The acrylic nail is glued down to your actual nail, and if your nail gets injured, there’s a high possibility of your real nail getting ripped off in the injury. There could be multiple ways your nail might get hurt, but the damage is painful and bloody. Cutting the excess ripped nail and cleaning the surrounding area is the first thing you need to follow when injured. Using a bandage and dipping the damaged nail in a solution can help it heal faster. If you see further complications developing, then visit your doctor.
For every person who loves to get their nails done, the struggle is real! I speak from experience when I say that getting your nails done is wonderful until your nails get hit by something and get injured.
As someone with acrylic nails, I can do almost everything but still get scared when lifting something heavy and fear getting my nail wounded in the process.
When getting an acrylic nail, your nail technician will fix the acrylic one onto your real nail. So, if somehow you end up getting your nail injured, the nail usually breaks off in between, and only in rare cases, the entire nail gets ripped off.
If this is something you’ve just experienced or are scared can happen to you, then this article is just for you!
Why does my acrylic nail rip off my real nail?
When you get your nails done, especially the acrylic nails there could be different reasons for getting it injured to make your nail rip off. However, some of the most popular reasons why your acrylic nail rips off your real nail are:
1. Duration of nails
When you get your nails done, your nail technician tells you that in a month, you’ll have to get them refilled.
From the day you get acrylic nails done, they will keep on growing, and you can properly function in them for a month. If you go over that time limit and refuse to get the refilling done in time, the nails are bound to get injured in one way or another.
2. Poorly done acrylic
Getting your acrylic nails fitted from a reputed salon is necessary. If you go to any shop for a lower price, there’s a chance they will do a poor job. Your nails won’t be fitted properly, which can leave a pocket gap between the acrylic and the real nail.
Even the most minor gaps can increase the chances of getting water and small bacteria inside the real nail.
This will lead to fungus forming on the real nail and can destroy your real nail from within. Also, if the acrylic nail is fitted poorly, it can quickly get stuck or tangled in anything, and there’s a major chance of getting it ripped.
3. Acrylic snag
Snagging your nail means when you drag your acrylic nails on a firm surface accidentally, such as clothes, walls, cars, and so on.
The force from such surfaces is too much for your nails to bear. This results in your nails bearing more than what they can take and breaking off in between or ripping off completely.
4. Long term usage
Even your nails need some time off to breathe from all the fake nails and products being used on them. So it’s better to give your nails a month off every 6 months to let them breathe.
During this time, keep your nails short and clean, and they will become healthier too. However, using all these products to get acrylic nails on your real nails is harmful to your nails in the long run.
5. Removing acrylic nails
Getting your acrylic nails removed from the professionals is something you should strictly adhere to.
They know best how to remove your acrylics without harming your real nails.
If you try to remove your own acrylic nails at home, anything can go wrong if you don’t have the right products and knowledge about the process.
How to deal with a broken acrylic nail?
Step 1
When the nail gets injured, the whole nail won’t get ripped off easily. Your nail would just be broken in the middle. There would be a huge crack, and the nail might be hanging out that needs to be cut off before doing anything else.
Focus on removing the more prominent part that is hanging from one side. Trim it carefully with a nail trimmer. There might be a situation when you can’t remove it on your own because the nail is still attached to some part of the skin.
In that case, trim the nail as much as you can.
Step 2
Use soap, water, and an earbud to clean the surrounding area to the nail. Carefully clean as much as you can.
Cleaning the excess blood and sterilizing the area is essential so that other bacteria and germs don’t cause any infection.
After cleaning the area, you should apply a bandage, not too tightly, though, so the area remains free from infections.
Step 3
There might be a chance that some part of the acrylic nail is still attached to your real nail.
The acrylic nail is fixed in a manner that you can’t easily remove on your own. So instead, visit your nail salon and get all your acrylic nails removed.
If not removed, this can do more harm to your real nail by accumulating infection or not letting the nail heal correctly.
Your nail technician can also help you trim the excess nail if you can’t do it yourself and file the sharp edges of the nail so it doesn’t become problematic.
Step 4
- You should soak your broken nail in cold water for 20 minutes after the nail has been trimmed. This will help with pain, redness, and swelling.
- To prevent further infections, soak your broken nail in a solution of 1 tsp of salt dissolved in 4 cups of warm water for 20 minutes. Repeat these 2 to 3 times a day for over next 3 days.
- After doing this, keep the area clean and dry. This is to ensure proper healing without any infections. Keep the broken nail safe by applying bandages on it until you see regrowth and healing.
- Keep watching your broken nail and see any signs of infections such as redness, swelling, pain, pus, and even throbbing. Then immediately visit your doctor for further examination.
FAQs
How long does a ripped nail take to heal?
Depending on the damage to your nail, the time taken to heal can vary. For example, if your nail is completely ripped off, then it’ll take a week or so for the nail to heal.
During this time, you need to clean it 2-3 times a day and dip it in a solution as the nail is vulnerable. Afterward, a new nail can take a few months to grow back again fully.
Should I go to the hospital if my nail is ripped off?
You’ll be able to assess the injury of your nail once you clean the excess blood. For example, if your acrylic nail could only break your nail in the middle, you could take care of it at home.
But in rare cases, if the whole nail is ripped off, you should go to the doctor and get it treated.
Can you put an acrylic nail on a missing toenail?
If you injured your toenail and haven’t healed properly yet, you shouldn’t apply an acrylic nail to cover it up. This will only end up causing more issues for you.
If the nail has healed, but the nail cannot fully grow out, even then, you can’t put an acrylic nail on it. Acrylic fingernails don’t work on the toenails.
What happens if you leave blood under your nail?
It’s essential to clean your nail correctly and get rid of any blood that accumulates underneath your nail as much as you can without harming your remaining nail.
If left untreated, a subungual hematoma typically grows out with the lengthening nail plate and resolves on its own. Sometimes it even makes your nail fall off, but in due time your nail will regrow.
Can you put acrylic on a broken nail?
It would be best if you never put another acrylic nail over your already damaged nail. Instead, let your nails heal and regrow.
If you end up placing an acrylic nail over it, you are preventing its healing, and there’s a chance of getting it infected. It would help if you didn’t use acrylic until your natural nail regrows and is healthy.
To summarize
The more fun getting acrylic nails, the more careful you need to prevent them from getting injured. Getting your nail ripped can be extremely painful and bloody.
It will definitely impact your real nail as the acrylic nail is fixed to it. There can be multiple ways you can get your nail ripped off, but thankfully you can treat it at home.
Cleaning and soaking your nail will help them regrow and heal faster. If you see any issues with your nails, such as redness or throbbing, visiting your doctor is the best idea.
Also, give time to your nails to heal by getting all your acrylic nails removed in the meantime. Your nails also deserve to breathe and grow stronger!
