Why Do My Nails Feel Weird After I Cut Them?

The fingernails are an essential part of the body whether we like it or not. This means that we must be very careful when taking care of them. This includes cutting them regularly. However, over the years a lot of questions about cutting nails have been asked by a lot of people.

One of which is, why do my nails feel weird after I cut them?

Your fingernails protect the end of your fingers which are very sensitive. Many people experience some form of discomfort, numbness, or over-sensitivity on their fingers after clipping their nails.

This is usually because your forefingers are not used to touch since they’re mostly always protected from stimulation by the nails. To enable us better understand why this happens, we’ll begin this piece by looking at the type of nails we have.

Reasons Nails Feel Weird After Cutting

1. Brittle nails

Brittle nails can be a reason why your nails feel weird after you cut them. This is because the nails feel as if they are losing support after cutting them all. If your nails split, peel, or are simply weak, you have brittle nails. Brittle nails come about for many different reasons.

They may be a normal sign of ageing or the result of polishing your nails too frequently. In cold weather conditions, brittle nails may result from dryness. Everything from ageing to poor nutrition can make your nails dry, thin, and easy to break. There are also some treatments and medical conditions that can make nails brittle.

Brittle nails are often caused by a lack of moisture. Using cuticle oil or a lanolin-based cream several times daily, will help re-moisturize and soften these nails.

Wearing a coating on the nail also helps because coatings (polish, artificial nails, gel polish) slow down the dehydration of moisture from the nails. The common known causes of brittle nails according to dermatologists are:

Constantly biting your fingernails

Whether you do it out of consciousness, anxiety, or boredom, biting your nails not only makes them break easier but also makes you vulnerable to infections.

You do not have as much iron as your body needs to function

Hollow or depressed nails can be caused by low iron levels or anaemia. Iron helps form haemoglobin, a molecule that moves red blood cells loaded with fresh oxygen to your nail matrix. Without it, you get stunted nail growth.

Lack of essential B-complex Vitamins

B-vitamins are abundant in organ meats, like liver and kidneys, as well as fish, cheese, yoghurt, milk, eggs, mushrooms, beans, avocadoes, bananas, nuts, seeds, and whole grains that supply the body with biotin- an essential nutrient that plays a very important role in the health of your nails, hair and skin.

If you only apply the cream in the morning

Water dries your skin out, and if the skin at and below your finger surface is dry, then the underlying nail matrix will be dry as well. That explains why the nail it forms will be prone to splitting, breaking, and cracking.

You overuse hand sanitisers

Just like washing your hands frequently can cause brittle nails, so can constant application of hand sanitiser, because of its high concentration of drying alcohol.

If you leave nail polish to stay much longer than is necessary

All nail polishes contain drying ingredients that sap moisture from the nail plate and weaken it, and that drying effect doesn’t stop once the polish has hardened. Even non-toxic five-free nail polishes—which skip the solvent toluene and the plasticizer dibutyl phthalate, along with other potentially irritating ingredients—can still leave nails high and dry.

Dermatologists recommend taking the polish off after five days—when most formulas will start wearing down anyway. Then give nails a few days of downtime before applying the polish again.

Using Acetone Nail Polish Removers

It’s not shocking that polish removers aren’t exactly healthy for your nails. Acetone in traditional remover clears out the natural oils in your nails along with the polish, leaving you with brittle nails. Go for a soy-based, acetone-free polish remover with oils that leave nails moisturized.

2. Soft nails

If your nails are usually very soft then you can feel weird after cutting them. This is especially because you do not feel them strong enough. These are often very thin nails. Often, the nail is very flexible and will bend when hit head-on. When they break, they tear. These nails break easily or bend before snapping. Soft nails might be caused by overexposure to moisture or chemicals like detergents, cleaning fluids, nail treatments, and nail polish remover.

Soft nails are often caused by too much moisture. Nail strengtheners work well on this type of nail because nail strengtheners actually work by dehydrating the nails. However, overuse of nail strengtheners can cause nails to become brittle so it is important to balance the use of these strengtheners with your cuticle oil use and not to overuse them.

