This was a big reason I couldn’t stick with the vapo rub. very hard to get the sock on without wiping the vapo off the toe I’d just spent so much time covering, and the fact that I absolutely cannot sleep in socks. I did my routine each morning before I went to work, since I had to wear socks & shoes for at least eight hours anyway.
I do believe vapo works because I was seeing improvement before I gave it up, it was just a bit too tedious and messy for me. My doc even said he had seen some success with it, but his bleach trick takes mere seconds and leaves no mess, smell or greasy vapo socks
The three month treatment was always plenty of time to cure mine, it just never lasted. I’d have pretty toenails for about two months and the the dreaded discoloration would appear, and within two months or so I had full blown brown/yellow thick as a wall nails again. (And yeah I DID have to have blood work done to make sure my liver was in good shape)
There’s really no reason to fear lamisil unless you’ve underlying liver disease such as a chronic hepatitis infection or persistent liver damage, frankly. It’s no biggie to monitor for liver enzyme elevation, and no biggie to stop the med if the elevation becomes significant. Things normalize quickly after discontinuation in the vast, vast majority of cases.
I’ve seen more problems with liver enzyme elevation on statin drugs and TB drugs, frankly.
So if you hate your funky nails, and your liver isn’t at significant risk, I’d say it’s reasonable to discuss lamisil treatment with your doc.
I wonder if diet could play a part in creating an atmosphere which is welcoming to fungus. I’ve rarely gotten a satisfactory answer to this. It seems a diet high in carbohydrates could play a part. What do others think?
My feet are healthy and I suspect that one of the reasons is that I also go without shoes whenever I can. And shoes made with man-made materials seem particularly condusive to heat and moisture.
I always heard the “there’s no cure” line and never wanted to go the lamasil route.
My brother tried some of the cheap over-the-counter fungi-cure stuff for $10 and swore by it. I gave it a shot and it eliminated an infection under my big toenail that had been there almost 10 years in about 2 months.
Reviews of the product are mixed so it apparently doesn’t work for everyone but for $10 it’s definetly worth a shot.
I’ve dealt with a few different doctors over the years with this issue. From my family physician to 3 different podiatrists, and none of them can give me a clear reason why I am susceptible to this condition. I’m a clean person, I shower daily and wear clean socks/shoes, air my feet when I don’t have to wear shoes. I don’t frequent public locker rooms, or showers where you might think this thing could get spread around. As far as diet, we eat very healthy around here. Lots of fruit and veggies, and very little packaged or processed foods. It seems to be one of those things you either are susceptible to or not.
He should try Gold Bond Powder or equivalent in his socks, put powder in before putting foot in. Don’t know if it would help with the fungus but will help keep his feet dry. Works for my sweaty feet.
What was the name of it? How long did it take to work. I bought something that I haven’t gotten around to trying yet and wonder if it’s the same thing.
I have tried literally everything. Vinegar, Vinegar plus DMSO, tea tree oil, tea tree oil plus DMSO, bleach, (all of the former for 6 months or more) and even oral Lamisil for 3 months in conjunction with topical Lamisil. Nothing has worked in the long run. The only thing like success I can report is that what used to be the worst nail is now the best. One big toenail was so bad it was all but totally detached all the way back. I removed as much of the nail as I could (there was only a ring of toenail around the edge) and kept Micatin on the nail base until it grew back and the nail reattached and looks better than all the rest. I think they mainly just look better when you keep them filed down from the top and pay them lots of attention. Go back to benign neglect and they just thicken up again.
My doc said don’t bother with Lamisil so I’ve been doing brown Listerine plus some OTC nail fungus liquid stuff. It has helped - nail is growing back beautifully, just slow as it is on big toenails. Put the stuff on 2-3 times a day with a Q-tip.
That is why I started using fabric bandaids - designed for fingertip or knuckle. I’m doing this on my second toe, so they fit well. I have used up 3 boxes of 20 so far, they keep the nail covered with Vicks 24 hours a day.
