There are a number of ways that nail biters can attempt to break the habit and quit. Whether or not they work of course is another story. And how motivated each person is to quit permanently is also up for debate.
Bitter nail polish is one method nail biters often use to stop biting their nails along with other suggested solutions like getting manicures, using fake nails, chewing gum and things of that nature. For many long term nail biters thought it’s unlikely that a bitter nail polish will help long term as it only works when you apply it and if it tastes bad enough and you really want to bite your nails, you’ll just stop using it or buying it. And if you tend to pick at your nails rather than biting them like I do, it won’t help at all. Biting your nails is often so ingrained and in your subconscious that it may take strong willpower and a constant and ongoing effort on your part to quit once and for all.
Bitter Nail Polish
Bitter nail polish is typically a clear enamel that you apply to your nails (men and women) to act as a nail biting deterrent. The bitter nail polish commonly has a bitter taste but is otherwise harmless. The gist of it is that if you put your finger in your mouth to bite your nail, you get a taste of the bitter coating and are reminded not to do it again.
Does it work?
For some people it certainly could. Some people quit drinking because of the awful hangover feeling. Some people lose weight because they can’t fit into their favorite pair of pants anymore. For some people, this sort of negative motivation works.
But with a bitter nail polish you obviously have to use it for it to work. If you want to bite your nails badly enough, you may just stop using the nail polish. Or stop buying it when it runs out.
And if you tend to pick at your nails like I do, it won’t have any effect since you don’t use your mouth.
How To Quit Biting Your Nails
While using a product like a bitter nail polish could certainly work for a segment of the population on its own, nail biting is so easy to do even after quitting. It literally takes a second to start biting and picking them again. It’s not like quitting smoking and then having to run out to the store to buy cigarettes if you decide to start up again. Biting your nails is free so as far as vices go, it’s easy and cheap to do.
Rather than simply using a topical product to try to quit, ask yourself this series of questions instead to learn more about why you bite your nails to help you learn how to stop doing it.
Awareness
Are you aware of when you bite your nails and why? Learning about your nail biting triggers is a good start because you’ll become aware of when you do it and perhaps get to the bottom of why you do it. If you are off work for two weeks and suddenly notice you aren’t biting your nails, perhaps stress from your job has something to do with it. If you are suddenly busy at work or at home on the other hand and stop biting your nails, you might find that it’s boredom that is causing the problems. Finding out your trigger(s) is a good way to get to the root of the problem.
Motivation
What is your motivation to finally quit biting your nails? Are you really motivated to quit or is it something you’re only going to do half-heartedly? Perhaps your significant other or another family member has been getting on your case and wants you to quit. Having external support from others can be very helpful even if they are just letting you know every time they see you biting your nails to increase your awareness. Understanding your level of motivation and remaining motivated over time and thus on course to quit, is key. This is especially true if you’re a long term nail biter and do it subconsciously.
Persistance
Are you a person who can persistantly pursue a goal or do you have a tendency to give up? I’ve quit biting my nails too many times to remember. I just went cold turkey for whatever reason and stopped doing it. For a few weeks. Then I started biting them again and I was back to square one. If you’re a very long term nail biter, you might have to accept the fact that in all likelihood you’ll quit, start biting again, quit, start biting again, numerous times before you finally (hopefully) kick the habit for good.
Substitution
Can you substitute your nail biting for something healthier? We referred above to chewing gum. It might work for you in conjunction with other strategies. You might find that chewing gum gives you the distraction you need and the chewing action may be enough to keep you busy enough to avoid wanting to additionally bite your nails.
Constant Effort
Can you put forth a constant effort to quit biting your nails even after you’ve quit? For many long term nail biters the logical thing to do when you have a long nail is to bite it. So what are you going to do when you have 10 long nails all of a sudden after you quit biting them? The normal thing would be to start biting them and you may only need to bite one nail to start again in earnest. You need constant effort to avoid falling off the wagon.
On the other hand you may also want to gradually quit biting your nails and simply stop biting several or more of them and keeping adding fingers to not bite until you have no desire to bite any of them. Rather than going cold turkey and quitting nail biting completely, a process that works in stages might be more appropriate and offer better long term results.
Conclusion
- Bitter nail polishes may work for some people but you need to actually use them and possibly buy them several times for them to work. Will you give up or stick with it?
- If you’re a nail picker like I am, a bitter nail polish probably won’t work since I tend to pick at my nails rather than bite them.
- Before quitting nail biting, your best bet is to do an inventory of your nail biting to learn more about when and why you do it. Find out your triggers.
- The longer you’ve been biting your nails the longer it’ll likely take you to quit and the more persistent effort you might need to actually do so moving forward.
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