Like most teenage girls, my first acrylic nail set felt like a right of passage. I was 17 years old, and it was the morning of my junior prom. I went with a long square silhouette, a lightly colored base coat topped with swirling white airbrushed designs on each fingernail ---a very early 2000-esque homage. After years of only being allowed to wear press-on nails around the house, I remember sitting in the chair, trying my best to hold in the excitement and anticipation of my first professional full set.
From that moment, I was hooked. Throughout my adult life, I developed a love-hate relationship with visiting the nail salon faithfully every two to three weeks.
After years of acrylic extensions, I began to notice how damaged and brittle my natural nails were becoming in between sets. Once the process became too painful and upkeep seemed to be causing more harm than good, I began to seek alternatives that would allow my real nails to grow healthy, strong, and just as long but without extensions.
One day, a friend came back from Paris raving about her latest experience receiving a hard gel manicure while abroad. After hearing her testimony and seeing how long her natural nails had grown in such a short time, I did more research to learn what exactly went into this gel that she couldn’t stop raving about.
Skeptical of the many nail trends and techniques, I became frustrated trying to keep up with the latest innovations, and this seemed to be just another trend. However, fully determined and striving for longer lengths and stronger nails without the awful nail enhancements, I finally decided to give the hard gel a try.
I tried just about everything as an alternative, from gel polish to Gel-X; however, nothing seemed to get the results I was looking for.
After removing my acrylics, I began my natural nail journey with short and brittle nails. Surprisingly, it didn’t take long to see major improvements. Within the first 30 days, I saw how fast my nails were growing and how strong they were becoming.
Keep scrolling to see my nail journey from the beginning and why hard gel has convinced me to leave nail extensions in the past for good.
Acrylic Nails - July 2022
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
Hard Gel Manicure - February 2023
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
Hard Gel Manicure - March 2023
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
Hard Gel Manicure - April 2023
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
What Is Hard Gel?
Also known as builder gel, hard gel can be used to deliver a protective coating to cover the natural nails, making them feel harder, stronger, and more flexible. This innovative nail enhancement can be molded, shaped, and refilled by being cured or hardened in a UV light rather than through evaporating solvents like acrylic. Hard gel is not gel polish, shellac, soft gel, or soak-off gel; however, you can put gel polish over hard gel for a nice finish and designs if you’re feeling fancy.
Along with more strength and durability, the hard gel is excellent at protecting natural nails, making them less likely to break or crack over time.
According to nailpro.com, hard gel is an acrylic alternative, and you can use hard gel to overlay natural nails, sculpt extensions and repair broken nails. The site also suggests hard gel is perfect for clients who are transitioning from acrylic, who want to strengthen their natural nails, or who have weak and brittle nails that need more support and structure. Also, if you are removing acrylic, hard gel is the best product to provide more support as you transition.
Hard Gel - June 2023
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
The Benefits of Hard Gel
What I love most about the application of hard gel is how quickly I’m in and out of the salon chair. A method that takes about an hour from start to finish, it’s extremely quick compared to the time it takes to apply acrylic. Another bonus of hard gel is that you can fill it in, just like you would acrylic, which is ideal for those of us who rather not soak off our nails every service. Unlike many gel methods, hard gel cannot be taken off by acetone which is one reason it's so durable and why its properties help protect the natural nail.
As previously mentioned, this is also a good service for those who want to grow their natural nails to longer lengths while keeping them strong and healthy, which is why I personally made the switch. Long, healthy natural nails are definitely a flex. Along with efficiency and time, hard gel is also more cost-effective, starting at $70---cheaper than a full set of acrylic nails.
I’m also not booking nail appointments every two weeks because hard gel can last up to six weeks without needing a fill or even getting a chip.
Healthy Nails - July 2023
Courtesy of Shahirah Ahmed
With patience and determination, my nails have achieved my wildest dreams. A year later, my nails are now at a length I thought was only achievable with artificial enhancements, and I couldn't be happier. Hard gel has become a staple in my self-care routine, and I don’t plan to give it up any time soon.
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Again, the answer never changes because, if there is one thing that Shellie Reneé Warren is gonna get, it’s 6-8 (sometimes nine) hours of sleep. However, since my chronotype (check out “Ever Wonder What Personality Traits Make Someone A 'Morning Person'?”) means that I like/prefer to write in the wee hours of the morning, sometimes I will sleep for the night for five hours and take a nap in the day. And y’all, that is just fine with me because I am well aware of the fact that napping does everything from give me more energy, heighten my alertness and even make me more creative to decrease stress levels, strengthen immunity, and reduce my chances of experiencing a heart attack or stroke.
My problem is I will oftentimes go “overboard” with my daytime zzz’s. What I mean by that is, in order to get the most out of a nap, they say thatyou shouldn’t sleep for longer than 25 minutes or so; otherwise, you could wake up feeling sluggish (I don’t but…). Also, it can make resting, soundly, at night a bit of a struggle.