I think the actual name was Fungi-cure. I got it at Target. Little bottle that you brush on like fingernail polish after you jump out of the shower. I’d say it took about 2 months to do the trick. The infection/fungus I had was along the side of the nail so you could trim the dead nail away and get the medication to seep in under the nail. If the infection is really far under the nail I don’t know if the medication will reach it.
I’ll chime in now: I wound up taking Lamisil, with periodic (monthly? I think?) blood tests for my liver. Although they said my levels stayed normal, I can tell you that for a few hours after I took the pill each day, I felt like absolute shit. Seriously, if that’s what death by liver failure feels like, then that’s a horrible way to go. I finally brought it up with my regular doctor, who pointed out that I was taking the Lamisil at the same time as my regular birth control pills. (I had figured, eh, gotta remember 'em daily anyway, might as well take 'em together.) She suggested taking them at opposite times of day from each other, which helped a great deal. At her suggestion, I also talked to the podiatrist about taking the Lamisil every other day. That helped more.
Eventually, my toenails cleared up. I was also slathering Vapo Rub at night (it was winter so I was sleeping in socks anyway) and occasionally, like while watching a movie or something, would sit and soak my feet in a bowl of straight vinegar for half an hour or so… just for good measure. Now whenever I’ve taken off my toenail polish, I try to do one or the other or both at least a couple of times before the next polish, in the hopes that I nevereverever have to deal with either the infection or with taking Lamisil ever again.
Thats one thing the podiatrist was very firm about, absolutely no more toe nail polish. He said that’s a huge factor in a lot of female cases, it smothers the nail and traps the fungus in or something along that line. At any rate, he was so adamant about it that I have been afraid to wear polish since, and so far after this last treatment it hasn’t returned.
How long did it take for the nails to grow out and look healthy? Also, does it need to be applied after you take a shower or can you just apply it dry? Thanks.
If you are Diabetic, you will be highly susceptible to toenail fungal infections. If you are suffering from chronic and/or repeated fungal infections, get tested for Diabetes.
AND if you find you are indeed Diabetic and are placed on oral medication, FORGET the oral Lamisil or any other oral antifungal drugs. They don’t play well together in the liver.
Another caveat with taking Lamisil: once you stop, the infection typically returns.
~VOW
I’ve had the fungus on my big toe for several years. My doctor gave me a course of Lamisil and pronounced me cured because no new fungus was coming in… BUT what was there about halfway out stayed there. I pretty much reconciled myself to thinking I’d have it forever, but over the past couple of months because of an impending hip replacement, I’ve been doing pool therapy two days a week. I just happened to notice that it seems to be improving. It’s a little less dark, and maybe moving outward. I googled “chlorine and toe fungus” and found this thread to see if I was onto something.
I’m gonna try the bleach solution on top of my continuing pool use - I’ll post my progress. Color me optimistic!
I tried this every day for nearly a year. Didn’t work for me. I just have one affected nail (2nd toe) and it hasn’t spread. I’ll have to try the vinegar or bleach treatment. I live in Az and we’re in sandals 9 months of the year! I can cover it with polish, but I’d love to find a cure.
I’ve been doing the Vicks daily for 6 months or more. I would say it’s helped, I can see good nail along with the bad, but it hasn’t cured it by a long shot.
I THOUGHT I had toe nail fungus for many years. I finally (can’t remember why) went to a podiatrist for it (not a GP), and he said it wasn’t fungus – it was a damaged nail. So all of Pen-lac, vapo-rub, tea tree oil, etc. treatments I had tried for years were pointless. The solution: surgery to have the nail and nail bed removed. No problems with it since.
My point: go see a good podiatrist to CONFIRM that it is actually fungus and not something else before you waste all that time on money on ineffective self-treatments.
Go back to benign neglect and they just thicken up again.