Did you ever have the nervous habit of biting your nails?

United States
February 8, 2009 10:30am CST
I used to bite my nails all through my childhood,teen years and into my twenties. I believe this to be a form of anxiety and a habit. One day in my late twenties I just stopped without even trying. I have not bite my nails since then. I know leave my nails long all the time. Did you ever have the habit of biting your nails and if so did you ever just stop?
11 people like this
49 responses
@avonrep1 (1862)
• United States
8 Feb 09
I use to do this too, and when I was 23 I decided I was going to stop. After biting them all my life. I am glad to say that its been over 7 years since the last time I did this. I have long nails that I always wanted to have, but didn't because I was a biter. Now you can't even tell I use to do this. My nails have strengthen and they are pretty for the first time ever in my life, and I like to keep it that way.
2 people like this
• United States
8 Feb 09
My nails are really long and strong. I am like you nobody would notice that I ever bit my nails.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
8 Feb 09
it is good that you have outgrown or overcome the habit, avonrep. this is a habit which is quite far away from being outgrown from my standpoint. maybe, this is because, i really enjoy taking a bite there. it could be that i run of food once in a while, that's why. lol.
1 person likes this
@candymarie (1368)
• Canada
9 Feb 09
NOPE! I was one of the lucky ones, I just had no interest in biting my nails, I would sometimes bite the hangnails to get rid of them, but nails, nopers! I just couldn't help but keep thinking about the dirt that WOULD be under them, and didn't want any of that between my teeth. No no, I smoke....but not for long hehe!
• Canada
9 Feb 09
True dat! I'm thinking of trying champix, or however it is spelled. Going to try cold turkey one more time, and well, if I fail, then yeah, to champix I go.
• United States
9 Feb 09
I smoke also and I wish it was as easy to quit as it was biting my nails.
• United States
8 Feb 09
I used to have a really bad habit of biting my nails and stuff when I was a child and as a teenager. Somehow, the older I got, the easier it got for me to just stop biting them. Sometimes though, I do get in the habit of biting my nails but it's not as often as it used to be. Whenever I had to give a presentation or something I'd end up biting my nails and biting half of them down really low. Now, I don't really bite them anymore. I tend to bite them however if I've broken one and it's a bit uneven or something and then I'll just end up picking at it until I end up biting most of it off which means I want to get rid of the rest of my nails.
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Feb 09
Its a childhood habit that some people just carry into adulthood. I used to really bite my nail and pick at the skin around the nail. Glad I dont do that anymore.
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
8 Feb 09
i bit my nails all my life in the quick until i wasin my twentoes & just quit. thank heavens i never started again. glad u quit to, awful habit.
1 person likes this
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
8 Feb 09
u know it's been so long ago i don't even remember. i know i just got a divorce & maybe i got rid of my stress. lol. i probably tried to quit i just don't remember.
1 person likes this
• United States
8 Feb 09
So your one of the nail biter quitters like me. Did you just stop or did you try to stop?
1 person likes this
@agrim94 (3805)
• India
9 Feb 09
Well i did when i was kid but now when i m very nervous my coughing reflex sets in and i cough a lot at that time and that too violently and tears roll down in eyes because of extreme coughing..
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Feb 09
poor baby :( thats so bad and sounds painful. I hope you don't get nervous in things so you don't have to cough like that
@thezone (9394)
• Ireland
8 Feb 09
I think I have always been biting my nails ever since I was a Kid. My Mum bites hers too, maybe i got the habit from her. I find I bite my nails when I am bored. They are also a tasty snack between meals lol.
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Feb 09
Oh that funny! Your last comment made me laugh.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
8 Feb 09
i used to have a number of nervous habits. i can still remember that even when i was already working and had all the three kids, i would still be biting on those pencils, ballpens and, of course, my fingernails! i have always been told that these are indications of my deep-seated insecurities which i may not be aware of. well, a showcase of insecurities or not, i still am suffering from this symptoms through this day. hehehe. you might as well say, that it is too bad as i am already way past 50.
• United States
8 Feb 09
I was lucky I never had the pencil and pen chewing thing. I wonder why some people outgrown it when others dont? I am curious?
@dodo19 (47034)
• Beaconsfield, Quebec
8 Feb 09
I never got into the habit of biting my nails, though both my dad and my sister do. It's never been something that I got the habit of doing. I'm not sure why that is, but I just didn't start and I hope I never do.
1 person likes this
• United States
8 Feb 09
My children never had the habit like I did. So I dont think its genetic? I dont know what causes it.
@GAUCI123 (1042)
• Malta
8 Feb 09
I am still biting my nails and I am 29 years old. It is a habit and it is true when I am nervous or angry I bite my nails without even knowing, it is a pity since I like long beautiful nails with nail arts however I never won this habit.
