Complications Related To Child Nail Biting
Following are the complications related to nail biting in children:
- Sometimes children can gnaw into their nails so deep that they often bleed that can hurt their fingers or make their gums sore.
- Nail-biting with dirty hands can lead to infections and diseases.
- Severe nail-biting can be a sign of underlying attention or anxiety problems that need to be dealt with.
Understanding why your child continues to bite their nails is half of the solution to stopping the habit. Over time, it is possible to get them to quit by reinforcing positive alternatives.
Find A Secret Signal To Stop Them Biting
Nail biting can often be subconscious, so coming up with a way to make your child aware of their biting can be useful.
Try lightly tapping your childs arm or leg when they are biting their nails without telling anybody else.
Keep it friendly and avoid scolding them, this is only to make them more aware of their biting.
Discover What Triggers Your Nail Biting
There are many reasons why people bite their nails, but people arent always conscious about why they do it.
One of the most important steps in overcoming this habit is to identify what triggers you to bite your nails.
Is it when youre feeling anxious? When youre bored? Or maybe you start nibbling when you want to forget a certain feeling e.g. anger?
A good way to do this is to keep a journal a notes app on your phone is ok too! Just try to jot down when you bite your nails and how youre feeling / what youre doing.
This will help you to identify any patterns so that you can try and change your reaction to any nail-biting triggers, e.g. filing your nails into a nice shape when youre worried instead of biting them all off.
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How To Recognize Nail Biting In Children
Before we get into how to stop nail biting in children, we need to know how to recognize if the child has been biting their nails.;
If youre cutting their nails weekly or fortnightly, youll instantly know. Nails, much like hair, dont just stop growing unless theres something wrong. If little Lisa has trimmed nails and you did not cut using nail clippers or infant scissors, then shes probably trimming them with her pearly whites.
No one can really explain why, but when asked if theyre biting their nails, a child will usually deny doing it. Maybe theyre humiliated by it, or the habit has formed and progressed beyond the point of limited toddler constraint. Either way, once you know about it, you must find out why theyre doing it, and what you can do about it.
Reward Every Little Victory
Whether youve managed to get through a whole day without biting your nails or made it through your first month of no-nail biting make sure you celebrate!
Plan some rewards for these milestones, like treating yourself to a nice manicure or a buying yourself a nice piece of clothing youve had your eye on for a while.
This positive reinforcement should help you kick the habit for good.
And remember if you find yourself biting your nails, dont be too hard on yourself, simply acknowledge that everyone makes mistakes and start again youve got this!
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Why Do They Bite
For people who have never dealt with a nail-biting habit, it may be difficult to understand why a child would bite her nails. Habits like nail biting can be brought on by a variety of issues, including boredom, stress, anxiety, changes in routine, curiosity or just plain habit. If your toddler suddenly begins to bite her nails, think about whats going on in her life. Has she recently started attending a new day care, or has she started a special class? Are there extra stressors in the home, like a new sibling or a pet? Maybe the biting is situational, meaning that it only seems to occur when your child is watching TV or riding in his car seat, for example. You might be able to recognize a stressor immediately, but the nail biting can just as likely happen for no apparent reason at all. Other similar habits include hair twisting, nose picking, hair chewing, teeth grinding or thumb sucking.
Thumb Sucking And Finger Sucking: 11 Ways To Break The Habit
If your thumb or finger sucking child is 3 years old or over, its time to break the habit. Many articles on this subject focus on talking to your child and offering positive reinforcement. But most toddlers are not interested in giving up a constant source of pleasure. If you wait too long to stop the thumb and finger sucking, your child can have permanent changes to their jaw shape, bite, and teeth. Speech can also be affected, and many thumb suckers will need speech therapy. Thumb and finger sucking are normal in the newborn period and an important way for infants to be able to soothe themselves. However, once your child is 3 years old, its time to break the habit. ;
My 4 ½ -year-old has finally quit. After more than a year of failed efforts, frustration, sleepless nights and crying, I thought Id share what Ive learned. As a pediatrician, I was frustrated that there is little evidence-based research on effective techniques to stop thumb sucking and finger sucking. Most online articles focused on gentle strategies to quit sucking, like positive reinforcement, keeping little fingers busy with play and art, and helping your child understand why sucking is a bad habit.
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What Causes A Habit
Experts aren’t always sure what causes a habit, but do know that they’re learned behaviors that usually provide a positive outcome for the child.