So, what are you saying, Shellie? We should get quickies in? Yeah. And it’s funny that the word “quickie” would come up because just like a sex quickie can do wonders for you (and it can — check out “12 Super Solid Reasons To Have A Quickie Every Single Day”), it’s a full-circle moment when I say that something that can improve the quality of your sex life is to have a power nap (a nap that lasts between 10-30 minutes).
Wanna know how the two things correlate? Honestly, it’s no secret that sleep and sex work together to optimize both (check out “6 Fascinating Ways Sex And Sleep Definitely Go Hand In Hand”). Today, though, we’re going to tap into how a nap, specifically, can have you partaking in some of the best sex that you’ve experienced in a minute. I’ll explain.
Naps Reduce Stress
GiphyIf you’re feeling super stressed out right now, you are not alone. There is plenty of data out here that says that most of us are stressed for at least a couple of reasons at a time — and that can impact your sexual health on a few levels. For one thing, it can bring about feelings of depression and/or anxiety. Stress can also throw your hormone levels off (including your cycle) which can weaken your libido. Stress can make you want to put distance between you and your partner (yes, literally).
Stress can also make it challenging to get aroused or to have an orgasm. And just what can help to decrease stress? Taking a nap. Since sleep has a way of helping you to “get off of the clock” and relax a bit, that can lower your stress levels and “reset” your body so that you are calmer — and that, in turn, can do wonders for your sex drive and ultimately your sex life.
Naps Improve Your Mood
GiphyThere is one person in my life, and fairly 80 percent of the time, she’s in a super good mood. Oh, but let that girl go without sleep, and…who is this woman? LOL. There’s research behind why this happens. When a person is sleep-deprived, it messes with their brain chemicals, and that can amplify emotions like anger, restlessness and sadness. In fact, one study revealed that people who had their sleep disrupted throughout the night, they ended up having their positive outlook on life reduced by about 30 percent.
And geeze, who wants to have sex when they’re not feeling very good? Anyway, since serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps to regulate your moods, your sleep patterns, and your libido and sleep is what helps to keep it in balance — by taking a nap, not only can it help you to feel better, it can also increase your desire for sex (it can also build up your endurance which is also…sexually beneficial).
Naps Increase Your Focus and Concentration
GiphySomething that some of my clients bring up is how, when it comes to having sex, sometimes the flesh is willing while the spirit is weak because, although the desire for intimacy is there, so much is going on that they aren’t able to get still enough to focus on experiencing copulation with their partner. This also tracks because, when you don’t have enough rest, your brain finds itself not working in harmony and that can make it hard to do everything from approaching life with a sense of flexibility to making necessary decisions.
Certain data also reveal that a lack of rest can cause you to have a really poor attention span and not process things in context (the more you know). So, if you really want to get some yet it’s hard for you to focus long enough to make it happen, ask your bae to lie down with you and take a nap. Between the sleep and the snuggling (check out “Fall's Coming: 8 Wonderful Health Benefits Of Cuddling”) — you may wake up with your mind and body totally on the same page. #wink
Naps Can Make You Feel Better About Your Body
GiphyEven if, overall, you feel really good about your body, I think that we all have moments when we feel less attractive than others — and who wants to have sex when they don’t really feel…very sexy? Well, something else that sleep, in general, can do is increase your confidence in your body.
For one thing, if you want to lose a few pounds, sleep can actually make that happen by helping your body metabolize the glucose (sugar) that’s in it so that you can better manage your appetite. Other studies go on to share that since sleep deprivation can impact one’s mental health and emotional stability in a negative way, of course, getting enough rest would increase body positivity.
Shoot, science even goes so far as to say that insomnia can cause people to have an elevated level of dissatisfaction when it comes to their body image. Don’t take their word for it, though. Look in the mirror before a nap. Then look in a mirror after waking up from me. Do you feel better? I’d be surprised if you don’t.
Makes Your Brain Bigger…Which Could Make Your Orgasms Better
GiphyI saved the best for last by design. Now if you’re wondering how in the world a nap can improve (and possibly increase) your orgasms — oh, there is a method to the madness…trust. For starters, the saying that your biggest sex organ is your brain? That isn’t a myth. Long story less long, the brain is what houses your central nervous system and that is what controls how men and women sexually function (yes, literally).
And since the brain also releases feel-good chemicals like dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin during sex and brain activity significantly increases in women during sexual activity (especially right before she orgasms) — well, would it trip you out to know that when you take a nap, your brain actually expands? A bigger brain (that’s healthy) can potentially intensify your sexual experiences (and your climaxes) — and who doesn’t want that to go down?
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Like I said earlier, I never have to be convinced to get a nap in. However, if your sex life has been a bit stagnant lately, you’ve been feeling a little sluggish and you’re not sure what to do — I’m hoping that a nap can get you right.
There’s enough science to prove that it can. All you need to do is give it a shot.
Now where’s your pillow and sleep mask, chile?
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