How to Get Rid of Ingrown Toenails
Soak your foot in a mixture of hot (or as hot as you can stand it) water and Epsom salt., Gather your tools and get ready., Trim your toenail, taking extra care around the ingrown section., Keep your toenail slightly raised., Stop infection., Give...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Soak your foot in a mixture of hot (or as hot as you can stand it) water and Epsom salt.
Do this for 15-30 minutes at least twice daily.
The goal here is twofold: to soften the toenail and prevent the ingrown nail from becoming infected. -
Step 2: Gather your tools and get ready.
Get a cotton round or a cotton ball ready, a pair of tweezers along with something pointy (like a tool that helps you remove cuticles, for example). , Make sure your toenail is cut perfectly straight without any pointed parts near the edges.
Toenails that are rounded off have an increased likelihood of growing into the skin, causing ingrown nails. , Putting a small piece of cotton between your toenail and the skin should keep the ingrown toenail from coming back.From either the cotton round or the cotton ball, remove a small piece of cotton with the tweezers.
Hold the bit of cotton in the tweezers by the corner of the toenail that is ingrown.
Use something pointy to push the cotton under your toenail into the corner.
Don't push too hard or you will hurt yourself! The piece of cotton should form a little ball under your toenail in the corner.
It doesn't have to be so big that it sticks out from the top of your toenail, but make sure it is not too small either.
If you firmly but gently pack as much cotton as is comfortable, you will have the right amount of cotton to do the job..Remove cotton daily to cleanse area and replace with new cotton to reduce risk of infection. , Apply infection-preventing ointment to the site and keep it bandaged.
Neosporin works fine for these purposes. , Don't wear socks or shoes when you're at home. , If you keep the cotton in place and treat your feet well, your ingrown toenail should grow back out within a few weeks.
Replace the cotton every day to keep the toe from becoming infected.
If the toenail is painful, replace the cotton every other day, checking daily for infection. -
Step 3: Trim your toenail
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Step 4: taking extra care around the ingrown section.
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Step 5: Keep your toenail slightly raised.
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Step 6: Stop infection.
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Step 7: Give your toe some air!
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Step 8: Check back.
Detailed Guide
Do this for 15-30 minutes at least twice daily.
The goal here is twofold: to soften the toenail and prevent the ingrown nail from becoming infected.
Get a cotton round or a cotton ball ready, a pair of tweezers along with something pointy (like a tool that helps you remove cuticles, for example). , Make sure your toenail is cut perfectly straight without any pointed parts near the edges.
Toenails that are rounded off have an increased likelihood of growing into the skin, causing ingrown nails. , Putting a small piece of cotton between your toenail and the skin should keep the ingrown toenail from coming back.From either the cotton round or the cotton ball, remove a small piece of cotton with the tweezers.
Hold the bit of cotton in the tweezers by the corner of the toenail that is ingrown.
Use something pointy to push the cotton under your toenail into the corner.
Don't push too hard or you will hurt yourself! The piece of cotton should form a little ball under your toenail in the corner.
It doesn't have to be so big that it sticks out from the top of your toenail, but make sure it is not too small either.
If you firmly but gently pack as much cotton as is comfortable, you will have the right amount of cotton to do the job..Remove cotton daily to cleanse area and replace with new cotton to reduce risk of infection. , Apply infection-preventing ointment to the site and keep it bandaged.
Neosporin works fine for these purposes. , Don't wear socks or shoes when you're at home. , If you keep the cotton in place and treat your feet well, your ingrown toenail should grow back out within a few weeks.
Replace the cotton every day to keep the toe from becoming infected.
If the toenail is painful, replace the cotton every other day, checking daily for infection.
About the Author
Victoria Mitchell
Brings years of experience writing about lifestyle and related subjects.
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