I recently got an ingrown toenail. It's not pussing, its just swollen, sore and red. What should I do? I'm soaking it often, and know that I might have to go to the doctor, but I'm not sure if I could do anything before hand. Thanks,
Before you go to bed, put a small wedge of lemon on the toenail, securing it with a band-aid and put on a sock! When you wake up, the nail should be soft enough to ease it away from the skin so that you can trim it.
By MrsMoted2 (05/17/2005)
By ThriftyFun
I'm thinking that putting any moist item on the nail would give the same result, maybe even a small "wad" of dampened tissue. (05/17/2005)
By Katie
Use Vicks Vapor Rub to soften the nail. (05/17/2005)
By
I've heard that if you cut a small v-shaped notch in the top middle of the nail, it causes the sides to move inwards. Worth a shot! (05/18/2005)
By Cathy
My Mother-in-law swears by her old Native trick and it works believe it or not! Take a small piece of bread and soak it in milk, wrap it over your toe and cover with a sock. Do this overnight and your in-grown nail will be ready to clip with no pain! (05/18/2005)
By Julie
Are you soaking it in Epsom Salts? That's certainly not the only thing you can use. Make sure the water stays comfortably hot, with either Epsom salts, Betadine, rubbing alcohol, even Borax (20 Mule Team). Soak More. Even though it isn't showing puss yet, use hydrogen peroxide after you're done soaking. Put Betadine on it to keep germs away, then soak it some more. When it's so soft you can maneuver it easily use your pedicure tools to sort of undo. Sometimes you can remove the extra tissue that's there yourself, but only if it's very pliable after soaking in hot water for a very long time. ARDIS (06/18/2005)
By ardis barnes
Use a cuticle stick to stuff some cotton under the nail. It will hurt, but will lift the nail away from the skin it's digging into. Two days later, it should be feeling wonderful again.
Afterward, don't cut that nail so short again or cut it in a bit of a "U" shape so that the edges of the nail won't be ingrown again as they'll stay longer. (06/19/2005)
By beanygurl
I notched the middle of the whole nail and never had a problem since- Cathy
(06/19/2005)
By gumbysue
This is a sure thing. I have done it many times and it always works. Get some Turpentine Oil. You can get it at the drug store and with a Q-Tip put some on the ingrown toenail several times a day. The next day you will be surprised how it has taken the soreness out. I would never use anything else. Hope this helps you. Thanks Barb (06/19/2005)
By Barbara N
This is one I deal with frequently. My right toenail is ingrown because of nail thickness. My left toenail is ingrown from a past injury, it grows in that way. I can fix the right (for months) and the left one I only fix temporarily. Thought the initial "treatment" is painful, relief can be found.
As others posted in various ways, the first step is to clean the area and disinfect it (reducing the swelling). The next step, as others suggested is to find a way to soften the nail as to make it more pliable. Methods of "raising" the nail that I've used:
Then:
Prop the nail by inserting cotton underneath the corner of the ingrown toenail. This is awkward but very relieving. Once you "raise" a nail, you will notice relief from the pressure immediately (unless the infection is still rampant). By then the concept of the cotton will overcome its awkwardness.
Always cut away dead skin around the nail area. The buildup of dead skins encourages ingrown nails. Never, never trim your nails short. Cut only STRAIGHT across. I always leave my nails a little long for necessary treatments. More nail means more leverage when pulling up the nail. Soak and treat frequently to avoid further problems. Take care of your feet and they'll take care of you
Happy pedicuring!
(08/18/2005)
By bon
Whatever you do, says podiatrist Glenn Copeland, D.P.M., of Women's College Hospital in Toronto, don't fall for that old wives' tale about cutting a V-shaped wedge out of the center of the nail. "People think that an ingrown nail is too big and that if you take a wedge from the middle, the sides will grow toward the center and away from the ingrown edge. That's utter nonsense. All nails grow from back to front only."(quote)(/quote) (08/01/2006)
By Shane
If it gets worse,the easiest thing to do is just get the surgery, it will hurt, but it isn't NEARLY as bad as it seems. I had my whole nail removed. (12/07/2006)
By
Try baby powder! It works because it draws out moisture and infection fast. (01/02/2007)
By bill.
Sanding down the toenail until its very thin will assist in getting that ingrown section out. Apply Icy Hot to the ingrown section as well as any swollen section. Within 10 min the pain will cease. Soak in Epsom Salt in hot water for about 30 min. (03/06/2007)
By Rey M.
Just have the surgery, it is as simple as that. Not only does the surgery remove the ingrown part, but it also stops it from happening again for like another 50 years. I had the surgery and it is nowhere near as painful as just fixing it yourself.
P.S. If there is a small growth next to the ingrown nail, then you need the surgery. That growth is a benign tumor formed by the infection. (05/28/2008)
By B.
My great-grandmother taught me to file the ridge of the toenail a bit each time you trim your nails. This causes the nail to grow towards the center, thus keeping it from growing into your flesh. Give it a try. (07/13/2008)
By Jeremy
This wasn't true for me. Once I had the surgery I got it again like 4 months later. I've had the surgery 3 times, it hurts to cut it off. (09/15/2008)
By
I have had an ingrown toenail now for about 3 or 4 years. I have just adapted to live my live with it. Like many others I don't want the surgery because I am scared of it coming back. I did my research and apparently if you leave them for long enough then they will eventually go away themselves, BUT you have to keep them clean or they will get infected. One way to keep them clean is to bathe them in warm water with tea tree oil added. So I did this and hey presto my ingrown toe nail has gone (not completely, but still better than it was). So I suggest that you try it. (10/22/2008)
By john s
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