Help/advice needed with client that has lots of nail conditions

[florence2004]

Hi there geeks
I have a new client that has been to me twice now for BL smoothing and Shellac. The first time I did her nails I really struggled to get everything on so that it was nice and smooth as she has lots of nail conditions.

it looks to me like she has club nails as her finger nails are very think in the middle and slope downwards at the free edge and the area of the finger right behind the eponychium is enlarged on some fingers. She also has lots of ridging which I am guessing is age related as she is in her late 60's. I have taken a medical history and she has no heart or lung related issues. She does have asthma, fibromyalgia and very sensitive skin.

Her job in a clinic means that she is constantly washing her hands. She has very brittle nails that often cause her nails to crack and her doctor told her to superglue the nail where the crack is as they are often quite painful for her. She also has exceptionally dry skin around the nail grooves and finger tips, in fact looking at the pictures in Doug's book it looks like contact dermatitis on the finger tips which would make sense with the amount her hands are in water. She also has Delamination.

I removed and reapplied the BL lite and shellac yesterday and I have to say that the new growth area actually looked quite reasonable, I also sent her away with some solar oil. She says she applies lotion twice a day but has to be really careful with perfumed products as this can set off her asthma. I read in Doug's book to recommend an oil based lotion for the brittleness and cracking. How do I know if a lotion is oil based or not? Is there anything else I can recommend for this client? The dryness on her finger tips is what makes her hands look the most unappealing, perhaps a hot oil treatment or paraffin wax treatment would help this?

 

[geeg]

A person like this and with the job she has, has absolutely got to be dedicated to counteracting the drying affects from her job with constant attention to moisturisation or she has to start protecting her hands with gloves; the problem will not go away unless she does.

There are lots of creams and lotions to help and frankly you can't beat SolarOil and Cuticle Eraser from CND. But she has to use them. The biggest challenge is getting people to remember to dedicate the time it takes to care for hands and nails like this client's.

 

[florence2004]

Thanks Geeg
she is being very diligent with her solar oil and lotion, but I don't know what lotion she is using and if that could possibly be making it worse. She always uses gloves for dishes and household stuff but still needs to wash hands between every patient and I am guessing they have to use an antibacterial soap.

Would hot oil or paraffin help?

 

[geeg]

Thanks Geeg
she is being very diligent with her solar oil and lotion, but I don't know what lotion she is using and if that could possibly be making it worse. She always uses gloves for dishes and household stuff but still needs to wash hands between every patient and I am guessing they have to use an antibacterial soap.

Would hot oil or paraffin help?

All those things will help but her care is going to have to be daily and she is going to have to do it religiously herself with a good concentrated booster treatment form you when ever she comes in. She certainly should not be using anything with mineral oil or petrochemicals in it. Nothing like Vaseline etc. ONLY botanical oils.

 

[florence2004]

All those things will help but her care is going to have to be daily and she is going to have to do it religiously herself with a good concentrated booster treatment form you when ever she comes in. She certainly should not be using anything with mineral oil or petrochemicals in it. Nothing like Vaseline etc. ONLY botanical oils.

Awesome, can you recommend a good lotion? Would the cucumber heal therapy work on her excessive dryness?

 

[geeg]

Awesome, can you recommend a good lotion? Would the cucumber heal therapy work on her excessive dryness?

Yes she could use that; it works on broken and cracked heels and it intensive. If it works on the skin of the feet then it will do the same for the hands. You are really putting some thought into this client, florence! Nice to see that kind of dedication and care being offered. :hug:

 

[Rinn]

I retail solar oil to everyone and I think some of them don't believe me when I tell them it is the bomb. Such a fantastic product.

I have an 87 year old with Raynuad's. Her nails were very ridged, lumpy and bumpy, thin and flakey so I got her to use Solar oil . The difference in the condition of her nails is incredible, perfectly smooth and even. She is delighted .

I was amazed myself with the improvement , the only thing I regret is not having taken a before picture.

She's working her way through the 5 year supply of hand creams that she has ( Christmas pressies) so the plan is to get her onto sensations then.:lol:

 

[florence2004]

Yes I wondered if the sensations lotion would work for her too but I was a little worried about the scents in those as she is so sensitive. She really needs something unperfumed. I looked up the paraffin waxes and I think that would be an awesome treatment for her as I understand the heat is good for muscle and joint stiffness which she also suffers from.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using SalonGeek

 

[lores]

Hi This is an interesting thread as we all want to beat dry nails and hands with nail conditions for our clients and your mention of the paraffin wax along with Geeg's comment on the non mineral oil based products being suited to this type of client got me thinking.

When I went to beauty school we trained in hot oil manicures as well as paraffin and I think the hot oil could be a great option for your client especially if you use a jojoba and sweet almond oil mix, which would be great for her dry ridged nails and would avoid any fragrance.
We trained to use the heater to submerge the fingers in the oil for 10-15 minutes, but I am sure you could paint the oils onto the hand with a soft brush then use plastic gloves and heated mitts. If you were very liberal with the oil this would be great and you would have the warmth to help with the joint stiffness and circulatory issues. We all jump on Paraffin to treat dry skin and nails, but it is a petrochemical based product whereas the hot oil can be performed with a botanical oil. I have heard you can use good quality olive oil too.
Hope this gives you some additional ideas

xx