Anyone have any advice on how to:

1. Make this fucking hurt less.

2. Grow back.

3. Not get it infected.

4. Stop swearing.

All help, including petitioning all powerful God, will be gratefully accepted.

Need pics to see if your complaining is commensurate with the level of your help request.

Had an infected nail surgically from one of my big toes. When I asked if it would grow back, I was told "no, and you dont need it anyway".
This was alarming to me, since I want to try to keep all my originally issued equipment.

Maybe try saltwater soaks like I did after ingrown toenail surgery. Epsom or Kosher salt, something like 1 tablespoon to 1 gallon of warm water. Soak for 30 minutes twice a day and put Neosporin on it in between and lightly wrapped in gauze.

Ok, time for a serious answer.

I tore off the nail of my big toe will kayaking in the ocean. Blood, salt water, and pretty nasty. It hurt like a mofo but I kept on with the kayak adventure.

Once home, I took Motrin 800 and Tylenol 1000 which greatly cut into the pain.

Cleaned it up with warm water and contrary to current medical advice, I put peroxide on it to kill any germs. That hurt like a mofo too.

I put on an anti-bacterial ointment, wrapped it in gauze for protection and then a white sock.

About 2 weeks later I saw a new nail start to come out of the nail bed and today it's fine. Took about 6 months to full grow out but I imagine a finger will only take 2 or so months since they grow faster.

I just rinsed it with warm water and reapplied the ointment and gauze. Wore tennis shoes a lot for the first couple of weeks. Freaky looking to look down and not see your nail.

Ouch, won't have you relive it by asking how it happened.

Maybe and advil/tylenol combo. someone with a medical background will comment on that. I would think some ice. Sorry Artie.

I can only help with 1 and 4, and it aint a clinical answer, but i'd be 3 fingers (sorry...) deep on a very strong bourbon.

Ouch! It hurts just to read that. Sounds like Flashlightboy has good advice.

I'm around this week, Art, if I can help with something let me know.

In Junior High I stayed at a new friends house. Watch movies, eat, crash type thing. He had a pull out bed under his bed, for me to sleepover. I’m standing there, and he pulls the handle on that thing, far far too fast, and he took my big toe nail off in one shot. The pain dude. I yelled so loud he instantly got on me that I was going to wake his parents up and he was laughing. I was like F U man, in Spicoli voice “you dick”. F that hurt and I’ve gone to great lengths to never, ever, have that happen again. I’ve seen the shit in movies where they are torturing some dude and removing nails and I have to turn the shit off and can’t watch it.

Best of luck, it just takes time. Many months and you just have to get through it. I played multiple sports so imagine doing all that with no big toe nail. Plenty of blood covered ruined socks and shoes.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I did this once before with a big toenail. That hurt worse, but I was younger...

Was trying to tighten a top wire on a horse fence, and it broke free taking the nail clean off. Didn't even know it had happened until the blood started trickling down my arm.

I've got it cleaned, and bandaged with Neosporin. Put ice on it for half an hour, and will now have some Aleve and Tito's.

Sweet God, it hurts when you hit it, though.

Thank you everyone. Humor helps.

Thanks Mike, The Beautiful Girl completed the fence repair, so we are good. I appreciate the offer of help.

A

1. Maximum safe dosage of the OTC pain reliever of your choice.

2. It will grow back eventually.

3. If on your non-dominant hand and you don't work with your hands under dirty conditions, just keep it bandaged at least until it scabs over. (That doesn't work for me.)

4, You're on your own there.

I have never torn a nail off, but I did get an infection under one once and it had to be removed. Pinching or striking fingers so as to inflict a crush injury is - soon to be was - common in my work. Once I got a fingertip between a belt and pulley on a running engine. Fortunately I was able to pull out before it sucked in my whole hand, but the damage was done. It took a good six months for all the feeling to come back.

Depending on what caused the injury, a tetanus booster might be a good idea.

As a teenager I pulled down a segmented garage door by sticking my fingers in the open gap above my head and pulling down. I thought I could just do a quick jerk and pull my fingers free. It did not end well for three fingers on my left hand that were flattened.
The growing back process after the nails ditched was nothing like the initial pain.

3 fingers of Scotch.

I had an ingrown nail cut out and the guy was apparently in a hurry. No pain local. I blacked out. I can imagine how much that hurts.

You have my sympathy. I will be watching this thread closely.

I scuffed the skin off of the bottom of a toe. It got infected (just my luck). I thought that it had healed up. No pain, no nothing. Then one evening after a day of yard work it was extremely painful. Took my shoe off to find an ugly mess. Seemingly went from nothing to a reddish, purple to a red streak toward the bridge of my foot.

It’s slowly healing but I don’t think one round of antibiotics is going to completely fix it. The doctor said that my toenail would probably come off. It has already. It seems like it will dry up and look better over a weekend without much contact with a shoe. A sustained period of time with shoes on, it becomes soft/mushy with a little draining/seepage.

I honestly don’t know if it would be better to keep Neosporin and a bandage on it or not. Back to the dr. sometime next week.

I wish that I had thought to take pictures of it, but I didn’t.

OP, I wish you the best. Keep us posted.

whilst I have never lost a nail, I spent time as a butcher and have cut the shit out of myself a few times,

advice, it the bleeding gets bad, press the finger on a hard service, and pour salt on the wound , as in cover it, then let up on the pressure,

hurt,, yes,
stops after a moment as does the bleeding,


and , sorry to say, it will hurt worse tomorrow, then gradually get better,

I have a pretty high pain tolerance, and good endophines,
you may too,
so thump that fukker once and a while to see if it hurts, and when the endorphines kick it, it will not hurt as much,
may throb a bit,


and fuk Tito;s use bourbon,,, (just my preference, you self medicate with what works for you )

I've never ripped a nail off, but I've smashed more than a couple that wound up falling off including my left thumb, twice... the same way. No, I'm not telling. A clean tear off is probably the best case scenario, honestly. If you were going to lose one, having it happen so fast you didn't feel it immediately sounds like a mercy.

Like the others said, keep it clean. Contrary to some of the advice, I've found it's best to actually let it get nice and dry. The skin that's going to die and come off will do so, and the new nail will start growing up through it. Don't be afraid to cut away the dead dry skin with fingernail clippers. I'd think keeping it moist would make it more prone to infection, but I've been wrong before. It's not like scarring is going to matter much. Just make sure to keep it clean and favor it for a few days.

quote:

Originally posted by Flashlightboy:
Need pics to see if your complaining is commensurate with the level of your help request.

Haha, no we don't.

Yeah, another guy here who smashed a finger so hard the nail came completely off. And yeah, it does hurt like hell. I kept it bandaged for quite a while with a lot of aspirin. It did grow back but it took a couple of months.