As a child our parents constantly told us not to put our fingers in our mouths. They said that for a reason. I used to bite my nails when I was in middle school. I don’t exactly remember how I developed this habit. I would do it while watching television and doing my homework .I never did it out in public that’s for sure. It was always something done in private. My mom was very anti-nail biting, the shear site of bitten fingernails disgusted her.

So to stop this nasty habit she would check my nails every Friday to see if they were growing out. If they were nice then I would get a treat. If they looked like they have been chewed on then I wouldn’t be allowed to have any teats for the following week. That worked for a while, I allowed my nails to grow to a moderate length. Then a few months later the habit returned my mom was not happy. I went to multiple doctors to see if there was something that could be done about this. The pediatrician just said that I would grow out of this with time.

I felt ashamed so I always hid my nails in public. My friends would have nail painting sleepovers. I always made up an excuse as to why I couldn’t go. This made me feel very alone I didn’t understand why no one else had this problem.

Later on I discovered that there are thousands of people struggling with nail biting. According to WebMD doctors have a few explanations on why some people chew on their nails. The main one is due to stress from work, school, home and so on.

It’s no surprise that a lot of people bite their nails because of stress. When we get strssed out we turn to things like food, toys or in this case our fingers for comfort. This can be a serious problem though. Our nails and fingers are covered with harmful bacteria. So constantly putting dirty fingers in our mouths allows nasty germs to enter our immune systems and cause us to get sick.  Also it someone bites down too deep into the nail the skin could break open which can lead to an infection.

Thankfully I no longer bite my nails I stopped back in high school. It wasn’t easy it took a lot of trial and error but it worked out in the end. If you’re looking to kick the habit take baby steps first don’t try to do it all at once. Keep yourself busy throughout the day. Put tape on your fingers so you won’t be tempted to chew on your nails. If you feel embarrassed about that then try buying some no-bite liquid nail polish.  It goes on like clear polish and you apply it twice a day. It has an awful taste that’s point, so your brain will learn that nails are not food. There are other tips out there on ways to kick the habit. The truth is that the road will not be easy but in the end it will all be worth it.