My 9 Year Old Girl Is Biting Her nails...help!

My daughter went thru a 'phase' (lasted several years) but she did outgrow it. I tried everything to get her to stop, but to no avail. If I remember right, she quit on her own when she was in high school and hasn't had a problem with it since. She's 9, but could be stressing out about end of school - or it could be just a phase. Give it some time - mention it occassionally, but I wouldn't make a big deal out of it. I know it drove me crazy, but when I quit letting it be an issue, and just let it be her thing, then it didn't stress me out so much.

Hi T.,
The first thing that came to my mind was positive reinforcement. Like when my youngest was getting potty trained if she went #1 she got a tic tac and #2 was gum. Boy she was all over that. Is there something that you can "give" her on a weekly basis like movie and picnic on Friday nights (we pull out a picpic cloth, eat dinner and watch movies) to reward her if she hadnt bit her nails. Or maybe its a playdate with a friend. On the other hand is there something that you can take away that she LOVES if she starts to bit? Barbies, TV, Computer, DS game, etc.
Good luck, I hope everyones advice helps.
Blessings on your day ~ K.

Hi T.,

I was never a nail biter but I was a nail picker and it only happened when I would get nervous.
Especially at school and I believe it started around your daughters age.
To this day, if I get really nervous I do the same thing to wear I'll make my skin sore from picking them too short.
I've even tried to get my nails done to avoid being able to pick them and I only ended up picking off the fake nails and wasting my money! : )
Anyhow, maybe she's nervous about something going on in school.....it's a hard habit to break if she's doing it because of nerves but she'll probably grow out of it. I wouldn't put too much pressure on the nail biting before figuring out if there's another issue related.
Good luck!!

My little brother used to bite his nails until they bled and became so infected that they almost had to remove them the DR. said to have him snack on green bell pepper there is something in them that is supposed to satisfy them and will help cut down on nail biting.

I bit my nails as child, too, and the thing that helped me to stop was to start doing my nails nicely. Pretty much a self-given manicure. I put so much time and effort into my nails I didn't want to destroy them by biting them. Since you already do manicures for her, I'm not sure that will help. Good luck!

D.

i would put on her fingers/nails that stuff in the baby isle that stops them from sucking their thumb....it tastes bad. see it that works. if not, start painting her nails, mommy and daughter time. that way when she starts to bite them she can see how ugly it looks.

Hi T.,my 3yr.old grandaughter started biting her finger nails and toe-nails! Her mother ,my daughter got a chamomile stick on the internet to use.Well,it smells good and helps for awhile but you have to keep reapplying it especially if they wash their hands as much as she does{not so much wash her hands but play ing in the bathroom sink}I babysit her approx.8-10 hours a day and I find I just have to watch her closely and stay on her.She mostly does it when she is in her trance watching T.V. Try something holistic since it will go in her mouth.Good luck, S.

T.,
I bit my nails as a child and my parents did everything to try to get me to stop. I mean everything...from pickle juice (I hate pickles), to store bought nasty tasting stuff, to standing in the corner and more. Nothing worked! On my OWN when I was a freshman in high school, I quit. I do not know why but I did. Ever since then, I have had great nails...they are very strong and grow quickly. I don't know if I was lucky or my nails were always like this.

I can understand your worry though. Part of me thinks that she will stop on her own since this is something she just started as a 9 year old. Have you both had a manicure since she started? If so, did the manicurist say anything to her about biting her nails?

I don't know if I was much help or not. Good Luck.

I bit my nails when I was about her age too. My parents told me they would pay me $10 per finger if I quit. The thing was they had to be able to see my nail over the top of my finger when looking at it from palm side. When they realized I was doing it, they couldn't believe it and they actually ended up paying me! Of course you could lower the price if that's too much! But I think it was the amount of $ that got my attention! You might dig a little deeper too and see if there is something going on that is making her nervous or anxious.

My 9 year old has an on-again, off-again nail biting habit. First thing to know is "threats" don't work. After doing the education bit, I just refused to let her partake in mani/pedi outings (while I still took her sister) until such time as she stopped and that her nails has sufficiently grown. She was most successful in stopping when she had a visual aid. She put a chart on her wall and awarded herself a sticker for every day she didn't bite. She was great for over a month! The moment the chart disappeared, she starting biting again, so now we always keep a chart. Her reward is a mani/pedi outing.

Starting such a habit may also be an outward sign of some anxiety. Has she experienced any recent changes in her life? All I know is that for my daughter, being encouraging, but not nagging, seemed to give the best results. Good luck!

When a child bites their nails, it is in response to stress. As a child, I use to pull my hair out on the side and was not aware that I was doing it. I also bit my nails to the quick and got a fungus(yucky green finger). People will probably say what stress but all around us is stress. It could be school, it could be what you think she has not heard you say regarding your home life. Child internalize so much and then it is manifested in areas that we try to control but can't. I would sit down and talk to her one on one. I would talk to the school counselor before school ends for suggestions. Lastly, I would not make such a big deal out of it. When you see her biting, make a joke about her being hungry or something but do not belittle her or try to bribe away the behaviors.

My daughter used to suck her thumb and we bought a product from the internet called Mavala Stop. It's made by Folica and it does work. It was actually made to stop nail biting and yes, it does stop thumb sucking. It's a clear nail polish that has a horrid taste. You only have to put it on every other day and the cost was $10. I have been using this product for about 2 years and I still have over half the bottle left. Every once in awhile, she will suck her thumb during sleep but when I use the mavala stop, she quits....even at night. Good luck!

A friend of mine offered to buy her daughter a new bottle of fingernail polish every week she didn't bite her nails, it worked great for her and her daughter now has an awesome collection of polish and files. I think the main reason it worked though is because she made the deal with her the VERY first time she saw her doing it, it probably hadn't become a habit yet.

I, myself am a nail biter and have been as long as I can remember. My parents tried gently making me aware of what I was doing every time they saw me but it didn't work. Even as an adult I HATE biting my nails but I don't ever realize I'm doing it until I've bitten them all off. I doubt your daughter realizes it either until you bring it to her attention.

Doctor's say it's a nervous tendency. However; my parents did the wildest thing for me. (back then they didn't know anything about the nervousness being a part of it) I had actually told them that I wanted long fingernails so I could paint them like my aunt did hers. LOL

So in order to keep me from bitting them....they painted them with tobasco sauce. Needless to say, when I tried to bite one of them....I never did it again.

Not saying this is the best way....but it may work. Just thought I'd share my experience with ya.