how can i stop biting my nails? I know its coming from anxiety but i want to find a better coping method.

Hello! Biting your nails is one sign of being anxious and I'm sure some people also go through the same thing on special occasions. Nail biting can be a habit or a natural instinct for when one is anxious and it doesn't really have a complete permanent replacement but there are a lot of ways on how to cope about it. One is that you can chew on some gum or pop in a mint, another thing is that dipping your hand in something spicy but it may not work so let's move on. Second is that find something to fiddle with or any action that has to do with your hands away from your mouth, like for example fiddling with your necklace or bracelet or anything at all but if none of these are present you can settle on some fidget spinners or stress balls.

Hey there. I have I can help you a little by sharing some of the methods I've been using to stop biting my nails. So, first off, I don't know if this something that you can get anywhere or this is just something that is common where I live. But I have this little bottle from the pharmacy with a bitter liquid that you spread onto you nails and cuticles, so whenever you start to bite them you get this bitter taste in your mouth. It definitely makes you not want to bite your nails. Another thing I've been doing (I know this is not something anyone would be comfortable with) is having on fake nails. For the past few months I've been wearing fake nails that I apply myself (I buy the nails from Aliexpress and they're real cheap and then nail glue from a drug store, which is also real cheap). By doing that I've made it impossible for me to bite my nails and therefore, after I've taken them off, I don't have the same urge to bite them as I used to. I hope this could help or inspire you just a bit :))

Some things that might help are applying a no-bite formula in order to train yourself to not bite your nails, wearing fake nails, or even cutting your nails short so there's nothing to bite. good luck!

Biting nails might be e difficult thing to deal with as it might become annoying and bad for your health and self esteem. Its great that you want to work on stopping this habit. While it is hard, you can quit doing it eventually. Try chewing gum or plating with fidget toys to keep your moth and hands busy and release the stress and tension there. You might even consider buying chewy toy for that purpose. As hard as it might seem trying to cope with the stress is a good way to address the issue too. When you feel that you need to bite your nails in a stressful situation try doing some calming techniques, breathe deeply with counts in and out or help yourself feel grounded by listing four things that you see, three that you touch , two that you hear and one that you smell. Take it easy, little steps matter. Best of luck

Hi there, I might have some tools that could be helpful. I recommend to write down reasons why you want to stop. Secondly every time to catch yourself biting, tell your yourself I want to stop in order to increase mental awareness. Then find a distraction that helps you replace the bad habit like using a fidget toy, drinking water, a physical activity, drawing etc. Changing bad habits takes time. It's important to know that it is a process and that you might relapse. Relapses are useful because we can learn from them and avoid them next time they happen. It's not a failure. Hope this helps.

You can start by keeping your nails short, you can also print out a worksheet where you identify and keep a record of what triggers the nail-biting, and try to avoid as much as you can. You can also pay a visit to a specialist if it's too severe, it might be considered an obsessive-compulsive disorder. You can try alternatives when you're anxious, like chewing gum, putting your hands in your pocket, twiddling your thumbs, playing with a ball or an elastic band or a spinner, eating a carrot, whatever other form of behavioral patterns or habit can be quite a good alternative.