How to stop nail biting?

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I bite my nails all the time, completely subconsciously. It really annoys me, but I don't notice when I'm doing it, so it's quite difficult to stop myself. I think it might be a type of stimming, but I'm not entirely sure, not that it is really relevant...

Anyone else bite their nails, or used to bite their nails? If you stopped yourself, how did you achieve it? I've tried covering them in anti-biting stuff like nail varnish, but it annoyed me so much I ended up biting that off, and then back to the nails. Besides that I've mostly just tried to stop whenever I notice, but it's sort of impossible really.

Try sitting on your hands

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Health is a state of physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity I am not a jigsaw, I am a free man !

Diagnosed under the DSM5 rules with autism spectrum disorder, under DSM4 psychologist said would have been AS (299.80) but I suspect that I am somewhere between 299.80 and 299.00 (Autism) under DSM4.

I have always bitten mine, for as long as I can remember. I bite them down so far you can see the nail beds. when I run out of nails to bite I bite the skin around the nails, on the fingertips and the sides of the finger on the end joint. I don't do it out of nervousness. I guess it's boredom. maybe it started as nervousness and I just kept doing it so long that now it has no reason. I have tried nail varnish and band-aids but always end up taking off the band-aid or peeling the varnish off. I will probably always bite them I guess.

I use these Hand Exercise Squeeze Ball for my boy. He has not stopped completely, but at least he is no longer biting his fingers.
http://www.isokineticsinc.com/category/ ... l-isoegbla

I have seen other people mention stim toys. Something unobtrusive you can carry around in your pocket (sort of a everyday item) a rubber band or a keyring.

They make polishes that discourage nail biting. Here's one of them (click).

I don't really recommend the nasty-tasting nail polishes. My parents subjected me to one of those as a child and I hated it because their effect isn't limited to putting your fingers in your mouth to bite nails - it also gets into any food you are preparing or eating with your hands and prevents you putting your hands to your mouth for any other reason without being subjected to the taste (you don't realise how often you need to put your hand to your mouth for completely unrelated reasons such as eating, scratching an itch, holding something temporarily in your teeth etc. until you use something like that).

I have always bitten my nails too and I have yet to figure out a solution. I think I mostly do it out of anxiety, but usually unconsciously, which means there's not a lot to be done about it. When I realise what I'm doing I stop, but I'm so often lost in my thoughts that I've usually had a good chomp by that point.

Sorry I can't suggest anything, but I sympathise.