Does anyone here suffer from dermatophagia or constant lip-biting?
I bit my fingers for the longest time since I was in middle school until about 3 years ago.
About 3 years ago I finally broke the cycle for the first time. I would give myself these “imaginary ultimatums.” I would tell myself like, “Okay, imagine someone is putting a gun to your loved one and orders you to stop biting your fingers forever. You gotta stop biting your fingers.” Stuff like that. And it worked eventually.
Then last year I fell into relapse.
Not here for political discussion, but I relapsed when Trump won the 2016 election. I remember talking to my friends online and realizing that I was biting my fingers again. Ever since then, I caved and can’t seem to stop again. This goes for the same thing with lip biting. If I don’t bite my fingers then I bite my lip and end up chewing off the outer layer.
When I was a kid, my pediatrician would check my fingers but he wouldn’t say much about them. Mom would ask him when my biting would stop and he’d shrug. He didn’t really assess it nor suggest anything – just acknowledged that it was still going on. I didn’t even know this impulse had a name until last year.
I’m trying to think of creative ways to stop again. Those “imaginary ultimatums” aren’t doing the trick again. Tried nail polish but it didn’t work. I tried tape a very long time ago before I broke the cycle for the first time, but it gets annoying because I type a lot and work with my hands.
I not only bite my fingers and lip when I’m nervous. I also do it when I’m thinking or trying to concentrate. Frustration is another one. Lately though I’ve been feeling this incessant vibe in my head. It’s not a painful sensation headache or a migraine. It’s like I know a portion in my brain is saying “Bite, bite, bite”, like it’s on overdrive and won’t stop, and I wish I could soothe it and relieve it. Why did this manifest? Was it something in my early development that made me do this? Some Freudian crap? Genetics?
I take note of other people and if they do it. The only other person I know who does it is my boss. Whenever he’s trying to think of something he takes a bite of his fingers.
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8 Answers
I bite my lips, the skin around my fingers, my cuticles, and my fingernails. I’m really bad about it. I even broke a tooth from nail biting. I never have any of the white part of my fingernails.
The only time I have managed to stop was when I was sick with digestive stuff and I worried that getting bits of nails into my tract would make things worse. It resumed when I was healed up.
I have no idea what causes it or how to stop, but I sympathize!
Sounds like anxiety induced behavior, usually the case for nail biting, lip biting etc. Do you have issues with anxiety?
I’ve always chewed my nails, but oddly enough, it seems to be the thumbs and index fingers that suffer the most. The other three nails get long and pretty until they get on my nerves and I bite them off too!
I think long nails, and the care that goes into them, is ridiculous. If I quit biting them, I’d still keep them at fingertip length.
When I was younger it was much, much worse. Like…they’d bleed. Sometimes I wondered if it wasn’t symbolic of me destroying myself.
I don’t have a suggestion except…don’t. It’s like any other habit. If you can break it for 30 days it gets much, much easier.
Have you tried a product called Thum?
I used it decades ago when I chewed my nails.
I did. I just chewed it off and spit it out! I might try it again now that it’s not so bad.
I bite the inside of my cheeks when I’m nervous
It is a bad habit and habits are so easy to get into and so hard to break when they are rewarding. Try dealing with the anxiety – do relaxation, meditation, yoga, therapy. Whatever works for you. You also need to tackle the habit but give yourself a break worrying about it while you deal with the anxiety then go back and try the habit breaking techniques again. Have faith that you can do this. You did it before.
One thing to try is fake nails. I know you are male but hear me out! Buy some cheap glue-on nails in a natural colour. Cut them down to a short size so that they cover the nail bed and nothing more. Stick them on and they will look normal and quite natural. I think you’ll find that they make nail biting impossible and skin chewing hard. They should last a week or so – just replace as necessary.
I use to bite my cheeks. Nearly 30 years ago a dentist told me to stop doing that and I never did it again.
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