1 person likes this
• United States
8 Feb 09
Like I said I dont know how I stopped. Just one day the urge went away. Hope yours goes away for you.
@mjanne (251)
• China
8 Feb 09
I used to have this habit when I was a child. My mother tried her ways to let me stop. She did not alow me to have long nails and every time she saw me do that, she told me to stop. She said it is not a good habit, and it is not good for my health. After several times, I could control this and stop doing that again.
1 person likes this
• United States
8 Feb 09
My mother would try to stop me to all the time. But she never had luck.
• United States
8 Feb 09
I used to bite my nails constantly. Now I have the nervous habit of just picking at the sides of them. The insides of both of my thumbs are usually raw. I do it without even thinking about it until I realize that I have drawn blood!
1 person likes this
• United States
8 Feb 09
I used to do that to and I outgrew that habit to. I am so happy it disappeared because I like having long nails.
• Philippines
8 Feb 09
Yes, and like you i just suddenly had stop to do that habit without even noticing it. (Laugh!) But i don't consider it as a bad habit because there are worst habit than that, Like scratching your back (i mean your a**) in public.=) I miss biting my nails!=) Good day!
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Feb 09
Glad to hear you just stopped one day like me. I do think theres a lot worse habits out there.
• United States
8 Feb 09
I bit my fingernails up until the age of 44. I had to get some dental work done on my front teeth, and continued biting my nails. Well, part of it fell out, and I had to have it redone. That was the end of my nail biting days :)
• United States
8 Feb 09
Glad to hear you are rid of that bad habit.
@ddfreedie (690)
• India
9 Feb 09
cha cha..i don bite my nails....cos i used to cut it off when it starts to grow...i use ma nails only to scratch the site where it itchessss..hehe
1 person likes this
@cheenlly (3477)
• Philippines
9 Feb 09
Luckily, i don't have this kind of habit when i am nervous but my fiance do have this. I have observed this many times but i don't know if this is due to nervous. As for my opinion this is a bad habit for me as nails are not clean to bite. I just wonder, what this got to do with anxiety or the personality itself. Do i need to worry about my fiance doing it? I will be interested to know about other people experience as well.
• Philippines
1 Jul 09
I used to bite my nails when I was younger but I stopped biting my nails when I was in high school. I just stopped for no reason. My bf still bites his nails until right now at his age of 30. There are times I try to stopped him but not all the time as we don't live together.
• United States
1 Jul 09
Yeah it can become a very bad habit. Sometimes we never grow out of bad habits. But it is best to give support and not try and judge the person but tell them you care and want to see them give it up. Take care there spohie_dfuss happy mylotting as well.
@4ofmyown (1119)
• United States
9 Feb 09
I never really did, unless there was one that was broken and then I would bite it off. My husband is going to 41 and he bites his nails. I usually don't say anything to him because I know he doesn't even realize that he is doing it. The only times I have ever said anything are when I have stopped to see him at work and he is doing it or after we have been out shopping because I can only imagine how dirty his nails are from touching everything. I do believe it is a nervous habit. I asked his mom if he bit his nails as a child...she said yes as far as she could remember except for when he was real little and he sucked his thumb. He went from one thing to another.
1 person likes this
@Ratris (79)
• Indonesia
9 Feb 09
I bite lip when get nervous rarely.Exactly when I feel not confidence with myself. About cloth, when I feel not comfortable and i talk with other,in the middle of our talk I bite my lip. But when I feel confidence, i wont do it.
1 person likes this
• United States
1 Jul 09
I do not bite my nails at all. But when I was say 12 years old and younger I did bite my nails all the time. My mom and dad would tell me that is not very lady like so at some point I think I made the choice to say stop doing this to myself so I can have pretty long nails. I do grow them now but it depends what I am doing in my life if they will grow long or not. If I am working they will not grow at all. If I am eating good and getting plenty of viatmens than they grow fairly fast! In the end I do feel it is a nervous thing but I feel most people tend to grow out of it at some point. Take care and happy mylotting friend.
• Portugal
8 Feb 09
I have never bited my nails. Actually, I think that's a terrible habit, and this could sound futile, but I couldn't even think of what it is not to get my nails done, because when I look at them all long and painted it's such a satisfaction to me. Besides, I think it's so nice to see a woman with beautiful hands, it's so feminine. I'm a very anxious person too, but I never had that sort of habit. I could even classify that as an act of "self-mutilation", not as cutting yourself, but as defiling your ego, I guess. I've seen some beautiful woman with such ugly hands and that's not a pleasent image. I think all women who have that habit should quit it because, not just concerning their physical image, they look so sloppy when they do that. I'm not trying to offend you, though :) I have to give you my greetings for quiting, of course! Hope you continue like that!
• United States
9 Feb 09
No offense taken. I like to hear all the different opinions.