I confess: I have been a chronic nail-biter since as long as I can remember. It’s not extreme; My hands don’t look disfigured from it or anything. It’s just something that I tend to do when I’m nervous. The only thing that seems to help me is to have nail polish on them. As long as I have nail polish on, my nails are safe from me and my biting. I think it’s because I want to keep them pretty. But unlike some things, nail polish isn’t forever. As soon as it disappears, my nail biting commences. Right now, it has been about a week since my nail polish slowly peeled off, and six out of ten nails have already been bitten. On the plus side, I still have four surviving!
I’ve willed myself to stop biting before. That lasted maybe about a month. At one point, I was obsessively putting on nail polish. People have recommended a bitter-tasting ointment designed to stop nail biters, but I’ve heard that you get used to the taste. For all my fellow chronic nail-biters, here are some things I found that may or may not help. Can’t hurt to try, right?
Wear fake nails – Try any sort of fake nail products, such as acrylics, wraps, gels and press-on nails. Now, I know the stigma that is often associated with fake nails is more Jersey Shore than Virginia Tech, but you don’t need a ridiculous poof and oompa loompa skin to use fake nails. These days, they have some relatively classy looking fake nails. They look great and they should prevent you from biting your nails, considering that they’re not the real thing.
Get a new (healthy) habit – Nail biting usually occurs when someone is stressed or nervous. To distract yourself, try adopting a new habit. Now, keep in mind that sometimes adopting a new habit to get rid of the old one means that you’re stuck with another habit. This is why you should try going for something healthy, like running or reading, rather than something unhealthy, like stuffing your face with chocolate. You don’t want the extra calories!
The buddy system – Achieving any goal is much easier when you’re doing it with a friend. Try getting support from someone that also wants to quit their nail biting. You guys can share tips and strategies, or even point out every time the other person bites their nails. That way, you’ll be aware of every time you do it.
Keep your nails nice – Now, the only way I’ve been able to stop biting my nails is by keeping them painted and pretty. Who wants to ruin a set of nails after spending an hour on them?! Try keeping your nails groomed once a week. Treat yourself to new patterns and colors. This way, not only will you stop your nail biting, you’ll get really good at painting nails!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Virginia Tech chapter.