Ingrowing toenails

Thanks for all the thoughts - in general it seems to have been a good thing to do. I do not plan to go to the the "Grit your teeth" podiatrist - no way! - but am on the waiting list with NHS. It has been many weeks now so I may ring and just check that they have at least got the letter. Both my big toenails are ingrowing and frequently get infected, so they do need to go.

If your podiatrist carries out such a procedure without local anaesthesia then I'd find someone else. Just thinking about it makes me squirm. It would be agonising to be subjected to such treatment without first being completely numb.

Our teenage son had this done, with anaesthetic at a local hospital.His toe was affecting his rugby playing, what they did was dig out a sort of channel at both sides of the nail, thus making more room for the nail to grow.
There was no way they could have done it ( or should I say, there was no way he would have had it done ) without anaesthetic.He has had no problems with it since then.

I had part of my big nail removed on Thursday. As with Tallulah57, the only bit that hurt was the local anaesthetic. Since then, no pain whatsoever. I went to a private clinic, only because we have a holiday coming up in Sept which will involve a lot of walking and the podiatrist said that I needed to allow 6 weeks for full recovery. Podiatrist was lovely and put me at ease, explaining all the steps as she went along. After the nail removal, she used a chemical to stop any regrowth of nail and because it's like a chemical burn,[not that I can feel it] it takes longer to heal. But it really hasn't been painful at all. She saw me the next day for a dressing change and I came away with a kit of dressing materials and a special cover for my foot so that I can shower. She's also booked me in for an appointment in 2 weeks for a check up. All this was included in a set price.If my other big toe develops an ingrowing nail, I shall be back to get it sorted out like a shot.

I had the outer side of each big toenail removed, both at the same time. I had local anaesthetic and they were healed within a month. Referred to chiropodist by my GP and it was done on the NHS. Wouldn't hesitate again. Partial avulsion means I can still use nail polish.

Both DS2 and his DGF had problems with toes and had their big toe nails removed, with local anaesthetic. No problems. Even their dog had to have her dew claws removed. Thankfully, when baby arrived all her toes were as they should be!

I had the procedure Friday last, only discomfort was the actual local anaesthetic other than that no problem at all. Had both big toes done. The procedure took around twenty minutes for both, advised to rest feet for the remainder of the day and not drive for 48 hours. Can't fault the podiatrist who did it. By the way it was done on the N.H.S. and I don't have diabetes, I would definitely recommend the procedure, ingrown toe nails are so very painful.

I had the same procedure but with a local to numb the pain. Took nearly 2 years to heal. There have been previous posts about the subject you may want to look at.
And yes, it is painful. Good luck.

DS1 had a recurrent ingrowing toenail as a teenager. The GP used a local anaesthetic to remove the nail. Eventually it grew back and grew in again but by that time he was quite self-sufficient and found himself an excellent podiatrist who somehow fixed it for good. Thirty years later, it seems to have remained normal, though he does have an arthritic toe. I wonder if it's the same one .

Ouch - I wouldn't want that done without a local anaesthetic.
Psoriasis means my nails leave the nail bed, grow very thick and the big toe nails are embedded. The podiatrist recommended I have both removed. When the appointment arrived, it coincided with major family stuff alongside eye surgery for me, so it was postponed. Since then, I've kept up regular appointments (privately) and it's manageable. The NHS podiatrist now says as I've not had infections, its better managed conservatively.
Did you see the other recent discussion on this Lucky?

It involves digging right down into the nail bed - sounds blooming painful to me!

Sounds pretty normal practice as far as I know from people who've had it done.