How to wean a child to bite his nails: a note to parents

Almost every parent noticed for his child the habit of nail biting. In appearance, there is nothing terrible, except for the aesthetic side. But no, in fact it is a symptom of a psychological problem, a neurosis, which has the scientific term onychophagy. If you do not pay attention to the problem of attention, it will lead to the deformation of the bite, the formation of ugly nails, will grow into a predilection for tobacco smoking, etc.

Onychophagy: what it is and why it arises

The habit of children to bite their nails or onychophagy is not a bad habit, but a symptom of psycho-emotional impairment in a child. The process takes place reflexively, the baby does not notice that his fingers reached into his mouth. Thus, he returns to infancy, when calm, pleasure, pleasant emotions were associated with the feeding process. The reasons for onychophagy include the following:

1. The baby was weaned early. The sucking reflex belongs to the category of unconditioned reflexes, it is formed even in the mother's womb, and wakes up immediately after birth. The slightest touch to the lips causes sucking reactions in a baby: he searches his chest with his lips, makes sucking movements. This reflex is due to the instinct of survival, because without it the child will die in the first year of life. As soon as the child goes on solid food, his sucking reflex gradually disappears, and after 1 year for 6 months it disappears. If the child is transferred to artificial feeding, weaned in the first months of life, his sucking reflex remains unfulfilled. Everything happens at the level of instincts: if a person is not allowed to breathe, he will begin to choke, if he hides solid food, he will not forget how to chew. So with the sucking reflex: not having realized the oral stage (breastfeeding), the person realizes it on an unconscious level in other ways. He bites his nails, the skin around the nails, the head of the pen, sucks his fingers.
2. The child is experiencing a strong emotional stress.Perhaps the baby is still too small to understand that parents are divorcing, but he feels the tension between them and considers himself to be the culprit of what is happening. Or he put numerous bans of the best intentions to save from trouble. Endless warnings “don't run, stumble, break a leg”, “don't eat sweet, teeth get spoiled”, “don't jump on trampolines, fall, hit your head” generate numerous complexes. The discrepancy between the inner "I" imposed on top of "superego" causes a deep, but unconscious tension, which is expressed in nibbling nails.
3. Stressful situations. Any stress requires an exit, which can be expressed in crying, beating pillows or running through the corridors of the school. But unconscious stress has no way out. He may even not be realized, thereby causing psychomotor reactions (nibbling of nails, pulling of hair yarn, grabbing at the navel). Often with gnawed nails go outcasts in the classroom, children, oppressed by peers or teachers, sons of the daughter of powerful and tough parents.
4. Dissatisfaction with oneself can be expressed in "self-punishment." The child subconsciously hurts himself: he bites his nails, spoiling the nail plate, bites off burrs, tears the ends of hair, licks his lips.
5. Imitation to anyone.If one of the parents, elder brothers and sisters, grandmother or grandfather, i.e. a significant adult child bites his nails, the baby will imitate him by doing the same.

Is it dangerous to bite your nails or is it an innocent bad habit

In fact, nail nibbling is not such a harmless habit. It requires elimination because it can lead to the following:

1. The nail plate deteriorates. It loses its shape, the nail exfoliates, has an uneven surface.
2. Deformation of the dentition and the formation of the wrong bite. Adapting to the shape of the finger, the jaws are in an unnatural position. Jaw muscles are stretched, jaws develop incorrectly. The distinguishing mark of children gnawing at their nails is a fan-shaped row of upper teeth or “sawed” front teeth. The lower jaw remains underdeveloped, and the wrong bite is guaranteed. It can be corrected at an older age, but orthodontics is not a cheap pleasure, and children from poor families are doomed to have problems with bite and teeth.
3. Gnawing at the nails, the children touch the skin around the nail plate.They swell, inflame, bleed, an infection can accidentally get there.
4. Gnawing at the nails, the child swallows them. Given the fact that in kindergarten and school, the kid spends a lot of time with dirty hands, it is unknown what kind of infection he can pick up.

