Nailbiting Advice

Check to see if they still make that yucky tasteing fingernail polish. That helped my friend when we were young. Get her some gloves to wear-at home, no need to draw attention unless this will help her. Get her to ask her friends to bring it to her attention when she starts biting her nails so she can stop. It will not happen overnight.
Continue to love her and do not scold. She will have to understand that you are not nagging her when you tell her to she needs to stop biting her nails. Talk with her and make a plan.

Like Laurie, my aunt promised me a professional manicure when my nails were long enough to make it worth it. I really wanted that manicure, and I finally got it! Be prepared, though, if your daughter transfers that nervous energy to another habit. I think I've just always needed something to do with my hands. I switched briefly to playing with my gum (until it got in my long hair a few times!), and then to knuckle-popping, which is still my nervous habit.

I was a nail biter through my high school years. It is a very stressful time for many young women, and can be even worse giiven the current economy.
I finally stopped after having falsies put on for several months. You can't bit through them, and they looks so good. They also hurt like no one's business if you do try to bit them off. It will let her get used to having long nails and give her insintive to grow them out. Now I can grow my nails as long as I want. She can aalso chew gum to help with the transition.
She also needs to learn to manage the stress with visialization, breathing, excerise, journaling, and a different poiint of view. It is a symptom of internal conflict.
I have also used the rubberband, my mom has slapped my hands when she has caught me doing it. I have even tried the naasty tasting liquids. These can work, but don't give her any incintive, and will effect everything that she eats. At 9 years old I'm guessing a large part of her diet is finger foods.

Good luck! I would encourage looking for an alternative to nailbiting. Something to keep her hands busy. Wearing gloves at night should help if she does it in her sleep. Might also look into reducing stresses in her life or getting her interested in a calming therapy like yoga or meditation.

I bit my nails during my childhood. I was stressed about our home life. I had a wonderful aunt that I really loved. She once asked my why I chewed my nails? I told her I did not know. She told me she wished she could grow pretty strong nails like my mother and bet mine would be really nice too if I would quit biting them.

She said she wanted me to quit biting them long enough to grow them to at least the end of my finger tips. If I did this, she promised she would give me a manicure. I wanted to spend time with her so I really worked at not biting them. It worked for me. It was a goal that I really wanted to meet. I was able to break the bad habit! Maybe you could entice her with something.

I did have a friend who wrapped her sons finger tips with band aides. She said it really helped him to remember not to bite them.

L.,
I think this is a stressed child and before she can stop she needs a substitute or you are putting her in a no win position. I think she needs to be chewing on something, try a cloth or plastic necklace, or bandaids on her fingers. Aloe vera should help them heal and if you put on thin cotton gloves over it, that should help while at home.
Did she change schools? does she think the separation is her fault? Is nail biting worse on the weekends or just on school days? Try a light pink polish as a reminder. I would avoid the bad tasting stuff, the punishment, the ridicule. Nail biting is the symptom, it is important to look for a cure at the same time you are working on it before it becomes more entrenched as a habit.
Good luck.
K. C

I bit my nails from the time I had teeth (well, from a very young age ;-) until adulthood. My mom had tried many things, but my husband finally helped me stop. I told him how much I wanted to stop, and he made me agree that I would do whatever it took. Oh, I regretted that agreement for some time, until I was finally nail-biting free. Because any time I put my hands in my mouth, he would say something and/or reach over and push my hands away from my mouth. It's a miracle we stayed married!! It took a year or more, but I stopped. I'm not necessarily recommending this exact approach, but just pointing it out every time would help. It will get annoying to her, but I think she'll be glad in the end. It becomes almost involuntary. She probably doesn't even realized she's doing it 90% of the time. But not just you...your her mom. She needs to rally the support of those she's around most. I completely agree with someone else's advice to get her friends involved. They should point it out when they see her do it. Maybe if she has really good friends, and they have a REALLY good relationship, she could even have them push her hands away. I'm telling you...that drove me so nuts that I went from biting, to hiding the biting, to stopping all-together...just so I wouldn't have someone pushing me around. Hahahaha!!!

Another thing that helped VERY much was to keep nail clippers and a file on me AT ALL TIMES. Maybe she can let her teachers know about it & ask permission to pull them out during class (so they don't think she's just a primper who is not paying attention). Because I could not stand to have a nail that was crooked or snagged or anything & would bite it at the first sign. But if I had my "tools" on me, I could whip them out & groom, rather than bite. And I bought myself a pretty natural-looking nail polish/strengthener that I would paint on morning & night. It helped strengthen my nails, I would try harder to keep the polish job looking nice, and it didn't taste so great!