Habits may develop as entertainment for a bored child or, more commonly, as a coping mechanism to soothe an anxious one. The next time you see nail biting or hair twirling, try to recall if your child has recently had a stressful experience. If so, the behavior might be your child’s attempt to relieve tension, much as you would by working out at the gym. On the other hand, some kids engage in habits when they’re relaxed, such as before falling to sleep or quietly listening to music.
Some habits may be leftovers from infancy. In infants, thumb sucking is a common self-comfort behavior that has pleasurable associations with feedings and the end of hunger. So it may linger into childhood because of its positive associations.
Or perhaps the explanation for your child’s nail biting is in your mirror. Do you bite your nails? Studies suggest that nail biting may have a strong familial or genetic component.
Other kids engage in habits to attract attention or to manipulate their parents. If kids feel that their parents are ignoring them, they may engage in the annoying habit because they know that it will get a reaction from Mom or Dad.
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Nail Biting Ages 3 To 6
Why does my child bite her nails?
Your child may bite her nails for many reasons — out of curiosity or boredom, to relieve stress, to pass the time, or from force of habit. Nail biting is the most common of the so-called “nervous habits,” which include thumb sucking, nose picking, hair twisting or tugging, and tooth grinding. Nail biting is most common in high-strung and spirited children, tends to run in families, and is the most likely of the nervous habits to continue into adulthood. About 30 to 60 percent of elementary school students and 20 percent of adolescents bite their nails at some point; between one-quarter and one-third of college students say they still bite their nails.
How can I get my child to stop biting her nails?
Unless and until she’s ready, you probably can’t. Like other nervous habits, nail biting tends to be unconscious. If your child doesn’t even know she’s doing it, nagging and punishing her are pretty useless. Adults have a terrible time breaking themselves of habits like this — and most parents, when they think about it, realize that they regularly model such behavior.
One simple strategy, if you feel you must do something, is to praise your child when she doesn’t bite her nails at a time or during an activity that usually triggers the habit . If you pay attention to her for behaving the way you want, you’ll make more progress than if you focus on the negative.
Is my child’s nail biting a sign of excessive anxiety?
References
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To Relieve Anxiety And Stress
Situations at home or school that can cause stress or anxiety triggers nail-biting in children. There are plenty of stressful situations that can cause them to get anxious such as:
- Fights between family members or parents
- Loss of a family member or a close relative
- The pressure to perform well in class or sports
When To Seek Medical Advice
For some people, nail biting may be a sign of a more serious psychological or emotional problem.
If you have tried to stop biting your nails and the problem persists, or if you begin to develop skin or nail infections, you may want to consult a doctor.
The advice in this article is for information only and should not replace medical care. Please check with your GP or healthcare professional before trying any supplements, treatments or remedies. Food supplements must not be used as a substitute for a varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.
25 August;2021
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Ways To Permanently Stop Finger And Thumb Sucking
Most people need to combine several methods to find success:
- Talk: Always start by talking to your child about why thumb sucking is a bad habit. Talking alone doesnt usually break the habit, but it can help your child decide that he or she wants to quit. Positive motivation to quit is half the battle. Some things to talk about with your child include:
- Germs: Thumb and finger sucking spreads germs and makes people sick.
- Teeth: Sucking pushes teeth forward and can make you look funny, and you might need braces.
- Teasing: Other kids will think you are still a baby or might tease.
- Speech: As long as you suck your thumb, it is hard to learn how to speak the right way. You might sound funny. ;
- YouTube: It worked for us. One night we showed our daughter about six short YouTube videos about thumb sucking. In the middle of one video, she announced she was all done sucking her thumb. That was really the turning point, the moment at which she decided for herself that she wanted us to help her stop. Sometimes, kids just really need to hear about bad habits from someone other than mom or dad. YouTube is a cheap and easy way to accomplish this. ;
- Chewelry: Jewelry you can chew, or chewelry, is a good substitute to help a toddler stop the sucking without losing the true pleasure they get from oral stimulation. There are many options in many colors on Amazon and other sites, most about $10. ;
Reward Each Little Victory
Who doesnt love a good sticker chart? They can be a fun and useful way to reward your child for not biting their nails.
Choose a time marker, e.g. day, half a day and give your child a sticker if they manage not to bite their nails during this time.
Once they have earned a specific number of stickers, give them an award like a trip to the cinema or a toy theyve had their eye on for a while.