What ways can wean the child nibble nails

Take measures to wean the child from the habit of biting nails as early as possible. Do not wait for the baby to outgrow, unlearn, but also not to punish him for it. It is possible that the cause of the problem is the lack of attention on the part of parents, unnecessary requirements for a son or daughter, frequent remarks or public humiliation of the shortcomings of his child. Sometimes in children aged 1-3 years, nibbling of nails is combined with masturbation. The child does not see eroticism in his actions, he is simply looking for a way of physical relaxation and stress relief. If the parents notice something similar for the child, it is better to immediately contact a specialist. It will help to find the true cause of the problem, which adults may not even guess. If nail nibbling is not accompanied by masturbation,parents can independently try to wean the baby from the habit. We list the most common ways:

1. Switch the child's attention as soon as you notice the first signs of nail nibbling. Ask your child to take the newspaper to another room, sit him on his knees, hold him tight. Perhaps, this is exactly what he needs; he will calm down and stop unconsciously pulling his fingers to his mouth.
2. If the girl is biting her nails, play with her in the nail salon. Buy water-based children's varnish or take an old bottle with dried varnish, fill it with water. Then, painting your nails, apply a couple of strokes with children's varnish on the baby's nails. Tell her how beautiful it is to have smooth and even nails, and how bitten fingers look ugly. Say that the varnish will hold, if you do not put your fingers into the mouth, otherwise the varnish will crack and crumble, it will be very ugly. For a girl, these words have a tangible impact.
3. The famous American psychiatrist Milton Erickson invented his own method of weaning the "rodent" from the bad habit. He advised to allocate a child for nibbling nails for a certain time.For example, tell him that you allow nail biting, but only from 17.00 to 18.00, but gnaw as much as you want. On the one hand, such approval will relieve internal stress, because the child was approved of his actions, but on the other hand, artificial timing. Subconsciously, children in every possible way resist obligations, biting their nails at a certain time will bother him. If successful, the bad habit will come down altogether.
4. In no case do not wean the child by force. The most striking example is the little Adolf Hitler, who was taught to write with his left hand, tying the brush to the ruler and making fun of his habit with the whole class. Unresolved children's problems and driven deep into the complexes resulted in huge psychological distortions in the future. Discard the grandmother's methods such as smearing fingers with mustard, cuffs, dipping the finger in paint, etc. Do not humiliate the child, he already experiences internal stress.
5. Teach your child to express aggression. This skill will be more important to him than the ability to make origami and know all types of forest birds. Sport is the best way to get rid of internal stress.After training, during which there is not only physical, but also emotional discharge, the child will not be up to the nails. Do not scold the child for the slightest offense or prank. Do not do it constantly and forever guilty. This is not the best baggage he will carry in life. Teach him to get rid of internal trash, so as not to overload the psyche and not to accumulate various problems. Indeed, as mentioned above, nail nibbling is a consequence of nervous overstrain and internal discomfort.

Special nail polish varnishes

In addition to the psychological ways of getting rid of the problem, there are special bitter varnishes that, when they hit the finger in the mouth, will give an unpleasant bitter taste. They do not get rid of the problem, but once again get rid of the owner of a bad habit. It will be unpleasant for a child to nibble at his nails, and he will gradually unlearn it. But, most importantly, eliminate the cause of neurosis and internal discomfort.

1. Varnish, giving bitterness to the nails, the Latvian company Belweder. It has a very bitter unpleasant taste. Lacquer is effective for both kids and adults.The baby will be pulling his hand in case of any finger in his mouth. The varnish does not contain phenols and formaldehyde, does not harm the child, hitting the esophagus. The small brush will provide accurate application. The transparent color allows you to apply nail polish on the nails while the baby is sleeping. He will not even notice that you performed any manipulations. Just feel a strong bitterness when once again pulls his fingers in his mouth.
2. Children's varnish "Nekusayka" for weaning children to bite their nails. Has no color, absolutely very bitter to the taste. Varnish dries quickly, while strengthening the surface of the nail plate. the child will experience unpleasant taste in the process of nibbling nails, and will soon give up this habit.
3. No bite pro growth of Italian brand Limoni. Does not leave a glossy shine, so the kid can apply nail polish during sleep. The child will not guess about anything, but the procedure of nail nibbling will become unpleasant for him.

Nibbling nails is not a disease, but a signal that something is happening to a child. It is necessary to solve this problem in a complex way: first, find the cause of the internal stress of the baby, then eliminate it, and you can speed up the process of getting rid of a bad habit with the help of special varnishes.

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