Nail biting is a habit that many people have. Usually it starts in infancy, between the ages of 4 and 10, but some people carry this habit on into adulthood. This habit is sometimes due to worry, anxiousness, stress or boredom. Regardless of what the reason turns out to be, you can learn the way to stop biting your nails, so that they can stop looking ragged and unkempt. View the techniques below.
Choose one finger at a time to guard from nail biting.
The key here is to select just one of your nails or thumbnails to not bite. You can be happy to bite the remainder of your nails, but not the one you have chosen. Do this till the nail and cuticle that you are safeguarding starts to appear fitter and starts to grow. Then, choose another nail to guard in addition to the first one. Continue doing this until all of your nails are shielded, and you have kicked the habit.
Paint your nails with a bitter solution.
Whether you were aware or not, there are special solutions that you may use to color your nails to deter you from putting them in your mouth and biting them. The taste is so sour, it will not be appealing to subject yourself to the taste, so you'll likely avoid biting your nails. However, you have to be willing to color the solution on often.
Try to keep from biting your nails for 1 hour.
This method of learning the way to stop biting your nails is to start with a small amount of time that you will not engage in the habit. Then, give yourself a little reward. This could be a bit of candy or another tiny token. Then, try to keep back from biting your nails for 3 hours. If you succeed, then you can reward yourself with something a little larger. Maybe by buying some music downloads or getting that new pair of shoes that are on sale. Then, increase the time to refrain by several more hours, and then come up with a bigger reward. Soon, you may be completely cured of the habit.
The above strategies are ideas for helping you kill the habit. Don't be afraid to try them all, if necessary. Another great tip is to keep a pack of sugarless gum handy so that you can gnaw instead of bite. Sometimes it works to make a distraction.
Choose one finger at a time to guard from nail biting.
The key here is to select just one of your nails or thumbnails to not bite. You can be happy to bite the remainder of your nails, but not the one you have chosen. Do this till the nail and cuticle that you are safeguarding starts to appear fitter and starts to grow. Then, choose another nail to guard in addition to the first one. Continue doing this until all of your nails are shielded, and you have kicked the habit.
Paint your nails with a bitter solution.
Whether you were aware or not, there are special solutions that you may use to color your nails to deter you from putting them in your mouth and biting them. The taste is so sour, it will not be appealing to subject yourself to the taste, so you'll likely avoid biting your nails. However, you have to be willing to color the solution on often.
Try to keep from biting your nails for 1 hour.
This method of learning the way to stop biting your nails is to start with a small amount of time that you will not engage in the habit. Then, give yourself a little reward. This could be a bit of candy or another tiny token. Then, try to keep back from biting your nails for 3 hours. If you succeed, then you can reward yourself with something a little larger. Maybe by buying some music downloads or getting that new pair of shoes that are on sale. Then, increase the time to refrain by several more hours, and then come up with a bigger reward. Soon, you may be completely cured of the habit.
The above strategies are ideas for helping you kill the habit. Don't be afraid to try them all, if necessary. Another great tip is to keep a pack of sugarless gum handy so that you can gnaw instead of bite. Sometimes it works to make a distraction.