Episode 1: Allergic to Nail Products - Now What?

I decided to make my introduction to the Pointed & Polished Podcast in December. In the days leading up to the holidays with the hustle and bustle and plans galore, I received a lot of questions as to why I would announce this project now instead of a fresh start in the new year. I couldn’t help but remember this time of year not so long ago when I first started diving in to the subject of nail product allergies. This was a time where I purposefully opted out of many holiday festivities. At this time I had experienced the worst bout of allergic contact dermatitis to my nail products to date. My hands, dried, peeling, cracked, red, swollen, nails lifted and fallen off, and in so much pain that even a light hand wash in cold water was too painful to endure.
I didn’t want to leave the house, and if I had to, I wore gloves or didn’t take my hands out of my pockets. Which honestly was a bit unusual for Los Angeles. I was too depressed to go to any holiday parties. With just under two weeks left before I was to enter manicuring school, I had an important decision to make - all while navigating this confusing news that I was to never touch my beloved nail products ever again.
I know some of you can relate - Who am I without my nails done? Nails are such a huge part of our own self and creative expression. I had been frequenting salons in LA for about a decade for my biweekly appointments. I mixed it up too, sometimes 1.5” long acrylic, sometimes just a simple gel. But I always arrived with my idea or inspo, and if they weren’t done, then I just wasn’t complete.
When I first wanted to pursue nails as a potential career I didn’t have much direction. I knew I was passionate about them, but if I’m being honest, I think I just wanted to have access to the trade shows and the professional products for myself. It wasn’t until I was involved in the photo world where I saw the potential for a career. Admittedly, I put off schooling for more years before committing to pivoting my career from producer to potential on-set manicurist. I was ready! But now I just felt like all my career plans were thrown in the toilet.
My experience in beauty school was less than stellar. I dive into this experience and this topic further, but there is an immense lack of awareness when it comes to nail product safety in our education. More on this in a different post, but this fact only further exacerbates my issues during my schooling. After my third visit to the ER, I had enough.
So I took to the internet and started a simple Facebook group. I was seeking others in my position, or nail techs who perhaps navigated their own allergy. I was really seeking support now that I’ve sunk in all this time and money. I immediately received some support. I no longer felt completely isolated from my fellow students and peers. I nurtured this group. I needed them and it was apparent we needed each other. When early 2020 put everything on pause, including my 400 hours, something happened that I was not expecting. Within just a few weeks, my small group of a couple hundred techs grew to thousands of members. The realization of this issue was extended further than the tech really sparked this movement. Suddenly, thousands were taking nail products in their own hands and within just a few applications were entering my group in pain and with irreversible damage. This is just a small and super short intro to what sparked my mission to make this common occurrence, common knowledge. This barely begins to scratch the surface of what my group discussions, this substack page, and my podcast page cover.
The support that everyone has given to one another and importantly to me in the group has been invaluable. The emotional support needed during this time is real, and I’ll be the first to acknowledge this. I think back to that late December when I had all the questions with no answers. So this is why I opted to get this out in the world now. I invite anyone exploring nails in education, a career or even a hobby to receive the information needed in the new year. I don’t wish for anyone to have the experience I had when exploring nails and my allergies. I assure everyone all the time that you don’t want this allergy the way that I have it because it affects so much more than just nails. More on this to come. But I want everyone to know that you have my support along the way so you can have a thriving career or hobby.
Thank you for listening.