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Why Does My Child Bite Their Nails
Children bite their nails for many reasons — out of curiosity or boredom, to relieve stress, to pass the time, or from force of habit. Nail biting is the most common of the so-called “nervous habits,” which include thumb sucking, nose picking, hair twisting or tugging, and tooth grinding. Nail biting is most common in high-strung children, tends to run in families, and is the most likely of the nervous habits to continue into adulthood. About one-third of primary school students and one-half of adolescents bite their nails, at least for a time; between one-quarter and one-third of college students say they still bite their nails.
Its Tough To Get A Three
Parents will use many tactics in an attempt to get their older child to stop this form of self-mutilation, including bribes with money.
But a three-year-old nail biter?
Thats a lot harder to tackle.;What could cause a three-year-old to begin nibbling at their nails anyways?
What causes a three-year-old to be anxious? asks Dr. John Huber, a clinical forensic psychologist and chairman for Mainstream Mental Health, a nonprofit organization that brings positive change to the lives of those with mental illness.
It probably has something to do with the communication between the parent and child. It may also have something to do with potty training.
The reason why is because there are demands being placed on the child by society and their parents versus their natural proclivity to potty train when theyre ready. So anxiety is possible among young kids.
Many parents think that a child so young cant possibly know what anxiety is. Preschoolers dont have bills to worry about, for instance.
But three-year-olds may indeed feel a lot of anxiety simply because their little brains arent developed enough to process the true nature of their sometimes bewildering environment.
Could a young child who feels very secure, safe and sound actually develop a nail biting habit? Its just not likely.
I once told my three-year-old nephew, a nail biter, Stop biting your nails, when he had his fingers in his mouth.
Same with at church or at any time when the parents are with the child.
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Why Is My Toddler Biting Their Nails
An estimated 30 to 60 percent of kids and teens bite their nails, so your child isnt alone. So what causes it?
Some research shows that nail biting may have genetic factors. Also, your toddler could be biting their nails because of the attention they garner when you insist they stop.
However, most experts pin down nail biting to habit a repeated behavior that your child isnt even aware of. Habits develop for three main reasons:
- Boredom. A bored child may start nibbling at their nails because there isnt anything more pressing to do.
- Relief. Nail biting may be a response to stress.
- Relaxant. Some kids suck their thumbs to help them fall asleep, while others bite their nails.
Trim Their Nails Regularly
Trimming their nails is a good way to minimize their urge to bite them. Clip and file their nails every week, so there are no rough edges that tempt them to gnaw at it. Girls can have their nails done at a salon, so it looks all shiny and pretty. The attention and pampering her nails get can keep her from biting them again.
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How To Stop Skin Picking Habit In Kids
After reading this we explored few of the methods that people have used for stop biting nails habit and we tried the same with our daughter and we are seeing improvement in her.
Involve with your kids Dont leave him/her alone
Study says that boredom and loneness is one of the major reasons for skin picking or biting habit. Even we have observed the same thing that my daughter use to bite skin more when nobody is attending her or no one is giving attention to her .
Try to involve with your kids as much as possible; it will make bonding between you and your kids stronger and they will understand your advice too.
Remind your kids about bad habit regularly
You need to remind your kids about the bad effect of skin/nail biting on regular basis. Remind them that when they did it last time then their finger was bleeding or finger was having swelling for many days etc. You need to encourage them to overcome this bad habit by adding some kind of reward with it.
Apply bandage on hanging/swelled cuticles
If your kids have injured his/her figure due to skin biting habit then apply bandages on the cuticles. This will prevent them from getting infected and will prevent your kids from doing any more damage by biting. I have observed that my daughter stops biting skin around nails whenever she have bandage on any of the finger; reason could be it reminds her that biting nails can lead to bleeding and pain.
Cuts the nails and cuticles regularly
Nail Biting Detergent
Is Nail Biting A Sign Of An Anxiety Disorder
If you know or suspect that a particular situation is making your child anxious — a recent move, a break-up in the family, a new school — make a special effort to help them talk about their feelings. If your child’s nail biting seems self-destructive, however, it’s time to call their doctor or school counsellor. You should be concerned, for example, if their fingertips are ragged and bloody, or if in addition to biting his nails, they pick their skin, tugs on their eyelashes, or is not sleeping well. Also consult your child’s doctor if the habit of nail biting surfaced suddenly and escalated quickly. You always want to check out the reasons behind a drastic change in your child’s behaviour.If, on the other hand, the habit doesn’t seem to pose any physical or psychological threat, ignoring it is the best way to ensure that down the road your child will either stop on their own or asks you to help them quit.
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