedded nail up on the
corner, lifting it away
from the skin. I pull
the skin near the nail
away to see how bad it
is first. Then I
take a depth breath and
start my work. What you
want to do with your
nail is your own
business! I can
say, don't slip--hitting
your soft tissue could
cause enormous pain.
A shot of whiskey close
by, (to drink mid
procedure) is totally
optional. When I
do this, I must take
breaks. I take at
least three breaks on
each big toe. I
aim mainly to break the
sides down and pull out
the "knife" looking
parts. How small the
offending sucker
actually is, can be
funny. But I make sure I
do not leave a small
piece in there.
It is usually on my
third, last attempt, I
find the "big Kahuna."
You will know when you
"hit gold." It will
appear to hurt the most
to extract, but offer
"praise the Heavens can
hear" if you get it out.
If I feel no sharp pain
when the toenail is
pressed, I know it was a
success. I have to
do mine about every two
months.
Seeing a Doctor,
Podiatrist for Ingrown
Toe Nails: Surgery
Modern Medicine no
longer requires the
total removal of the
nail, they have a way to
just cut the very edges
and cauterize them.
Since I have chronic
ingrown big toes, I did
visit a Podiatrist.
However, after a lot of
study, I read the
patients "never" forget
the needle going in to
do the procedure.
To each foot! I
was hoping they could
knock me out.
Since it is not deemed
serious enough for
general anesthesia, I
will hang on to my $800+
and try to deal with my
monthly bouts. If
I ever do have this
procedure done, I will
corner the Doctor about
how much of the nail.
They kept avoiding this
question when I did go.
So, get a Doctor by word
of mouth if you do
decide to have the
modern procedure done.
They should be able to
do it without losing
much of your nail.
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