If you see toenail fungus, or onychomycosis, on your foot, your reaction can depend on whether you are a diabetic or not. It can be an annoyance for people, but if you are diabetic and the circulation is poor in that region, it can be very dangerous. In either case, you want to get it taken care of very quickly.
Unfortunately, it is not a fast process. You will not have the treatment and will see it disappear the next day. It can take quite a while for you to see any kind of results.
You may opt to try first alternative natural treatments such as essential oils, that according to this article, contain antifungal properties that protect and can help with yeast infections like candida.
Essential oils are highly concentrated plant extracts sourced from tree bark and resin, leaves, stems, roots, flowers, nuts, seeds, and even fruit. If you want the most effective and trusted essential oils for toenail fungus, use lemon, peppermint, cinnamon, tea tree, coconut, and oregano that can be easily found at home.
All is not lost, though. Here are some signs that your fungal toenail is on the mend.
Original Symptoms of Fungal Toenails
Before we tell you how to tell whether the toenail is healing, you need to know what to look out for in the first place. There are several things that you may see:
- Discolored nails may take on different colors, with some of them possibly indicating a more advanced form of the fungus.
- Crumbly nails that can look like they are ready to fall apart.
- Misshapen nails can be a sign of several things, but a fungus is the main culprit.
- Thickened nails are also one of the main signs that any foot doctor will likely instantly recognize as pointing toward fungal toenails.
You See a Change in the Color of The Nail
If you look at your toenail and see it is yellow, black, or brown, then that likely means that you have a fungal toenail. As you get the treatment and it is working, you will see that particular color fade away and be replaced by a healthy color.
Your Nail Is Not As Thick
One of the main signs that your fungal toenail is healing is that your toenail is not as thick as it was when the fungus first started growing and took hold.
You Can See Healthy Nails Coming In
As time goes by and you continue the treatment, you should see the coloring start to be replaced by healthy and clear nails at the base. Your toenail is on its way to looking like it normally would.
This is not going to be something that happens overnight. It takes roughly a year for the new healthy nail to come in. Yes, it can make a glacier look like it is growing as fast as a cheetah runs.
What Should I Look Out For?
While treatment can usually resolve the situation over time, there are some chances that the fungal toenail could get worse. If the color changes from yellow to black or brown, if it starts hurting or bleeding, or if you notice that the toenail is starting to pull from the bed, then you want to see your podiatrist as soon as possible. If it affects your ability to walk, then you definitely need to seek medical help as fast as possible.
The best thing that you can do is talk to a podiatrist. They can examine you and see whether or not your toenails are going in the right direction or if you need to change your treatment. They can prescribe you creams to put on there to help get rid of the fungus. It’s also important to go see them if things do not look like they are getting better.
It can be an aggravating thing to have to deal with toenail fungus, and the healing process can seem like it takes forever to get everything back to normal. But if you work with your doctor and stay on top of things, you can possibly prevent it from happening again.
How do you do that? Ultimately, you need to change your socks daily – do not wear the same pair more than once before washing them. Wear good-fitting shoes and trim your toenails regularly. Consider using foot powder. If you do that, you have a good chance of having healthy toenails. Then you will be able to walk around the beach and the pool without wanting to hide your feet at all times.
The last thing you want to do is to just leave the fungal toenail alone. Ignoring it will not make it go away. Instead, it will progress and could wind up causing serious infection, especially if you are diabetic. It’s important to be closely aware of the condition of your feet – even though it is something many people ignore. If you do, the faster you can get it taken care of and begin the healing process.