by Mariam Abbas

Created on: October 07, 2008   Last Updated: August 07, 2009

Are you a victim of habitual nail biting? I was once too. Do you hurt your fingers by applying constant pressure to them against your teeth? Most nail biters bite the skin around the tip of their fingers when their nails are too short to bite, thus injuring their fingers and, at times, drawing blood. To add to that it is also annoying to the people around you who have to watch you injure yourself. Don't know how to stop? Well here are a couple of things that might help you, your fingers and your finger nails!

The most effective way of stopping yourself from any habit is by telling someone to stop you every time they see you going at it. Pick someone who spends the most time with you or around you. Call them a helper. A sibling, perhaps, if you're living with one, or a parent. You can always pick more than one person, it could be more effective. As the saying goes, the more, the merrier!' Tell whomever you spend time with, to stop you from it by any means available, verbal or physical.

By verbal, I mean they could shout a warning at you, e.g. Look what you're doing!' or Doooooooooonnnnnnnnnt!' It would send a pretty effective signal to your mind.

By physical, I mean that your helper could slap your hand away if they see it going near your teeth. The sting on your hand will also remind you later on even when no one is around to stop you.

Another way is to stop you from it yourself. If you do not wish for people to shout warnings at you or slap your hands away than create a conscious thought in your own mind. Whenever you realize that you are biting your nails, immediately pull your hand away from your mouth and make a mental note to yourself to not to it again. This might take a while to adjust to, but it definitely works. It also exercises your mind and helps it to become more aware, generally.

A third way is to wrap tape around your fingers. When your hands are free take some tape and wrap it around the tip of each individual finger. You can also cover the tip of your nails with it so that the next time you put your nail between your teeth they come into contact with tape not nails and effectively creates a silent reminder to you to not bite them if in some case the tape around your fingers goes unnoticed. This might be a bit uncomfortable but it is better than injuring your fingers by nail biting. Also, to ensure safety, make sure the tape you use is strong enough so that it does not tear off easily. (This practice is only advised to adults).

I sincerely hope this helps.

Learn more about this author, Mariam Abbas.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.