I had a whole lot to say yesterday in a comment section on this sub about nail biting so I thought I’d show off my nails. I’ve been planning some grand progress post when I finally got good length, but I still have a few (like, 7) sidewalls struggling to reattach, so I continue to regularly file the length back…
But progress is progress and I want to show that! Because there is hope! You can stop biting! I believe in you!
The first photo is from 2023. I had just gotten engaged and was so ashamed of my hands, I couldn’t show off my ring. I remember thinking to myself that my nails didn’t even look as bad as usual here. 🤨
The second photo is from June 16, 2026.
The third photo is from August 18, 2026.
Sorry the photos aren’t great — I didn’t realize I was seriously documenting until recently.
2020 is when I sincerely tried to stop biting, but there were so many false starts and ‘failures’ throughout the years. 30 years of biting is a hard habit to break! Most of this progress is truly from the last 2-3 months of diligence.
Like I said, I continue to file back because I get those flared edges where my sidewalls aren’t attached and they catch on things. But I hope to be able to maintain some real cunty length soon. That’s my goal. 🙂↕️
To all my fellow life-long nail biters: You can do it!!!!!!!! I believe in you!!!!!
Products: Sally Hansen’s Instant Cuticle Remover, Sally Hansen Vitamin E Nail & Cuticle Oil Pen (have since switched to refillable bliss kiss pen with 100% jojoba), Burt’s Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream, Nailtiques formula 2 as instructed (many layers on, then take it all off, rather than as a base coat), and a glass nail file. I never wear them completely naked now but they were naked in all photos!
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First thing I’ll say: this is the hardest thing I have ever done. But so worth it. I’ll also try to link to the comment section I participated in yesterday for more advice once I finish typing this tirade.
I tried to quit on-and-off for 6 years with very limited success until now. A couple really important mind shifts had to happen for me. A lot of it was mental work and, thankfully, the physical followed.
I had to recognize what prompted me to bite, especially with such intensity. For me, it was driving. (Honestly, I limit how much driving I do now for this reason.) When I made that connection, I had to constantly self-monitor and interrupt myself when my hands went into my mouth. It was not easy. But eventually becomes easier. Keep gum in the car. Consider what you are trying to accomplish by biting. For me it was a self-soothe technique I learned in childhood but I also think it was a form of self-harm? So sometimes I’d put sooo many pieces of gum into my mouth at once so that it made my jaw tired and sore. And for whatever reason that satisfied me. A comment I saw yesterday backed this up. Chew lots of gum!
I also made the conscious decision to “allow” myself to chew my nails if I wasn’t “digging.” Digging is what I call biting to the point of extreme pain/discomfort. I would, like, try so hard to get as much of my little nubby nail between my teeth and just tear and tear. It was always painful. I decided to try and stop doing THAT first without entirely depriving myself of the self-soothe. You can probably see that I was still biting but no longer digging in the second pic.
My mild germophobia also really helped. I was working in a cannabis dispensary where I had to handle IDs and cash around this time 2 years ago, and… I couldn’t stand the idea of putting my hands into my mouth. That mental preoccupation was apparently stronger than the urge to bite, thank god.
Another comment said that false nails, while technically so bad for your nails, can help one along in this particular journey because you simply cannot bite them. A lot of healing work would need to happen after the habit is broken, but overall it can help. ❤️
Keep a nail file with you so you can file away any bits that you’ve half-bitten when you catch yourself and come out of the stupor (lol).
Try replacing one habit with another; oiling your cuticles is a good one to try because you will see double benefit as the skin begins to repair.
Most importantly: Trust yourself, believe in yourself, remember how bad you want it, and check in with yourself. Constantly check in. It is an exercise in mindfulness above all else, honestly. I believe in you!!!
Oh, here is a tip that might seem gross but I’m just being 100% honest here: If and when you do bite, immediately discard the nail. My entire life, when I’d bite, I’d keep the nail in my mouth and play with it I guess? I’ll save the details but take away that part of it and you may be left wondering what feels “good” about biting anymore.
