Barefoot With Lupus

[Tiras]

Good morning everyone or evening depending on where you are?

As most of you know I have to go barefoot due to lupus skin issues. I have always kept my feet neat and clean especially when going out in public. My wife Laura will even do my nails. She uses polish to cover up the places on my nails (both fingers and toes) from lupus.

In the last few months my nails have started to split, crack, separated, curl up, curl down, and dish out. My dermatologist gave me a prescription for a nail treatment, it is $58.00 a bottle, it is light pink in color on my nails. The bottle is the same size as a bottle of regular nail polish. Then a good top coat goes on.

My question is does anyone else with lupus have nail issues, and also would a regular nail conditioner/hardner and a color polish and a good top coat do the same.

Being a guy I am self conscious about my nails having polish and they are extremely shiny, but, I will have to admit I get a lot of compliments on neat, clean, and good they look. Believe it or not I've had a lot of ladies tell me they wished their nails looked like mine. That credit all goes to Laura for making them look as good as she can with the lupus issues.

As you can see in the photo the skin issues I have due to Lupus. This is about as good as it ever gets.

[LalSD]

Hello Tiras, I had a period where my toe nails would fall off and grow back again. My hand nails were very weak and would loose them half way. Please massage regularly to make sure circulation. I use a moisture cream called ‘aqueous cream’ in the UK. Never had that problem again. I first used black castor oil, then applied aqueous cream. Never looked back. However if I use any other cream, my nails go back being weak, brittle, and they fall off. I also drink chicken and lamb soup regularly. It helps me balance my vitamins and if you eat fresh veggies, your body starts getting a balance. Be consistent and you will see the improvement. I have SLE. My feet and legs has similar sores which took about 3 years to heal. May be more but the cream, castor oil and natural foods, I am back to full time working. Yes I have so much pain, but I don’t let it take over my mind. Hope this helps.

[Tiras in reply to LalSD]

Thank you! Yes it helps a lot!

I have had to go barefoot 100% of the time for the last 3 years because of skin issues. If I wear shoes, it rubs blisters and raw places in 5 minutes or less. We have tried everything from soft fluffy house shoes to flip flops, even socks will rub, takes longer but, still rubs places? fortunately I live in Alabama in the US and it does not usually get extremely cold here so, going barefoot has not been much of an issue.

[Chanpreet_Walia LUPUS UK]

Hi Tiras,

Nail abnormalities can be caused by many different things; the NHS Choices’ website provides a detailed overview of the different types that can occur and how they are caused: nhs.uk/Conditions/nail-abno...

We published a factsheet on ‘LUPUS: and the Feet’ discussing skin and nail problems which you can read about here: lupusuk.org.uk/wp-content/u...

Have you tried using a matte nail polish?

It is important to bear in mind that working with, or using solvents such as paint, nail polish and dyes may trigger lupus to become more active.

We published a guide on lupus and skin which you may like to read here: lupusuk.org.uk/wp-content/u...

[Tiras in reply to Chanpreet_Walia]

Thank you for the information!

The dermatologist said a hard top coat, not saying it not out there some where but, we have not found a hard matte top coat. We have only found the hard top coat in high gloss?

[Chanpreet_Walia LUPUS UK in reply to Tiras]

You're most welcome!

I'm not sure if the following link will be helpful but it is worth looking at. It is an article on the '10 Hardcore Top Coats for Long-Lasting Polish'. A matte top coat is mentioned: stylecaster.com/beauty/best...

All the best.

[Tiras in reply to Chanpreet_Walia]

Thank you! I use the sally Hansen that was shown on the link you sent. However, the link said to reapply top coat every 3 to 4 days. I have not been doing this, so now I will try it and see what happens. Again Thank You so much!