CWP Beauty: Nail Biting! A bad habit that must stop

 

This post is soo for me (in a blog reader's voice) **clears throat** lol. I am an additive nail bitter **covers face** and I am often ashamed to flaunt my fingers because my nails do not look attractive. I actually stopped the habit some time back and I realized I have really beautiful nails **winks** I just didnt know how my fingers got into my mouth and I started biting again...Phew. Who else has experience this?

I am doing this post to help you and me stand tall and #SayNoToNailBiting *hehehehe* To think that there is no sugar in the nails sef.  Nail biting can really be embarrassing especially when you are carried away and you bite in public. I am putting a stop to my nail biting habit today, you too can. These tips will help you, find them below....

1. Change Your Behavior

What is triggering your nail biting? Is it the time you spend driving in traffic every morning, or is it the work you’re doing? Are you nervous when you meet new people, or when you try new things? Do you get the urge to bite your nails when you’re bored, or does it set in when you feel like you need to calm yourself down?
Think about what’s causing you to bite your nails, what things in your life make you feel you “need” to bite them. Identify the stressors that make you indulge in your bad habit, and change them.
For example:

• Do you bite your nails when sitting in traffic? Why not give yourself a manicure instead?
• Don’t bite your nails in anticipation of meeting new people, but occupy your hands by writing letters as you sit in the waiting room or conference room.
• Are you a nail biter when you feel stress? Try sitting on your hands and breathing deeply.

The best way to get rid of your nail-biting habit is to change the things you do when you feel nervous, stressed, or bored. Identify the trigger, change up that behavior, and it will be much easier to stop biting your nails.

2. Resolve to Quit

The first step towards quitting is making the decision to quit. You need to examine it critically and realize that it really is a problem. It’s not just “something you do”, but it’s a nervous habit that shows a flaw in your mental condition. In order to improve your mental health, it’s time to make the resolution to quit.
Obviously, quitting is harder than just saying in your head, “I want to quit.” However, if you make that promise to yourself, you’ll find it’s much easier to start down the path to quitting.

3. Make a Conscious Effort

When you find your hands gravitating towards your mouth, make a conscious effort to bring them away. Try to keep your hands busy at all times, even if it means that you play with pens, toothpicks, and other small items. As long as your hands are busy, you will keep them away from your mouth.
However, there are always going to be times when your hands just don’t have anything to do. You can’t drum on the desk or fiddle with a pen in the middle of a meeting, so that’s when you have to make the real conscious effort to keep them away from your mouth.
Be conscious of where your hands are at all time, and notice them when they are slowly moving towards your face. Put them down by your side, and sit on them if you have to!

4. Replace Your Habit

If your nervous habit is to bite your fingernails, it’s time to replace that old habit with something new. Nervous habits are never healthy for you, but at least you won’t be biting your nails.
Try things like:

• Playing with a paper clip
• Fiddling with rubber bands
• Twiddling your thumbs
• Eating a carrot or celery stick
• Playing with a stress ball
• Chewing gum
• Putting your hands into your pockets
• Folding or clasping your hands

All of these things will help you to occupy your hands when you are nervous or stressed, and they will keep your fingers far away from your mouth at the same time. When you feel nervous, make sure to have something in easy reach to keep your hands busy.
It can even be something as simple as a hair elastic or rubber band around your wrist. Whatever you choose to do, make sure to replace that old nail biting habit with a new, less destructive one.

5. Have Clippers and a File Handy

Want to make sure that your fingers stay far away from your mouth? Keep a pair of nail clippers handy, and keep your nails trimmed. Clipping your fingernails is actually a great way to kill the nervous habit of biting your nails, and you can play with the nail clipper in order to keep your hands busy. With short nails, there is nothing to bite.
You should also have a nail file on your desk or in your pocket at all times. Many people bite their nails in order to prevent ragged edges, so having a nail file handy will help you to keep your nails nice and smooth. You can give yourself a manicure when you feel the stress or nerves mounting.

6. Talk to a Therapist

Remember that nail biting is a nervous habit, one that you indulge in when you feel stressed. Stress isn’t something you HAVE to live with, but you should consider talking to a therapist to help you come up with coping mechanisms for your stress. They can help you to not only deal with the stress when it arises, but even deal with the problems that lead to stress.
Remember that a lot of nervous habits stem from anxiety over a loss of control, but working with a therapist can help you to realize that you don’t need to control everything in your life. You’ll be able to come to grips with the things that are out of your control, and you’ll learn how to deal with the problems.
It’s one of the best ways to get rid of not just your nail biting habits, but also the stress that is ruling your life.

7. Get a Manicure

Want to take a shortcut to quitting your nail biting habit? Try getting a manicure! Both men and women can benefit from a manicure, as it will make your nails look good. It will file away all of the rough, ragged edges of your nails, leaving them looking good.
When you next go to bite your nails, you’ll remember just how much you spent on the manicure. You won’t want to make all of that money go to waste, so it will make it just that much easier for you to fight the urge to bite the nails. Plus, if they’re coated with nail polish, biting your nails will taste horrible. It’s one of the best ways to get started down the road to quitting your habit.

8. Try One at a Time

Instead of trying to quit biting all of your nails, just stop one finger at a time. It’s a much slower process, but you’ll find that it can be much easier to wean yourself off the habit without forcing yourself to stop biting them now.
You can start with any nail you want, and make a conscious effort to NOT bite that one. Trim the nail whenever it grows long, and add one finger at a time. The fewer fingernails you bite, the less you will want to bite the nails.

9. Use Spices

If you want to make it harder to bite your nails, you can try one of the following tricks:

• Drip Tabasco sauce over your fingernails
• Dip your fingers in chili pepper
• Sprinkle cinnamon over your fingernails

​You can use any hot sauce, spicy food, or spice that you want, as long as it makes your fingernails undesirable.

10. Paint Your Nails

You can paint your fingernails (men can use clear nail polish) in order to avoid the desire to chew on them. The nail polish will taste horrible when you chew on it, and you’ll be less likely to bite your fingernails.
As a bonus, the nail polish will make your nails look much more attractive.

11. Use Neosporin

Neosporin can help to repair the damage that has been done to your fingernails through regular biting, and it will taste ABSOLTEULY HORRIBLE! Make sure to apply the unguent regularly, and never let your nails go without a coating of the foul stuff. Just the smell alone will be enough to discourage you from biting your nails, and you’ll find that it will be that little bit easier to kick your bad habit!

Source: healthambition.com

You used to bite your nails? how did your stop? do share with us in the comment section.