09/29/2016 Nadezhda Plotnikova 4 comments
Bitten nails and unpleasant hangnails are a common situation, since the habit of pushing fingers into the mouth is common to both young children and teenagers.
It seems that onychophagia - the scientific name for this problem - is not so scary. And yet you need to fight it, despite my mother’s numerous experiences of “I can’t”, “nothing works out”.
To decide how to stop a child from biting his nails, you must first discover the “trigger” of the habit, and only then take certain measures.
Reasons for the habit
The reasons why a child bites his nails are very different; in some cases it is just a habit, in others it is a consequence of mental trauma.
According to child psychologists, the reasons for the appearance of such a habit may be:
- Anxiety;
- Stressful situations;
- Auto aggression;
- Brittle nails;
- Imitation;
- Transformation when trying to get rid of another bad habit;
When watching TV or using gadgets, the child cannot find something to do.
If parents notice that their child has developed this habit recently, to establish its cause, it is recommended to write it down in a notebook and observe it every time the child starts biting his nails.
Solutions
When choosing recommendations on how to wean yourself from a bad habit, the behavior of the parents themselves is very important. Do not yell at your child, scold him or hit him in the arms. Such behavior not only does not help to get rid of the habit, but will only scare the child, he will learn to do it not in the presence of his parents, but secretly.
Therefore, any actions of parents in this situation should be with love, words of support should be pronounced with tenderness in a calm tone. Let's look at specific ways to solve the problem.
Eliminating stress
It is necessary to analyze at what point the child began to behave this way. What events did he experience before this? Perhaps the child witnesses quarrels between parents or experiences severe stress for another reason.
- To get rid of this habit, you need to try to either eliminate the stress factor or limit it as much as possible from such situations.
- Of course, it is not always possible to completely eliminate stressful situations from life.
- In this case, you need to have a confidential conversation with the child, tell him what exactly is happening in the family and for what reasons. Give him support, hug him.
Self-adhesive sticky pads
Sticking pieces of adhesive tape to the ends of your fingers is also a proven method. The patch limits access to the nails and creates some inconvenience. To interest your baby, you can use children's multi-colored patches with some kind of pattern.
When sticking, you must explain to your child the reason for your actions. You need to glue it so that it covers the entire nail plate. Change as needed.
Agreement with the child
Perhaps, with the help of nail biting, the child survived a stressful situation in the past, but the habit remained. In this case, you can try to agree with the child that, for example, if he goes without this action for a certain time or if you can cut all his fingernails, then you promise to buy him a long-desired toy or perform another pleasant action for him.
For example, go to your favorite cafe or to the cinema for the long-awaited premiere.
- The child is not yet as disciplined as an adult and it may take time to overcome this. There may be some disruptions at first.
- In such situations, the main thing is not to scold the child or reprimand him, but to support him and again promise him something pleasant if he stays without a bad habit for a certain period of time.
If this is just a habit and not the result of a psychological problem, with the support of his parents he will be able to cope with this problem.
Age characteristics
The prerequisites for harmful actions depend on the age of the child. A baby can suck his thumb after he has been abruptly weaned from the breast or his pacifier has been taken away. Both one-year-old and two-year-old toddlers usually suffer during teething. In late preschool age, permanent teeth replace baby teeth, creating a feeling of discomfort.
Here are the periods during which you should be more attentive and gentle with your child:
- Admission to kindergarten or school. It’s rare that adaptation to new conditions proceeds painlessly. Children pick up bad tendencies from each other much faster than good ones.
- Age-related turning points, for example the well-known crisis at three years. It may not affect the baby at all, it can be observed in both the second and fourth years of life and turn a sweet angel into a restless rebel. At this moment, it is important for the child to assert himself by overstepping the parents’ ban on biting his nails.
- Moving to another city, apartment, stressful situations in the family.
- Difficulty doing homework. Boredom, lack of interest in a subject, or an exercise that is too difficult are also reasons to form a bad habit. Most often boys are susceptible to it.
Games
To overcome stress, it is recommended to carry out psychological relief. For children, the most interesting and understandable format is a game format. Any constructor can be used.
