How To Stop Nail Biting In Adults

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,…

(Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5) by William Shakespeare)

Macbeth wasn’t kidding. One day goes into the next and before you know it, you’ve been biting your nails for 50 odd years and have no idea where the time went.

I’ve been biting my nails for as long as I can remember. I recall as a young kid biting and picking my nails and I’ve been doing it ever since. While I have quit a few times – I basically just stopped for no discernible reason – I ended up biting them again within a week or two. Which is why what I’m about to type should be taken with a grain of salt. Quitting is easy. Remaining that way is the hard part.

I’ll detail this more below but I have noticed that when I’m working on this website – and since I’ve been working on this website in general – I’ve become more aware of my nail biting and have actually decreased the number of times I do it. I don’t want to say that I’ve stopped 100% because it has only been about a week but the time I spend biting and picking my nails has definitely decreased.

Here’s what I have learned recently and also over the many years of nail biting when I’ve thought hard about why I do it and what I can do to stop it. Perhaps it will help you too.

Acknowledging The Problem

Observation: An interesting short term side effect of me starting up this website is that I have actually stopped biting my nails. It’s short term because we’ll see if it lasts… Since I began putting this website together, searching for ideas and content and looking over research, I have subconsciously stopped biting and picking my nails, almost completely. It certainly wasn’t a case of me saying “I really need to stop biting my nails.” It’s more a “holy smokes, ever since I started this website I’ve basically stopped biting and picking them.“

Earlier today as I was typing the Why Is Nail Biting Bad article, I did what I tend to do: I took a short break for a few seconds to proofread my work and immediately pulled my hands away from my laptop and started to pick my nails. Just like I always do.

But I quickly caught myself and stopped.

Normally, I’d almost subconsciously pick away on my nails for a few seconds and then get back to typing and I’d be doing the same thing probably during my next short break. But this time I consciously thought about what I was doing and stopped. Whether this lasts or not is up for debate and totally up to me.

Learning point

For me, I think I’ve discovered something that I was actually already aware of (I’m a slow learner for stuff like this…) and that is that I really need to think about what I’m doing to stop doing it. Perhaps you are, too. Pay close attention to when you start biting or picking your nails and make a note – even keep a written journal – to note when you are biting your nails and during which activities.

Note Your Mood

Pay attention to your mood when you notice that you start biting or picking your nails and add it to your journal. Look for repetitive situations that cause you to bite your nails. For many people nail biting starts up during periods of boredom, frustration, anxiety or stress. For me, I’ve noticed that I don’t even need to be bored. I just need a few seconds of free time – like when I’m taking a break from typing as mentioned above – to start picking or biting my nails. It’s my go-to move and it’s really hard to stop.

You might be different. For many people, they may start biting their nails when feeling sad or down. It’s probably not an activity you’ll start doing if you’re having a great day and are happy.

Then again, maybe it is! Your situation might be completely different from what I’m used to.

Learning point

Figure out what your mood is like and what settings cause you to bite your nails. Is it sadness? Anger? Frustration? Boredom? Anxiety? Are you at work or at home or school? A combination of the above? For me it’s generally boredom and to a lesser degree stress. But I’m also at the point where I bite and pick my nails subconsciously when I stop doing something (such as typing on my laptop) and start biting and picking them. Almost like I take a short break and start on the nails. It’s very automatic and thus hard to stop. But now I’ve recognized that this is a problem. Knowing it is half the battle.

Recognizing Triggers

Boredom, stress, anxiety and frustration are common triggers for nail biting. Triggers are things that just set you off. They cause you to start biting your nails. Sometimes the triggers are known but sometimes they might not be as obvious.

If you’re like me, nail biting and nail picking is more subconscious and an automatic activity that just happens. Often I don’t even know I’m doing it. So the reason(s) I’ve been doing it so long is perhaps a combination of lack of motivation to really stop (if I’m being honest) along with a lack of actually learning about why and when I do it.

But the more I think about it, I also realize that I bite and pick my nails just to keep busy with my hands. I also do it if I’m thinking about something and pondering things I’m unsure of. I don’t have to be bored or frustrated or angry. I’m just thinking about a topic or idea, and start working on the nails. Come to think of it, I also tend to bite my nails when I’m hungry and don’t have easy access to food.

Learning point

Figure out your triggers and add them to your journal. You might have triggers the same as I listed above or you might have others that are specific to you. Once you start to identify them, you can focus on how to eliminate triggers (ie. avoiding hunger or boredom) or reducing ones that can’t be completely eliminated (ie. stress, anxiety).

Conclusion

• For adults, stopping nail biting can be very difficult as it tends to get ingrained in our every day life to the point where do it subconsciously. Habits are hard to break.
• Quitting a habit tends to require a few things including willpower and the fortitude to change a particular behavior that may have become a very natural part of your life.
• With regards to something like nail biting, I think you need to acknowledge and recognize when you have the problem, understand your mood and overall feeling when you bite your nails and also figure out what triggers the nail biting in the first place.
• Conversely, make a note of when you don’t bite your nails. There might be circumstances in your life such as work when you’re either too preoccupied or are otherwise prevented from biting them. This can also help to understand your triggers and how to avoid them.