Do you feel that?
Your ring finger soaring with pain, gradually swelling up, turning red, blue and all sorts of shades. It’s like that ring won’t just come off your finger. The ring which you had been wearing for over a decade now suddenly seems to be concreted in your finger.
So, what do you do? Pull it, push it, twist it, bang it against a wall, and everything else you can try to take it off. The harder you try, you see that your finger is becoming more swelled up, and it starts to burn with pain.
Don’t worry, it’s natural to be frustrated and give it a shot in trying to remove the ring. But if it doesn’t come off, and your finger is hurting bad you need to stop right there, right now, before it becomes worse.
Once you know the techniques to remove a ring effectively, you can remove it with ease. So let’s check out some quick and effective ways to remove the ring from your finger.
First things first…
If you’ve already done the damage, and your finger is swollen and hurting, then you need to do this before you try any of the remaining hacks.
RICE( rest, ice, compression and elevation )
You’ve probably heard this one before. RICE is used to subside the swelling of your finger before you can take off the ring.
Let’s check this process step by step.
1. Take a cup of ice water and fully submerge your finger with the stuck ring, on the liquid.
2. Now, gently lift the submerged finger along with the cup of ice water holding it, and rest the whole thing above your head.
3. After 10-15 minutes, you can take off your finger from the ice water. You can use any lubricant such as butter, baby oil or coconut oil to gently caress your finger and make it smooth.
4. Using your other hand, compress the portion of the finger in the front of the ring. After compressing the finger, slowly and gently twist the ring on both sides and remove it. Consider adding some lubrication while you are trying to remove the ring. This will ease the process and make sure the ring comes smoothly off your finger.
Note: Remember to keep the hand elevated during the entire process.
5. Repeat the whole process between 2-3 times and the ring is sure to come off. If it still does not come off, then stop where you are and seek medical attention.
Tips and hacks to remove the stuck ring
Your realize your ring is stuck on your finger, and you smartly decide to give it a thought before pulling it or banging it on a table to get it off. So, you can start by using these techniques.
1. Twist and rotate
In everyday situations, you will normally pull the ring off your finger. But if the ring gets stuck, then pulling it will only make matters worse and cause further swelling. So, the motion you should be working on is the back and forth twist, which will release the pressure of the ring holding onto your finger and make it slide off easily. Keep twisting the ring back and forth, slowly and gently to ease the tension off the ring and thus remove it.
2. The slippery slide
You can always count on the slippery slide technique to remove the ring smoothly off your finger. The idea is to lather your hand with cold water and slippery lubricants. You can use soap, vaseline, coconut oil, vegetable oil, cooking spray, hand lotion, baby-oil and anything that will act as a lubricant. Now apply the lubricant along the sides of the ring and underneath it and turn or twist the ring back and forth gently. In most cases, you will feel the ring slowly slithering through. Then apply more lubrication and keep turning the ring gently and patiently until it comes off fully.
3. Windex – the most common solution
Now, don’t ask why this works, but 95% of the times it is seen that spraying or squirting Windex (an ammonia-based window cleaner) all across the ring and your finger, results in loosening the skin around, thus helping us to take the ring off easily.
4. The wrapper
The wrapper is another proven technique that works best for all kinds of stuck ring cases. You will have to take a string or dental floss and tightly (make sure it’s not too tight) wrap it around your finger, above it and past the lower knuckle. After you’ve done that, unwrap the string slowly using the string that is underneath the ring. You will see that the ring starts to slide across the knuckles as you keep unwrapping it. Slowly and gently unwrap the whole string and you might just have the ring of your finger.
What if the ring is still stuck?
If all your efforts are in vain, and you are not able to remove the ring with these hacks, then don’t worry. It’s probably because your finger has grown in size or the knuckles have become enlarged due to arthritis. But that’s not a problem. You just have to visit your local jewelry store and show them the stuck ring in your finger. They will remove the ring for you.
Resizing the ring
Your local jewelry store will also resize the ring for you if you want to keep using the ring. They will cut open the ring shank from the bottom and solder metal to it to increase the ring size. Gold, platinum and sterling silver rings can be easily resized and furthermore polished to bring your ring to life again.
Medical attention
In case your fingers have become swollen and discolored by constant pulling and twisting of the ring, do seek medical attention before it gets worse. The more you try to remove the ring despite it not coming off, the more the blood gets clotted which might even lead to permanent damage of your finger. So seek medical attention before it’s too late.
You will be fine!
Don’t panic or get frustrated. It’s just a matter of time before that ring slides off your finger. The tips and hacks mentioned here are proven, effective techniques that if applied correctly will work for the good. Always remember, don’t overdo any of these techniques if the ring does not come off. Instead, seek medical attention if the situation demands.
