The myrrh stuff does works! I guess you want to try to build and build over time too. Susan Jolles turned me on to Bag Balm, which smells awful. She had me use it to soften my hard callused fingertips(my thumbs sounded like nails, pretty gross) but I also found it helped a lot with the pain over time…not right away.
It smells so freaking bad, I usually put it on at night, then use it sparingly in the am. The bag balm and a nail file make a world of a difference.