Nailbiting

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Anyone else here bite there nails constantly. I do until I dont have any nails to bite anymore. I think its part of my way of stimming (in a weird way). Is this an aspie thing or just a freaky me thing .

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I'm with you on this one. I have no nails....until the next day!

Sorta. I do bite my nails, at least recently. But I don't really bite them that badly. *shrug* At least mine are longer than most female's nails.... *shrug*

Yeah way too much... sometimes the hardness on my fingers is bitten/chewed on too. I really need to stop it

Back in August, there was general discussion thread on WP:"Biting nails/Cracking knuckles", started by AbominableSnoCone-I posted on that.
It's been a couple years now since I stopped nailbiting, had done so all my life. Still chew on the skin around my fingertips, or fiddle with the cuticles.
It's like an irritating itch, wanting to trim/chew my nails down-creepy bad buzzy sensation, inside my hands/fingers. Skeptical about how this "symptom" would be (mis-)interpreted by a clinician, the function/purpose/meaning suggested.

Nail biting
There are two critical pieces of information any person needs to know in order to quit biting nails.
1. nail biteing is a symptom of fear of assertion . So what you have to do is realise that simple fear is driveing the habit. Take a hard look at the people around you. Which of them makes you feel dominated , fearful? Try to avoid them! and the situations which remind you of them.
If you cannot there is still a great way to break their grip on the stress cascade in you body-mind. Do deep breathing just as soon as you notice the tension in your body. 7 counts inhale hold 3- counts out breath 7 counts . That will calm you down . Pay some close attention to what makes you feel anxious. Try to relax physically and do self talk that is calming. try not to imagine bad stuff or talk bad stuff to yourself! . You'll be creating stress from worry yourself .
2. Nail biting is a cycle . It goes: irritation > signals brain > brain says chew nails > chew nails > irritation > signals brain Brain says chew nails > irritation . Something like that 'ya see? So simply break the cycle.
3. Here is how you breakthe cycle:
Keep your nails very very smooth , not only the nails but the cuticles as well. You dont feel anything so your brain does not get any signals .
You need some tools
1. a diamond nail file such as those made to file plasic artificial nails . Mine is made by Tropical Shine(Florida) 707333 collassal collection 100/180.... The numbers represent the coarseness. Its real macho looking DUDE Sand off all your callouses and rough cuticals with a diamond file of the sort used for acrylic nails , or any other sort of abrasive that works. Take your time and be careful not to cut yourself or file the nail tops.
2. After all the callouses are gone go again over the same ereas with an ordinary emery board. That makes the skin smooth.
3. Clip any hangnails and dab them with alchohol . DONT BITE THEM off! Clip them in the morning when you get up .
4. Clip hangnails with cuticle clippers after your bath when they are soft but dont use cuticle clippers to remove callouses , that will make real problems .
5. Clean up your nails with a blunted orange stick (sand it a bit so its not sharp. )use some bakeing soda if they are grubby from working.Work it into the edges of your nails and rub the cuticles with your thumb. push the cuticle back with the flat edge. Another thing that works is to push them back with cloth after you get out of a shower , be gentle so you dont rip them . They are there to keep germs out of the nail bed so dont go overboard pushing the cuticles back. Take it easy. I sometimes use the end of an ordinary emery board (orange sand ) to push them with the lighter side next to the nail.The round end fits.
6. let your nails dry completely before takeing the next step. If nails are wet when you file them they will split into layers.The same thing which happens when you bite them. If you do catch yourself biteing, stop and smooth the nail out before you do any more damage. That will stop you from continueing the cycle.Carry an emery board and clippers with you everywhere.
7. After your nails are totally dry use a type of nail file that is considered to be for finishing/smoothing - a fine grade. Ordinary files . The orange sand colored ones are too coarse and will not give you the results we are going after here.(The back side is Ok for callaoses on the cuticle erea but it is also too coarse and wont give you that glassy smooth edge were looking for. It's ok for shapeing the nail however. The idea is to get them very smooth to the touch , not just filed.
Generally a fine grit will be a pink or blue color file sold for smoothing ridges. So as with all craftsmanship involveing abrasives you go from coarse to fine and the end result is very smooth but very short (no) nails . It will get better , just keep it up!
8. The edge of the nail should be bevelled so that it feels very smooth when you rub the fingertip over the edge. Use you newly sanded fingertip to tell you if it's smooth . If you feel any sharp spots or rough edges sand them off gently untilevery last edge and corner feels smooth. keep chacking until your satisfied .
First time you do this it could take two hours but after that only 20 -30 minuites a week.and a daily touch up.
9. After you do this 1-2-3 Times your hands will certainly be improved in appearance but not only that you will not be getting any more signals from them because the little snags just arent there for you to notice.When you<<notice>> them they go in your mouth! So the idea is NOT to notice them . keep them smooth. All the time.
10 Since your hands are your tools you should take very good care of them . I am a cook but my hands don't show the amount of grubby work I do because I keep all the callouses sanded off and I wear a 6 coat manicure which makes my nails stronger and keeps them from getting beat up by scullery and kitchen work. The same thing goes when I am silversmithing and gardening. I use my nails to pick up beads too.
11. Stay away from people that dominate you! I mean its not always possible but I didn't stop biting my nails until I moved away from my mom ( see Vaknin site on narcissist parent) . When I used to go around her I bit my nails, then got depressed. I dont do that anymore . I learned without any drugs how to be happy(dance art music nice people) Some kinds of movies will make you bite your nails ! So there is a messege there. Are you listeng to it?
12. Cortisol is the stress hormone . The antidote is vitimin C . Vitimin C flushes the stress hormones out of your system. A deficiency in Vitimin C will cause you to get hangnails , useually when winter comes. So make sure you get Vitimin C . Limeade, Lemon and water , grapefruit juice, oranges, tomatoes, cherries, Bell peppers. It seems meaningful that stress and nail biting go together . So definitely take up yoga, deep relaxation- what they call progressive relaxation , deep breathing. Whatever slows down your heart rate and gets you deeply relaxed. Meditation will help with anxiety that comes from an abusive or stressful social invironment. It teaches you how to watch your thoughts and self talk. Meditation is just watching your breath and bringing your minds attention back to your breath going in and out. That teaches your mind to go where you want it to go and not wander off into anxiety land over something that might not even happen . Meditate and relax (hot bath, nap music, sex, happy movie,pet cat, eat carbs, listen to white sound ).
All of these things are fabulous for any humans .
best of luck to Ya!
Kids level books go to kids books on yoga for the information on deep brething yoga ect.
Adult level Books > Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers. (What stress does to 'ya)
Gesture of Balance( basic meditation )

