Nail Biting/Skin Chewing

[Xervello]

Lots of people chew their nails. That's not anything uncommon. But I've come to find out recently that I'm not alone in the gross habit of gnawing at the skin around my nails. According to wikipedia the behavior is called Dermatophagia and is also an ocd. Which was news to me. I thought it was just an oral fixation. Of which I don't associate all with ocd. So, I just wanted to put it out there for any who were unaware, or felt isolated by the habit. As for my own personal experience with it, I'm a nail biter. When the nails are widdled to nubs, I go for the skin. And I'm not even aware I'm doing it. 95% of the time I'm not even conscious of it until it's already done. As odd as that sounds. It's difficult to stop when it's more of an unconscious habit/reflex, but there are things that can be done: applying nail polish, for starters, is a good deterrent I've heard. Though I'm weird enough already, I don't need to add nail polish to my list, ha ha. Anyways, there's your ew moment for the day. You're all welcome. :thumbup:

 

[Oton]

Thanks dude i'm also a nail biter and i also bite the skinn off... well only the skin on my thumbs gross i know... i also put nails that i bite off between my gums YES may sound crazy but ''hurting'' my gums feels relaxing and i like the taste of blood.

 

[miserablecow]

I do, but I don't think its as extreme, well most of the time.

 

[Razzlecherry]

I used to bite my nails pretty badly, where I'd do that instead of actually clipping them. Took a while, but I don't do it at all today. I also used to bite around my fingers, a habit that spawned after my nail-biting habit subsided. It's something I may do a little bit of today, but definitely rarely.

I can't say what stopped me from doing it, because I don't really know. I knew I was doing it and I knew it was a problem (especially considering it made my fingers look nasty as crud), although it was subconscious. Whenever I would catch myself, it wouldn't help as I would be bothered to hell about it. All I can say is that I kinda just forgot about it and it doesn't happen anymore. :idontknow:

 

[truffleshuffle]

I bite my nails as well and the skin around them as on occasion although I don;t think I have ocd

 

[chibiXphantom]

i dont bite my nails, but i do bite the skin around them alot. also bite the skin of my lips and insides of my cheeks. its something ive been doing a long time, didnt think anything of it

 

[BleedTheFreak]

I used to do this as well, the skin too. Then I got braces and was basically unable to do it anymore, and once the braces were off I no longer had the urge.

 

[MollyBeGood]

:thumbup: Oh great. I am a "wolf biter" add that to my list of fooked-up conditions! LoL

I am not as bad as the pictures but my one thumb I cannot leave alone for the life of me.

nice to see I am not alone.

 

[A Many Splendored Thing]

I know how bad that could be. I used to pick at my eyelashes/brows. There wouldn't be anything left on my eyes and a bald spot in my brows. It was a conscious action too... Every time I got one I would feel rewarded for whatever reason, even though I knew I wouldn't like it later.

I still like biting my nails when they're long enough just to twiddle the nail in my mouth. I like the feeling of something sharp in my mouth every once in awhile.

If you're able to stop for awhile, it gets easier to keep yourself from doing it later.