Nail Bitting

sorry to tell you this, but nothing worked onme as a kid so I dont know what to tell you! even the bitter tasting stuff didnt work cause if you bite long enough, it wears off.

I've heard that nail biting is one of those vices that's usually an indicator of some sort of deeper issue. He may have some anxiety about something. Some people even have a minor form of self-loathing that leads them to minor forms of self-mutilation (I knew one girl who would bite so much that she'd bleed; I don't think it was coincidental that she was a die-hard overachiever). See if you can find out if there's something that happened to him two years ago to trigger it or if there's something/someone bothering him. If he won't talk to you, you can always try the Mr. Rodgers trick of using a puppet for him to talk to.

I don't know how severe your son's nail biting is but it sounds like he's mulling over something. I realized a couple years ago that I'd pick my cuticles when I was nervous about something and when I researched it I found out it falls into the same category. I hope that helps!

God bless,
K.

I too bit my nails as a child and still did until last year. I tried just about everything. I was in the mall last year and they had these booths set up in the middle of the mall and the people were selling these emery boards that are like a nail buffer to help stop nail biting. They work!! It buffs your nail, so that when you try and bite your nails you cant. Its like your nail is slippery. I’ve noticed I tend to bite my nails when I’m bored or stressed. Maybe your son does it when for the same reasons? It doesn’t have a name on the emery board, but maybe you could search for something like the one I have? Good Luck!!

Sunday 2/3/08
Hello C.,
I do not have past experience with this problem. My husband
has been a nail bitter all his life and he is 76.I do know
it is a nervous condition, and if it was my child I would talk with his doctor and try and find out what is causing the nervous problem. Best of luck and prayers will bring relief, one way or another.
Warmly, C. H

Apply dabs of Tabasco to the intact nail tip, if no open/broken skin. Remind him not to rub his eye or pick his nose...heck you might cure more than one bad habit this way.

I have a 4 year old granddaughter thats does the same thing,she sees her father do this constantly and it just instills this bad habit all over again.we have asked the dr what to do and he suggested hot sauce (we did not want to use this for fear it would burn her skin) and we was going to try the stuff in the stores that you paint on there fingers (we did not use this either) it had bad chemicals in it that would do more harm long term than solve the problem.so we asked the dr again and he said she has to grow out of it, we have even tried promises of making her nails pretty by promising to have a manicure if she would stop biting them.but to no avail,but recently my daughters friend promised her if she stopped biting them she would paint her nails every color she has and put diamonds on them and so far she has not been biting them.i don't know if this will help you but some kind of incentive may help.

Try the no bite nails from Wal-Greens. It helped my kids stop biting theirs

If you go to Wal-Mart and go to the pharmacy dept. you need to look for ((( Stop the Bite ))) nail polish and it is from a company called Hoof. It is a clear coat of nail polish that you can use on your child and it taste REAL BAD!!!!!!!!!
So when he/she puts their fingers in their mouth they will soon remember NOT TO BITE. You will need to read the bottle and follow it. It is safe. I use it for my daughter.

Here is some information for you.
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http://www.webmd.com/anxiety-panic/tc/nail-biting-topic-o...

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http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/nailbiting3to6

I wish you and your child the best.

God Bless and take care.

From one mother to another. :)