And one last thing. I don't know that a kid would really appreciate this aspect enough for it to help, but she should do some research or something on the amount of nasty stuff on our hands, and under our nails. Ugh...now that I no longer bite my nails, the thought of putting my nasty hands in my mouth really grosses me out (and my hands are way cleaner now than back then!). But I remember people telling me that when I was younger & it did nothing to stop me from nail biting. But it's worth a shot. And maybe if she does some of the research on it herself, it will mean more to her.

I know how she feels. It has a lot to do with a lack of self-confidence and/or stress. I'm still a high-strung person, though, but one who no longer sticks her fingers in her mouth. So it can be done. But she really needs to make a commitment to stop. Maybe you guys could make up a little certificate where she promises to give her best effort to the cause. Attach a reward to it. Maybe you could take her for a manicure when she has been bite-free for a month. And maybe buy her a pretty silver ring once she has stopped biting for 3 or 6 months.

Okay...I'll quit rambling. It brought back a lot of memories! Good luck!!!!!

C.

I was a terrible nailbiter for a time in my youth and my brother was a horrible lip chewer and we were two of the most stressed out kids you could find (my parents were good people but they were very high strung). Find out if she is stressed about anything and take notice specific times she does it or times that seem to spark the need to chew. I've noticed kids who have those little quirks like nailbiting or things like stuttering just need more time and more ways to express themselves, not just what's going on in their minds but in their hearts as well. Hang in there!

How long have you been a separated mother? Could this possibly be the reason for the nail biting? Is she close to her brothers? If so, try to enlist their help by letting her know that boys really do notice a girl's hands and nails, and cruddy looking nails will turn them off. If that fails, ask the school nurse to talk to her about the health aspects. Not only is she constantly putting no telling what kind of germs in her mouth, she is running the risk of infection in the nails/fingers. There are products on the market that when painted on the nails taste bad and discourage nail biting, but if it is something emotional that's causing it, she'll just pick up another habit. It would be best to try to get to the bottom of her problem.

Try putting jalapeno juice on the fingers My dad did this to me when I was little and it worked. It didn't hurt, I just could taste the hot when I put my fingers in my mouth and it reminded me to stop. You could also try something very bitter tasting. There is a pet product called bitter apple that I think would be safe. Also reward her with a movie or something if she can go for a week without biting her nails.

Hi there,
I have a 12 yr.old who has the same problem. I have tried everything they have told me. The one thing that I have noticed that somewhat does work for her is chewing gum. Her doctor did mention that to me. My daughter said she does notice that as long as she has gum in her mouth, she does not bite her nails.

Hope this can help you!

When my then 3y/o daughter told me she wanted to stop sucking her thumb, I tried this nail polish called "No Bite." It was not harsh, just a gentle reminder. The nasty taste reminded her that she was about to suck her thumb. I don't think it will work if your daughter does not truly want to quit because I tried the same product on my daughter when she was two w/ no success. She paused for a minute and then would continue sucking along in bliss. It tastes very bitter, but not bitter enough to really make your daughter stop if she does not want to. I purchased it at Walmart for about two bucks. My daughter has been thumbsucker free for over two years now. I hope you have success w/ it. I might also add that I would give her a sticker if she did not suck her thumb the whole day. If she got 5 stickers in a row, I would take her to the dollar store for a gift. I made a big deal about those stickers and our trip for her reward. Maybe you could try some type of reward system for your child to encourage her.

Hi L.,

I'm a nail and cuticle biter from 'way back, and my daughter's starting to do it, so I can identify with both you and your daughter. Nothing helped me during my childhood or throughout decades of adulthood, and I think I was stressed and anxious throughout all those years. I'd calm down and the problem would let up, then more stress would hit and it would be back, worse than ever. I was so ashamed that I was hurting myself and couldn't stop. Having lots of hand cream around and putting bandaids on damaged areas helped, but only when I got on anti-anxiety medication did the problem largely resolve. I still have minor nail-biting, but my hands look great about 97% of the time, which is unbelievable, for me, and when I start again, I am able to stop by getting a manicure and/or using a product called Glytone, a nail and cuticle conditioning cream I buy at Persona Spa on Alabama, but which I'm sure should be available online. I do think that when I was young getting a manicure from a beloved adult or being taken for one occasionally might have helped me. Negative comments about the condition of my nails or in the act of nail biting have never been of any help to me and in fact drove me in the other direction, further into the shame and anxiety that fueled the cycle. Higher self esteem about myself as a girl would definitely have helped, so I try to praise my daughter's pretty hands and give her opportunities to come with me for manicures and pedicures as rewards and otherwise to let it go without comment. I appreciate other comments on the list that remind me to keep looking into what could be causing her anxiety and also that a kid has to want to work on a habit before a parent can get much mileage out of bitter-tasting concoctions or gloves.

best wishes!
M.