Gel does not ruin your nails. Bad removal does. What actually causes the damage, and how to avoid all of it.
The internet has decided that gel is the villain. In eleven years of doing them, the damage we see almost never comes from the gel - it comes from what happened when it was taken off.
Peeling gel off removes the top layers of the nail plate with it. That is the thin, bendy, sad nail people blame on the product. Proper removal means a soak, gentle lift, and no scraping at anything that does not want to move.
The second cause is over-filing at prep. Your natural nail should never be buffed down to make polish stick. If your nails feel hot during filing, that is friction damage, and it is entirely avoidable.
The third is skipping rest incorrectly. You do not need a break between sets if the work is done well - but you do need someone looking at the nail plate honestly every few visits and saying so when it needs one.
Book removal as its own service if you have gone somewhere else and want to start clean. It is thirty-five dollars, it takes half an hour, and it is far cheaper than growing out a damaged nail.