I peel off the edges with the fingernails from my thumb or other hand (while they're still on that hand of course).

i.e. I put them at right angles to eachother (making an X) and snap.

I stim with the battery clipplate thing on remotes (Chipple).

thats some pretty good advice there!

no, i don't really bite my nails. i do it at school if i ever do (can't exactly aviod that). they're a little short (not more than normally!)but at least healthy-looking... my pointer finger on my right hand is a little gross but that's because i play guitar a lot and that finger hits up against the strings when i pick so the skin is really stiff there.

i've never had a real problem with biting my nails though. well maybe when i was little but i've managed to fix that. i've mastered the art of nail-biting, only biting off the uneven part at the tip, never cuticles or hangnails. they're decent enough, i can get by like this

I bite my nails on a sort of frequent basis
I was deterred from doing so for only a week or so but then started again

It's a bad habit

I chew rather than bite now, but I've had problems with biting. I have no idea how long it's been since I've properly bitten, but it's not long enough. I bite the hard bits round the nail though, an awful lot. I don't think it's stress-related; it's just habit. One that I can't break with willpower. Even using revolting-tasting stuff didn't work - in the end I just ignored the taste. Oh well ...

One of my stimulation methods is tearing off my nails at the top, and picking off the skin around my nail. Often I pick to hard and it rips to the skin underneith and bleeds, it hurts

I have bitten my nails since I was 2. I have tried to stop for many years and have almost on a number of occasions, however I use it as a stress relif and whenever a lot of stress comes along I start again.

I will stop...eventually

I've bitten my nails near constantly since I was a young child. I always attributed to nervousness and anxiety but even that's not always the cause.

I started biting my nails when I stopped sucking my thumb at age 4. The only time I've stopped was in 11th grade when I started manicuring and putting nail polish on them. They grew surprisingly long, so long in fact, many people flat-out asked me if they were real. But that all stopped when I was lighting the burner on a stove with a match and the flame caught my long thumbnail on fire....ouch! The rest eventually broke off painfully where they attach at the skin. I concluded that having nails was more trouble than it's worth and resumed biting them which I've never stopped to this day.

Alas, my nails are now currently supershort. Thus no more nail biting for me, at least for a while. :[

ChickenOutlaw, your advice about the breathe in - hold 3 secs - breathe out exercise was real good and has helped me to calm my mind down on a number of occasions, thanks!