How to Stop Biting your Nails and Break the Habit for Good

Nail biting may occur in response to being scared.

Nail biting is a difficult habit to break. Often a stress-relieving habit or nervous behavior, nail biting creates ragged tips and can exacerbate dryness and redness. To stop biting your nails down to the nubs, try a few hindrances or behavior changes to help.

Things You'll Need

• Manicure tool set
• Nail file
• Nail polish
• Bitter polish

Instructions

1. Keep your nails manicured. So stash a mini nail file, nail clippers and manicure scissors in a bag or at your desk. Trim and file them a few times each week.

2. Paint your nails. Polished nails may make you think twice about biting them. If not, paint them with a bitter polish, such as Control-It or Thum.

3. Spray a dog chewing deterrent on your nails. Look for a solution such as Fooey or Bitter Apple at a pet store.

4. Get acrylic nails. Fake nails are not only nice looking, but they are also hard, thus making chewing hard to do. Use acrylic to break the habit then allow your real nails to grow back once you've broken the habit.

5. Get a new habit. When you start biting your nails, switch to another behavior such as putting on lotion or chapstick or squeezing a stress ball.

6. WebMD advises wearing gloves, bandaids or stickers to remind you not to bite your nails.

Tips & Warnings

• Purchase and use only your own set of manicure tools. Germs and even blood could be hiding on another persons manicure tools.

References

• WebMD: Nail Biting
• Humane Society: The Whys and Hows of Stopping a Gnawing Problem