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Broken Nail Under Acrylic – Best Tips for What to Do When Nail Breaks Really Far Down

Published Categorized as Beauty Tips

It happens. We all break our nails at some point. When you just have your natural nail, you can carefully trim and file down the nail where it broke. But, what are you supposed to do when you have a broken nail under acrylic nails? If you’re saying, “I hit my acrylic nail and it hurts,” finding the right solution to take care of the pain, protect your natural nail, and salvage your acrylic nails (when possible) is important. Continue reading to learn what you should do when you have a broken nail under acrylic nails.

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Broken Nail Under Acrylic

Nail polish is great, but getting fake nails has a certain appeal. Pretty pre-made nail art just hits different.

When you get fake nails, whether that’s at a nail salon or simply using nail glue at home, taking care of your acrylic nails to reduce damage to your nails is important. If the fake nail breaks, you can head over to the salon to have it repaired or replaced.  However, it is also possible to break your natural nail under the fake nail.

Obviously it isn’t as simple as just having on nail polish and using nail polish remover to assess the damage. Artificial nails are more complicated, and broken nails are no fun, especially under an artificial nail.

Since your natural nail is covered by the acrylic nail, you may not always be able to tell whether it is actually broken or if it just hurts.  If you feel a lot of pain or a throbbing sensation, it is definitely a sign that something is not right. 

While removing the acrylic nail may be the only way to know for certain if you actually broke your natural nail, you might not want to just take off the fake nail right away. 

So, what are you supposed to do if you have a broken nail under fake nails?

My Nail Broke Really Far Down – What To Do

Before doing anything, take a second to make sure you are calm.  Assess the level of pain you are feeling, and give it some time to see if it gets better.  Sometimes, you may just feel pain for a second because of how you hit your nail.  If this pain goes away pretty quickly, it may not be anything to worry about.

However, if after a few minutes the pain is still there, it may be more likely that your natural nail is broken or injured.  You may or may not be able to see signs of the breakage.  If the breakage occurred on the part of the nail above your nail bed, it will likely be hidden by the acrylic nail.  If you hit the nail hard enough to make it bleed, you may be able to see the blood through the fake nail.

Do  you suspect that your nail is broken under the acrylic nail? Is it at the nail tip or is it further down? We’ll share some step-by-step directions to follow below!

Broken Nail Under Acrylic – Best Tips for What to Do

What to Do if You Rip Your Nail off With Acrylic?

If you have damaged your natural nail with your acrylic nails, it can be a little scary.  Sometimes, the acrylic nail may catch the real nail and rip some of it off your nail bed.  This can be quite painful, and may even cause you to bleed.

Before deciding whether you can put the acrylic nail back on, you’ll need to assess the damage.  If any of the tissue under the nail is exposed, you will not want to put the acrylic nail back on with nail glue. 

A broken nail bed under acrylic nails can lead to an infection if you try to put the fake nail back on.  If any of the bed is exposed, you will want to carefully remove the acrylic nail and then clean your natural nail.  Use warm soapy water to remove any glue, pieces of the acrylic nail, and blood. 

You don’t want further nail splits. Allow the nail to heal and grow over the exposure before trying to reapply a new acrylic nail.

What Do You Do When Your Acrylic Nail Breaks and Bleeds?

If you have a broken nail under acrylic bleeding, start by disinfecting the area.  Then, soak the nail to carefully remove the acrylic. 

Use tweezers or nail clippers to carefully remove any torn pieces of your natural nail.  Once you’ve removed the fake nails, clean your natural nail again.  Keep an eye on the nail to see if the pain/bleeding improves, or if the nail splitting happens further.  If they do not, you may want to schedule an appointment with a medical professional.

How to Treat a Broken Nail Under Acrylic

If you’re dealing with broken nails and throbbing pain, take a second first to breathe and get yourself calmed down. 

