HOW TO HEAL THEM:
Ok so your cuticles are really cracked and dry. They are peeling and they might even be bleeding. They hurt and they look icky and you are both annoyed and embarrassed by them. I feel your pain, I really do…
Take a step back for a moment and treat this for what is actually is…an injury! The broken skin is really no different from any other cut you have on your body, except that the skin around it is a bit hard and chapped.
What you need to do is get some classic Neosporin ointment or any topical antibiotic ointment, it can be store brand too, just make sure it is the ointment and not the cream. I have tried both and and ointment works MUCH better. Put a generous amount on your cuticles where they are cracked and broken and then cover each affected finger with a band-aid.
Leave this on overnight. The ointment will both soften the skin and help speed the healing of the area. What most people don’t realize is that the broken peeling skin often doesn’t heal well because it can be mildly infected.
In the morning when you remove the bandage you will be blown away! They will be less red and the skin will be soft.
You can repeat this step a few times until the skin around your nails has fully healed.
PREVENTING MORE DAMAGE:
To prevent your nails from chapping and peeling more, you need to keep them soft and also protect them from cold weather.
If cuticle oil isn’t enough, you may want to combine it with a cuticle cream. The benefit of a cream is that it is thicker, so it will sit on top of the skin and protect it from drying out. The best method is putting it on after your cuticle oil, so it seals in all that moisture.
If it is cold out, be sure to put cuticle cream on before you go outside, and always ALWAYS wear gloves. If you do both of those things, you will prevent them from becoming chapped up and dried out.
Also STOP PICKING THEM. If part of your problem is a habit of picking at the cuticles, make yourself aware of what you are doing, and make an effort to stop yourself. I know it’s so hard sometimes when there is a little bit of chapped skin hanging there and you just want to pick it or rip it off! But think of how much they will hurt and how bad they will look later.
If there is an excess of skin, you can snip it off with a cuticle scissor when you have a chance, but never bite them or pick them off.
When my cuticles were at their worst, I began carrying a small cuticle clipper in my makeup bag, so that if I was out and a cuticle was driving me insane and I couldn’t resist, I could duck away to the bathroom and snip it off, instead of picking at it and making it worse.
Extreme?….Meh maybe, but it helped me get it under control.
IN A PINCH:
So you’re out and you don’t have your cuticle scissor and they are dry, cracked and driving you BANANAS, what do you do?
Odds are you have one of these in your pocket or purse…
i am so going to start doing this stuff! ive been looking for this for a looong time! thank you!!!!! ^.^
You are so welcome! I hope it helps
Lifelong I have been dealing with this very thing, esp picking and some bleeding! I plan to use much of what you suggest and finally have healthy cuticles! Thanks so much!
You are so welcome! Let me know how it goes
Thank you! Mine are horrible , annoying, and embarrassing. Going to try all your tips.
You’re welcome, I really hope it help!
I just recently saw this and have been doing what you suggested for only 1 week, and the results are AMAZING!! I have even bought a tiny toiletry bag to keep my cuticle care kit in. Now I can carry it in my purse to have at work or wherever I may go! Thank you for the advice!
That’s so awesome, I’m glad it’s helping!