paper thin nails

I am 13 months post op. My hair is growing back, I have little hairs everywhere that don't behave. My question is about my nails. They are paper thin and when I don't have a gel manicure they just peel of at the slightest touch. All my labs are good so I am getting the proper nutrition. When will my nails go back to normal? I have taken the hair, skin & nails vitamins but it didn't seem to make a difference. Anybody else have this problem or any suggestions?

Thanks,

Stacy

The gel nails is hindering your nails as well, I'd try a nail strengthener instead. Your nails can't "breathe" with the gel on and it pulls a layer of your nails off when it's removed. Plus the thicker they put it on, the worse it is for your nails. Mine are FINALLY starting to to thicken up after 2.5 years.

Liz

Actually, nails don't "breathe." Nails are like your hair-- they're made up of dead material. That's why it doesn't hurt when you trim them.

That's why breathe is in quotation marks, lack of air & dehydration is what makes them thin.

Nails get their air from the body's blood supply, not the atmosphere :)

Congratulations on being 13 months out and WOOHOO on the hair coming back

I agree with Liz. I love getting my nails done but it never failed before I got home I would end up with at least one nail messed up. When they came out with gel nails I was over the moon. Sadly, as time went by it really ended up damaging my nails and they did get thin. Try backing off gel nails and you should see an improvement.

Assuming all is good with your nutrition now, your nails won't seem any stronger until the nail material you currently have grows out completely and is filed away. In other words, until brand new growth extends past your fingertips. And how long that takes depends on how quickly your nails grow.

Ideally, you would take a break from gel nails. I don't think there is anything you can do to strengthen the nails that you currently have; you have to wait for them to grow out. I don't think any of those "nail strengtheners" really help, and some of them can make things worse. Massage oil into your cuticles every day, because the new growth is forming under/behind them. That's all you really need to do. Keep them short until the brand new growth extends past your fingertips.

However, if your nails are peeling badly, you may need some extra help to get through this time.I'd talk to a top-notch nail tech about your problem and get their help. Rather than getting the gel completely removed, you can get the surface of your current gel nails filed down to where there's just a thin layer protecting your natural nails. That way the regrowth will be less noticeable.

Gel nails, if properly done, should not be damaging your natural nails. However, there are a lot of things that nail technicians (and people who do their own nails) can do wrong. When prepping your natural nails, only the lightest touch of dehydrator should be used, and your nails should only be lightly buffed to remove the shine. And when gel nails are removed, they should never be "popped off". (That takes a layer of your natural nail with it!) If you're getting them completely removed, that should be done by soaking the nails in acetone.

The nail treatments that work contain calcium and fluoride. Nails benefit from fluoride, just like teeth do. It will take time to get over the damage caused by the gels. It will take about three months for the nail to completely regrow from the root, but your nails will look much better after the first month of treatment.

Once your nails are strong and beautiful again, be very careful not to use polishes and removers that cause damage.

I take collagen. It's proteins specially for hair, nails and skin. But like others said, the gel treatment of your nails make them so much worse. You may have to deal with brittle nails until they grow out completely. When I was using gel or covering like that, my nails were horrible. It took me a few months without any nail stuff to grow them out passed the very damaged areas.

Edited to add: I don't count collagen in my total minimum proteins required per day. Collagen is not a complete proteins but it is essential for bones, joints, skin, hair and nails.

I had thin and peeling nails, too. What worked for me was doing Paraffin Wax Baths regularly. I didn't know how to do it right at first. Then, I found a helpful article on https://www.gulfphysio.com/the-right-kind-of-paraffin-wax-ba th-therapy-for-you/. It showed me the brushing method, where you put 8-10 layers of wax on with a brush, wrap your hands or feet in a towel, and then peel the wax off. It sounds weird, but it helped make my nails stronger.