Then, follow the steps below to treat your nail:

  1. Disinfect your nails:  The first thing you should do is to disinfect your nail and the acrylic nail.  Skipping this step could make it more likely for the nail bed area to become infected.  You can use alcohol or soap and water to disinfect the nails.
  2. Remove the acrylic nail:  Once you have disinfected the nails, you will need to remove the acrylic nail that is over the broken nail.  Visiting a nail salon where an experienced technician can carefully complete this step using a nail drill to file off the nail may be the best option.  This can help make sure that you don’t take any more of your natural nail off when removing the acrylic nail.
  3. Treat the broken nail if necessary:  If the break in your natural nail was past the nail bed, you can simply clip off the broken piece.  If the break was over your nail bed, you’ll need to repair the break to prevent the area from getting infected.  You can use nail glue to cover a small crack, but if you have a large open wound, you should cover it to keep the area clean.
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How to Stop Pain from a Broken Acrylic Nail

The steps you’ll need to take to stop pain from a broken or cracked acrylic nail can vary. This is based on the severity of the pain and the specific cause of it.  In some cases, the pain may go away if you simply hit your nail against something hard.

Other times, the pain may be caused by a crack in your natural nail or if the acrylic nail ripped off the real nail.  If this is the case, you’ll want to carefully remove the acrylic nails to let your natural nails heal properly.  Removing the acrylic nails is also important to prevent an infection.

Broken Nail Under Acrylic – Best Tips For What To Do

Can You Put Acrylic on Broken Nail?

You should not put an acrylic nail over a broken nail bed.  If you have an open wound or are bleeding, putting an acrylic nail over it could prevent your nail from healing properly. It may make it more likely for the area to become infected.

However, if your nail is simply cracked above the nail bed, and there is no bleeding or open wound, then you can fix the nail. Do so by applying an acrylic nail over it or repairing the acrylic nail that is already in place.

Is It Bad to Put Acrylic Over a Broken Nail?

If a split acrylic nail caused your nail bed to bleed or left an open wound, you should not put an acrylic nail back on. It could lead to an infection and won’t let your natural nail heal properly. We want good, healthy nails, so don’t do anything that will get in the way of that.

Can You Put a Fake Nail on a Broken Toenail?

Just as you shouldn’t put acrylic over broken nail where there is bleeding or an open wound, the same is true for toenails.  If the break in your toenail isn’t bleeding and is above the nail bed, then you can use an acrylic nail to cover it up.

Can I Get a Fill if My Nail Broke?

Scheduling regular fills is one important step to take if you’re trying to keep your natural nails healthy when wearing acrylic nails. But can you get a fill if your nail gets damaged?

The answer to this question will vary based on the severity of the break.  If your natural nail broke above the nail bed and didn’t cause any bleeding, then yes, you should be able to get a fill.  However, if the nail broke above the nail bed and was bleeding or left an open wound, you probably shouldn’t schedule a fill.  If you have a broken nail under dip powder with an open wound, the best thing to do is to remove the acrylic nail or dip powder to give your natural nail time to heal.

Broken Nail Under Acrylic – Best Tips For What To Do

How Long Does a Ripped Nail Take To Heal?

The length of time it will take for a ripped nail to heal will vary based on the severity of the tear and its location. 

If your entire nail rips off, it can take up to six months for it to grow back. But if it was only a small piece of nail, the time needed to grow back will be a lot less than this.

Broken Nail Under Acrylic: Steps to Take

If you’ve always just worn nail polish and never had fake nails before, it is always a good idea to learn more about acrylic nails before scheduling an appointment to have them put on.  You want to be prepared so you know what to expect and how to take care of your nails to help them stay looking their best. And it will avoid any mishaps and broken nails!

Artificial nail damage not as simple as applying nail polish remover to resolve any issues. The horror of a detached nail! And you shouldn’t simply use nail glue to fix your problems either.

We hope you have learned some tips that have helped you learn what to do to treat or fix a broken nail under your acrylics.  Obviously, a broken nail is nothing fun and exciting. But using the strategies and tips shared above should help you minimize the pain and inconvenience they can cause.

Interested in learning more about nails or practicing good nail hygiene?  Check out these related posts on our blog:

What are your tips for when your nail breaks? How do you fix a broken nail?

Here’s to healthy nails!

My Nail Broke Really Far Down – FAQs

Can you put acrylic on broken nail?

If you have an open wound or are bleeding, putting an acrylic nail over it could prevent your nail from healing properly. It may make it more likely for the area to become infected.

Can you put a fake nail on a broken toenail?

Just as you shouldn’t put acrylic over broken nail where there is bleeding or an open wound, the same is true for toenails.

Can I get a fill if my nail broke?

The answer to this question will vary based on the severity of the break. If your natural nail broke above the nail tissue and didn’t cause any bleeding, then yes, you should be able to get a fill.
Make sure that you have healthy nails, as this can contribute to nail strength.

By Ellis James

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