3. Peeling nails

Peeling nails will feel weird after cutting. This can happen with either soft or brittle nails. This is when layers of nail peel off the top of the nail plate. Peeling nails are most likely caused by external injury to the nail itself — either by using your nail as a tool, pressing into the nail too firmly or removing acrylic nail polish. Nails can also peel if you soak your hands too long in foamy water.

It is important that you pay attention to your toenails as well to ascertain whether it’s a health condition. Are your toenails also peeling? If so, it might be an internal cause, such as iron deficiency; if not, it’s probably external. Peeling nails are usually dehydrated or exposed to chemicals (which are dehydrating).

Staying away from harsh chemicals/wearing gloves when using chemicals and using cuticle oil or a lanolin-based cream several times daily will help hydrate the nails. Also, you see these nails in people who wash their hands many times a day because soap and water also are dehydrating. Wearing a coating on the nail and being diligent about cuticle oil or cream used will help counteract these effects.

General Fingernail Care Tips

Eating a healthy, balanced diet is the only surest way to nourish your nails from the inside out, but taking care of your nails with these quick beauty tips will do more good than harm:

• Stay away from nail polish removers that contain acetone, which dries nails out. Use polish removers only once a month and just do quick touch-ups in between.
• If your nails are dirty use a soft brush and mild soap to clean them underneath.
• Don’t remove your cuticles at the salon – this can make you vulnerable to infection.
• Wear gloves when washing the dishes. Dish soap and hot water are both enemies of healthy nails – don’t be afraid to slip on some sexy rubber gloves.
• Use hand lotion on your nails, too. Rub it in after you wash your hands or take a shower.
• Fingernails are not tools! Do not use your nails to open cans, scrape dried food off plates or pry anything open.
• Do not use any object to dig under your nails to clean them as this can make them bleed.
• Never cut your fingernails. Instead, use a nail file (that is not made of metal as they are too harsh) to carefully file your nails until they are just past the tips of your fingers.
• Always avoid the habit of “sawing” your nails. It is best to file in one direction only ( that is, either from left to right or from right to left. Whichever is easier for you)

Fingernails Care

1. Keep fingernails dry and clean

This prevents bacteria from growing under your fingernails. Repeated or prolonged contact with water can contribute to split fingernails. Wear cotton-lined rubber gloves when washing dishes, cleaning or using harsh chemicals.

2. Practice good nail hygiene

Use sharp manicure scissors or clippers. Trim your nails straight across, then round the tips in a gentle curve.

3. Use a moisturizer

When you use hand lotion, rub the lotion into your fingernails and cuticles, too.

4. Apply a protective layer

Applying a nail hardener might help strengthen nails. Just make sure to always maintain balance as overuse could result in brittle, breaking or peeling nails.

5. Ask your doctor about biotin

Some research suggests that the nutritional supplement biotin might help strengthen weak or brittle fingernails.

If you keep your nails short and cut them more often, the tips of your fingers will be more used to the pressure and stimulation of touch.

Healthy Foods To Eat For Brittle Nails

A diet lacking calcium contributes to dry, brittle nails. A lack of folic acid and vitamin C can lead to hangnails. Insufficient dietary essential oils, like omega-3, cause cracking.

The best way to nourish your body and experience the euphoria of a truly healthy body is to eat a balanced diet. Not sure what to eat? Follow these guidelines for a nail-nourishing diet:

• Calcium-rich foods: This includes all dairy foods, especially yoghurt, dark green leafy vegetables, almonds, beans, and sardines.
• Vitamin C: You will easily find vitamin C in citrus fruits, red peppers, broccoli, dark greens, kiwis, and strawberries.
• Folic acid: Folic acid is especially plentiful in orange juice, beans, whole grains, and green vegetables.
• Essential fatty acids: These are found in fatty fish such as tuna, salmon, trout, mackerel, and herring, as well as flaxseeds, nuts, seeds, and tofu.

Conclusion

Unless you’re currently eating for two (pregnant), a regular daily multivitamin that supplies these nutrients is all you need to maintain fingernail health. Now that you know how to care for your fingernails and keep them healthy, occasionally treat yourself to a manicure, and don’t forget to stop at the grocery store for some sardines and tofu on your way home.