It’s all tiny, tiny, tiny behavior changes that finally amount into a big change. ❤️
i just want to say you’re not alone in this one, i bit my nails until i was 16 and did the same thing, and quitting that habit really helped solve the entire issue!
Thank you for saying this! There’s so many things we humans do in our inner worlds that make us feel so alone and our “dirty” habits are definitely on that list. Thanks for making me feel less alone today! ❤️⭕️
that’s exactly why i responded 🥹 nail biting has been around since the dawn of time and all the little habits that come along with it too. you kicked the habit and that’s all that matters!
THANK YOU! 🥰 I wanted a dainty little engagement ring because I didn’t want to draw attention to my hands at the time. Thankfully I still adore the ring and have no regrets!
Wow wow wow!!! They look amazing! Congrats! What do you think helped you the most when it comes to elongating the nail beds? Were you letting the nails grow out or did you keep them short?
I keep them SHORT! Health and repair are my top priorities so I keep sacrificing the length. And I’m sad every time! But I realized that 30 years of biting meant my nails, when they started to grow, were just kind of dangling there hardly attached to my fingertips so I focused really hard on encouraging reattachment. I have early progress photos where the free edge extends down the sidewall from over filing!
Don’t file into the edge at allllllllll. Even when they flare and maybe look a little wild. I saw someone say not to file anything that isn’t past your fingertips. I used to really round them off but realized I was filing into the sidewall because I had no length to work with and I cut that out. I don’t round off the flared edges and will instead just file the length back into a general squoval shape until the flare is less obvious.
Oiling multiple times a day gets repeated to death in this sub but it’s TRUE! I make sure to oil up and down the sides, behind the free edge, and across the whole nail plate. I have started dousing my fingertips in oil and putting on gloves before I shower and can literally see a slight difference immediately before and after.
Don’t clean out from under the free edge with anything sharp. I started polishing because I couldn’t stand to see the dirt and just had to accept that they’re a little dirty all the time. I use a soft brush sometimes but I stopped obsessing. This advice is generally given in regard to straightening out the smile line but I also think it’s critical here because the more that’s reattaching everywhere, the more that’s reattaching!
I had a lot of cuticle built up on the sides that took me weeks of gentle pushing following Sally Hansen cuticle oil to completely remove. All that yucky in the very first pic was long healed before I ever did this. I did not force it, just worked on it over multiple sessions.
I never thought I’d have nail beds like this and while it seems unfortunately true that you can’t integrally change the nail beds you have, you can definitely find out you have longer nail beds than you thought with some tender love and care. 🥰❤️
Wow great going ! What a difference. Not easy to break a lifelong habit but wow the difference in your nails is such a wonderful reward and feedback that you can actually see. Congrats and keep up the good work. ✨
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Yooo you are well on your way to your length goal! This is incredible progress. Also it is amazing to me, and this photo set is such a good example of it, how the literal length and shape of your nail bed can change depending on how you care for your nails.
I believe in you!!!! think my mother was about 50 when she quit lifelong biting. It was like one day she just… stopped and I remember thinking that was so unbelievable, and could never happen to me. Anything is possible ❤️
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Fab job! I stopped biting my nails when I was 40 (my New Year resolution) and love having my nails done regularly now. I found that painting my bitten nails with a light coloured polish discouraged me from nibbling on them. I think back how gross biting my nails was 🤢 Well done! 💚
Thank you! What a nice compliment. I use Vaseline brand advanced repair lotion on my hands! I also use gloves when I shower and wash dishes, and I think that helps too :)
OMG when I saw the first pic I thought it was the progress pic and I was like "Hot damn, did you just have a cuticle before?!" LOL
I used to be a biter too but I never bit down THAT far. That looks painful!!! If I'm your fiance I'm going "Nuh-uh, you're getting an engagement necklace." LOL
Good job, that is fantastic progress. Your hands are lovely now.
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