You can show your imagination and come up with other games. According to the advice of psychologists, this is:
- Playing with sand. An adult’s hand is buried in the sand, the child must dig it up without touching the hand;
- Game with gloves. Various small objects are placed in ordinary gloves, and the child plays with them at least once a day;
- Game Pull. Prepare small strips of adhesive tape, stick them on the playing surface, and the child’s task is to tear them off. After all, it often happens that children not only bite their nails, but also tear them off, and this game provides an alternative to this activity.
What's the harm?
Judgment from others is not the only negative result of nail biting. The consequences include:
- The risk of infectious diseases and the formation of helminthic infestations. Dirt accumulated under the nails remains even after washing your hands.
- Deformation of the nail, most often irreversible, reduction in the size of the nail plate.
- Inflammation of the skin on the outside of the fingertips, risk of inflammation of open small wounds, infection through the bloodstream.
- Violation of social connections: ridicule and teasing of peers, alienated attitude of adults.
Set up a daily routine
The reason for such a bad habit may be an incorrect daily routine. It needs to be analyzed and possibly revised.
Maybe you need to reduce the number of additional activities, you need to reduce the time you watch TV and use gadgets, they excite the nervous system. It is better to devote time to other more active games and walks.
Massage
When the question arises of how to stop a small child from biting his nails, a massage method of distraction can help. When parents notice that the baby has begun to bite his nails, you need to gently remove his hands from his mouth and massage with light pressure.
You can find another effective method of diverting a child’s attention from unwanted behavior. The main thing is to do these actions regularly.
Application of bitter varnish “Nekusayka” and “Belweder”
To wean a child from biting his nails, in addition to traditional medicine, a number of bitter varnish coatings are offered that act on the principle of mustard or pepper. These include “Nekusayku” and “Belweder”.
They have a transparent structure, so they are suitable for both girls and boys. They also help strengthen the nail plate and contain calcium and vitamin E.
In addition to them, bitter ointments are available for sale. But these products have some danger: getting into the eyes, into the mouth, if the baby continues to bite the nail plates.
There is also a cosmetic drug "Mavala Stop". It is harmless and provides nails with a bitter taste. Apply to nail plates and fingertips. After hand hygiene, it is washed off, so you need to reapply.
"Gnaw" method
When the problem arises of how to stop biting nails at 4 years of age and older, psychologists recommend the “reverse method.” In your daily schedule, you need to enter a separate period of time allotted for the habit.
When this time comes, the child is distracted from his activities at that moment and told that this time has come and he can bite his nails. The habit turns from a taboo into a legal activity and becomes no longer so interesting and attractive.
Going to the doctor
Parents are often concerned with the question of whether it is worth contacting a doctor about such a problem. If the methods listed above did not help, and you were unable to cope on your own, it is recommended to visit a neurologist and psychologist. After all, the emergence of such a habit is a signal that the psyche cannot cope on its own.
There are many reasons for the habit of biting nails. It is important to identify the cause in a particular case, because serious psychological trauma can be hidden behind a common habit.
And if they are not detected and resolved in time, in adult life the situation can turn into various complexes and more serious psychological problems.
Recommendations from psychologists
General advice boils down to the following: by scolding and punishing a child, parents will increase stress, the child will begin to bite his nails more often or acquire another habit, much worse. Orders, threats and prohibitions will not work. It’s better to gently explain to your son that nail biting is not the job of a real man, and tell the girl that biting her cuticles is very unsightly, and give her an elegant manicure.
Here are general recommendations for parents:
- Follow the daily routine, review the diet of the whole family.
- If a specialist has prescribed treatment, follow all instructions.
- Try art therapy to help cope with fears: offer to draw a frightening situation, your family, mold a dangerous creature and crush it. Write a story about a boy or girl the same age as the child who overcomes a habit.
- Provide exercise in the fresh air. You can enroll your child in creative courses or in a sports club, where he will give free rein to his feelings.
Skin contact is very important. Hugs, bedtime massages, and pats on the head signal the baby’s well-being and acceptance, and positive emotions will alleviate stress.
Important! When you see a child biting his nails, do not raise your voice, slap his hands or call him names. Shift your attention to something positive.
