i posted this as a response to someone else’s problem, but then realised this was a goal that i’d achieved already, woohoo.
My teeth are missing my nails for 9 months now, and bugger them, they don’t need to chew my nails anyway.
I hated looking at my nails. I hated the feeling of my fingernails and would sit rubbing the bitten and broken nails against my skin, looking for little hooks and bits that i could put between my teeth and get rid of. I was very self conscious about my nails in public and would often try to hide them from people. well, it never works, even the most un-observant person can see how good your nails look, hehe. don’t lie to yourself :)
i’m 33 this year and have been doing it since i was 8, so you can only imagine how much of a habit it was for me.
I tried stopping, but found out many times that i do it subconsciously and only when the nail tore or ripped into my skin did i realise what it is i was doing. sitting watching movies was the worst, when the action and excitement reached the apex, i was chewing frantically on my nails like a starving squirrel gnawing the last nut for winter.
How i managed to quit was i went on a blind date, and the whole time i was there i sat with my hands clasped or under the table or on my lap, feeling self conscious about the horrible state of my nails. by the end of the evening she said to me that she has been open with me but i’ve refused to be open with her, and so, throwing caution to the wind i showed her my nails. she laughed at me and said that if we were going to be together i’d have to do something about it, and so i did something about it.
at first it was a constant battle, but whenever i was aware of where my fingers were, i’d give my lip a pinch or tug and say to my self “stop doing that, it’s nastly” and eventually the little pinch became a reminder of what i didn’t want for myself, and weird as it sounds, my lip used to feel like it was about to be pinched when the urge to bite my nails became strong, so i’d do something, type something or take a walk, walking while biting your nails is possible, but i find it’s kind of hampered by the move\ment and bouncing that happens.
I feel so much better about myself now that my nails are growing and must admit it’s been rather fun watching them grow. i’d not look at my nails for two days, then inspect them critically to see how much they’ve grown. Sure they looked alien in the beginning, and i was told it was because the nail bed was badly damaged and would take time to heal, which it did.
Now i’m no longer hiding my fingers from people and it feels good. don’t get me started on scratching an itch, what a feeling! :)
Try this:
1) Sit down and write out all the things you don’t like about biting your nails, then read it and ask yourself why you don’t like those things, remember them, commit them to memory if need be, you’re going to need the negative aspects as a collection of reasons to not do it
2) use that horrible tasting stuff if necessary(claws / Stop biting, whatever), it helps as a reminder that you want to quit biting your nails. remember that the taste, although not pleasant, is not there to gross you out and make you want to wash your hands, it’s merely a helping reminder to you that you’re on a mission of self improvement. convince yourself that not biting your nails is what you want to do! that stuff won’t stop you biting your nails, it merely reminds you what the mission is.
hope this helps :)
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