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Jamie Rautenberg, LCSW
Clinical Social Work/Therapist
I'm passionate about helping clients understand emotional experiences & mental chatter do not define who they are. I'm here to guide them through the fog back to themselves.
Top Rated Answers
Anonymous
October 2nd, 2017 6:44am
Find an activity to do that will distract you from biting off your nails. Physical activities are much preferred as it will allow your brain to get busy in moving your other parts of your body. Plus, biting off your nails can also put your health at risk as they are not really clean and safe to be put anywhere near the insides of your mouth.
One way to stop biteing your nails is to wash ur hands with hand gel as it has a very bad taste left in your mouth.
Anonymous
April 9th, 2018 3:52am
You can stop biting your nails by holding by the urge to do it,finding others ways to help you instead of chewing your nails and if necessary getting further support from someone you know that you trust.
Nail biting is often an anxious response to either future surfing, dwelling on something in the past, or finding yourself unable to relax in the moment. It can be a good reminder if you find yourself chewing your nails that it's time to come back to the present. Mindfulness is key when trying to stop biting nails, it is likely a habit you formed a long time ago. The good news is that it can be undone. Body-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs) BFRBs are triggered by and alleviate impatience, boredom, frustration, and dissatisfaction. Ask yourself when you find yourself biting your nails what your state/mood currently is and try to step outside of the patterned thought. Breathing techniques are helpful to get you back to the present. Good luck!
With my OCD I have some "tics" and biting my nails is something I do when anxious. I work to address the anxiety by identifying what I'm anxious about, acknowledging what I want to do with my anxiety (bite my nails), and then create a plan to address the anxiety. Sometimes, with my anxiety, I need to work on just being with my anxiety so I sit on my hands until the anxiety decreases to half and then I'll chew on my nails...sometimes just having that goal of when it is okay to chew and how much is okay takes the anxiety of the all or nothing mentality.
Paint them. Use nail polish (if you are comfortable with it)
You won't bite your nails if you know that they are like black or blue or red in color. If not, you can use the transparent one.
If you are someone who doesn't like nail polish, try to put something on your nails like red chilly or something that will make your brain understand that it will not be nice if I bite it.
Self-control is important here, so it won't happen overnight or in 2 days. So, please be patient with yourself. Don't be too hard on yourself and yeah, take care!
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