As others have noted, this occurs when you trim too short and/or when you cut at an angle rather than straight across.
To fix without getting too invasive, take super small little piece of tissue paper or cotton, I’m talking real small, roll it up into a ball about the size of a granule of kosher salt, then use tweezers to wedge the ball under the nail right at the part where it hurts the most.
You will notice instant pain relief as pressure gets relieved right where the nail is digging into the skin. Replace this ball if it falls out and keep it wedged there for 3 to 5 days. This can be somewhat difficult if the nail is super short, which it usually is if you are dealing with this problem, but you should be able to wedge a small little piece up there. If you can fit a piece larger than a granule of sale then that’s even better.
The nail will start growing the right direction and will be all better in 3 to 5 days.
I HAD MY BIG TOE DO THIS YEARS AGO AND THE PAIN WAS EXCRUCIATING.
My partner at the time had to cut a tiny part out of my toe to fix it. I was stupid and trimming my nail at an angle, took too much off and thought nothing of it at the time, until it started growing like this. Never again. And, for the record, never do what I did. Get it professionally removed.
Medical professionals can not only fix it without excruciating pain, but they can prevent just the problematic edge bit from growing back!
We were young and dumb, brother.
Both my grandparents died from these…
I should just get my big toenails removed lol.
died
Wait. Sorry, what?
Maybe their grandparents had diabetes? Wounds on the foot can get infected and not heal due to lack of circulation, resulting in necrosis, amputation, and sometimes death.
It might have been a joke but my cursed medical knowledge just fell out of my brain and maybe ruined it. Sorry.
Bingo. 1/2 my native family I know get taken out by ingrown toenails.
Well. Damn. My condolences, friendo. :(
I’m truly sorry to hear that. That sort of chronic issue is incredibly painful, especially when it ends with necrosis and death.
I hope you and your loved ones have good health and live long happy lives.
Indeed, what the friggin fuck?
It’s literal. Diabetes and ingrown toenails make for amputations which make for slow deaths.
Ok but that reasoning is not far removed from saying “they died of being born”
I spent years with an ingrown toenail. I could walk on it just fine but if I stubbed it I’d be down for about 10 minutes. Finally just went to the Dr and he fixed it right up. Now when I cut the nail I just have to make sure I don’t cut it too short or risk it becoming ingrown again. I was kicking myself for not having done this sooner.
Good thing you don’t have an ingrown nail anymore, or else kicking yourself would hurt
Can you please explain the process the doctor did to correct it? Everything online involved some surgery. Your comment made it look less painful.
The surgery is far far less painful (with local anesthetic) than an ingrown nail. Its not really a big deal.
That’s comforting. Thank you.
I had the surgery done on both of my big toes, both sides.
Let me preface with this, the surgery is very short, done with local anesthesia, mostly painless, and very cool to watch. The recovery time is short (I think it was 3 days until I was able to play soccer again).
Now for the gory details. To start, they need to numb up your toe. The nerves they need to numb on the underside of your foot on either side of your tone bone. For reasons, they can’t just do a short needle through the bottom of the foot, so they go in through the top with a long, big ass needle. For me, they used a cryo spray that numb my toe a bit, there was definitely a pinch, but honestly not bad, I’d give it a 2/10 on a pain scale. For reference, I’d consider the ingrown nail a 2, and it jumps up to a 5 if you stubbed it. After the anesthesia, they roll a castration band over your toe to cut off the blood supply so it doesn’t squirt all over the place when they cut the nail. After a few minutes, they cut your nail straight back all the way to the nailbed, past the cuticle, then they use a chemical cauterizing agent on wooden stick to burn the nailbed to prevent regrowth stop bleeding, and sterilize the areas. After that, they remove the band, wrap your toe in gauze and give you your post op paperwork.
Post op instruction for me were to soak my toe twice a day in an epsom salt solution, and otherwise keep the area dry and clean. I had some bloody pus discharge from my toe the first time I changed the bandage, but it was clean after that.
Yeah I watched the doc do mine, just one side of one big toe though
The whole time, all I could think was “holy shit that looks like it would hurt if I weren’t numbed up”
Oh, wow… So it just never gross back, eh? The details were a little horrifying once the cutting began. Not sure I’d want to watch, but I’d absolutely have the surgery if ingrown nails were a problem for me.
Going on 20 years at this point. Never grows back. It is a little horrifying to watch, I’m pretty sure without anesthesia it would be a great torture technique. With anesthesia, I literally did not feel a thing.
Did they take the entire nail out?
No, just a little sliver down the side, all the way back to the nail bed.
Thanks for the context.
For me, they applied local anesthesia, grabbed the nail with some tool, then pulled it the fuck off. I don’t know if this is how it is always done, but this was a military doctor (I was a dependent).
Arg!! I cringed the fuck out reading this. This is all I have read they do online.
To make it better, I watched them do it. When applying anesthesia at one point I watched the doctor stick the needle into my toe and just spray it onto the floor because he went all the way through. I also had a trip to NYC a few days after, so I walked around there with a toe bleeding and wrapped in gauze. It was a memorable time.
Nope nope nope nope
I’ll just keep downvoting you and hope it somehow negates the mental images you’ve subjected me to.
do y’all wear extremely tight shoes or something?
Almost all people in the first world wear shoes that crush their feet/toes. It’s how shoes are designed.
I rock climb, so yes. I’d rather cut my toe nails straight across and avoid ingrowns, but that doesn’t work well with climbing.
This thread is bonkers. Is it some genetic thing, or are Linux users more prone to ingrown toenails?
Only Ubuntu and Kubuntu users
If you catch em when they’re lil babies likes square 2 or 3, you can 100% easily cure/fix it.
Just cut 1 to 3 slices perpendicular into the edge of your toenail. Turn your clipper 90 degrees, get it in far enough, but don’t pinch yourself or cut too far in that it hurts, and snip.
Do it in the middle, in 3rds, or quarters if it’s in both sides or something.
This gives your nail a new direction to grow, and takes the pressure off the flesh. You’ll feel relief in less than a minute. It’s a miracle and you’ll hate that it took you this long.
If it doesn’t give you relief in like 5 - 10 mins (try a second or 3rd snip first but), that fucker is in there. See a doctor. Take it from me.
Kudos to anyone who can figure out where and how to cut from this description.
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