Ah, eyelash extensions. I first began getting eyelash extensions in March of 2020 because I wanted long, beautiful lashes for my 20th birthday.
And it was love at first sight.
Like, head over heels, wake-up-like-this love. But alas, over time, I would come to find out that eyelash extensions weren’t a healthy, long-term alternative for me.
This story reads like a Twitter thread, but I promise it is 100% true (my wonderful parents and boyfriend can attest!).
The Beginning
It started beautifully. I had a wonderful lash tech who I absolutely adored; she was talented, methodical, and she helped me pick the best choice for my eyelashes. I went with natural, fluttery lashes.
I would go in for regular fills at the three-week mark, and I was thorough in following her instructions for post-lash care. My extensions were long and beautiful, and my natural lashes underneath were growing strong with no sign of damage.
A large chunk of time went by before I noticed a shift, and it wasn’t until April of 2021 that I really began to see the difference.
first signs
In April, a day after my routine fill, I noticed my eyelid, just above my extensions, had grown scaly and irritated and was intensely itchy.
I chalked it up to not cleaning my lashes (you can’t get them wet 48 hours after a fill) and decided I would get them wet before the 48 hours because the itching was driving me crazy.
When I got home, I wet my lashes and combed them thoroughly, and dabbed a little moisturizer on my lids. The next day, the symptoms went away, and I didn’t think about them again until my following fill appointment.
denial phase
In May, I noticed the same reaction happening a day after my appointment. My eyelids had turned red, itchy, scaly, and slightly swollen. The symptoms subsided again, but this time after 2-3 days.
After some hardcore Googling, I discovered it could be irritation. So I decided that in June, I would retire the eyelash extensions for a while.
After all, I’d had them on for over a year and was due for a break anyway. This problem would surely subside after a few months of break, right? WRONG!
BIG MISTAKE
Because I desperately wanted to convince myself that the problem was saveable, I made a new set appointment in August after giving myself a break for two months. The morning after, I had a vacation planned for Mexico.
When I woke up the next morning, all hell broke loose.
One of my eyelids was swollen almost completely shut and looked like I got punched in the face, hard. The other eyelid was also swollen profusely, and the eyelid skin was scaly and itchy.
After downing 2 Benadryls, I boarded my flight to Mexico and prayed the symptoms would subside.
THE END
Ultimately, the symptoms did subside after 48 hours, but the scare was too much for me. If my eye had been swollen slightly more, the vision in my right eye would’ve been completely obstructed.
Once I returned from vacation, I made an appointment the day after to get my lashes removed and kissed them goodbye! After they were gone, I suffered from swollen, itchy eyes and scaly eyelids for a week until they healed.
It was still scary, but at least I wasn’t in pain.
The Takeaway
The point of this story isn’t to deter you from extensions or scare you in any way. But I wanted to shed light on an issue that’s rarely spoken about: extension allergies or glue allergies.
Becoming allergic to eyelash extensions after having them for a time is an actual and common phenomenon. It begins as a mild irritation (like mine did) until it escalates to a full-blown reaction.
That’s why it’s so important to take measures to prevent it from happening. It won’t happen to everyone, which is why some people can wear extensions for years without symptoms, but those it does happen to is pure chance.
To help your body from viewing extensions as a threat and attacking them, thereby causing your reaction, protect yourself by investing in a good quality barrier cream.
Barrier cream will help coat your eyelids during the extension set and fill processes, preventing the glue fumes from settling on your lids and eventually disrupting your tolerance.
FOR ME?
What’s next for me after losing my beautiful extensions? Healing!
I’m taking some time off any lash-related products until my eyes get fully back to normal. Even then, I’ll probably wait another month before doing anything just because this experience scared me so much.
When I feel ready, I want to try a natural lash serum to strengthen and grow my natural lashes (which remained unharmed during this process, thank God!). After my lashes (hopefully) grow, I’d like to start doing lash lifts and tints regularly.
Despite this experience being both terrifying and humbling, I learned that aesthetics aren’t everything. Although I was genuinely sad about losing my extensions forever, I knew that it wasn’t worth the pain I was inflicting on myself.
If you’re thinking about trying lash extensions, there’s a 100% chance you’ll fall in love with them. I say do it! Just take preventive measures to better your experience and be wary of any sudden irritation.
And if by any means you’re in the unlucky group of becoming allergic, take them off at the first warning! Your eyes (and wallet) will thank you.
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