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Nail biting, nose picking, booger eating 3-yr-old
Hi everybody, it's been a while. Haven't posted anything since the redesign.
Anyway, ever since we took away his pacifiers when he turned 2, my kid has been a huge nail biter. I seriously have only clipped his fingernails once or twice in the last year. I was hoping he'd just stop on his own, but he hasn't. Here's where I admit that I've bitten my nails all my life. So...genetic, learned, who cares? He's a happy kid, chatty, extroverted, funny, smiley. So I don't think there's a deep psychological cause (for him or for me). Anybody out there had to deal with this?
I bought some nail polish called THUM, but that didn't do anything. Tried it on myself and it was pretty much flavorless. So I just bought some new stuff called BITE IT, which definitely tastes foul -- poisonous even -- but I'm a little apprehensive about trying it on him.
Any suggestions?
And if you've got any tips for the nose picking, that'd be great too.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mamawho on
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Hey, Jake!
Is he a fidgety kid? Have you tried giving him something to do with his hands, like a stress ball to squeeze?
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Permalink Reply by taraw on -
we also have a nail biting three year old - drives me crazy - I'm anxiously awaiting replies....
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Permalink Reply by StitchyWench on -
Man I wish my boy would bite his damn nails, then I wouldn't have to feel bad for letting him walk around with long dirty nails.
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Permalink Reply by Jake on -
Haven't tried a stress ball. I wouldn't say he's fidgety. Definitely busy though. Constantly on the move, running around, talking, etc.
Mamawho said:Hey, Jake!
Is he a fidgety kid? Have you tried giving him something to do with his hands, like a stress ball to squeeze?
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Permalink Reply by hermit crab on -
Three seems like such a stressed-out age. We just let ours keep the pacifier when he's in the house.* It's definitely a chill-out device. If three-year-olds could develop a nervous smoking habit, they probably would.
*His very understanding dentist replied to our concerns about it - "well, you can either pay for orthodontia or for therapy later on. Orthodontia's probably cheaper."
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Permalink Reply by kanachick on -
Gentle reminders until it passes....unless it never does...
We didn't make a big deal about these behaviours - if the hand was heading for the mouth (or nose) then I'd hand them something to keep it occupied or gently take their hand or put it back in their lap or whatever. No shaming or shouting - just keeping an eye out for it until they could learn to control themselves.
You might try explaining to him why it's not good to bite his nails. That everything he's been playing with is now a little bit in his body and could make him sick and that he might bite them so short that they get infected and it would hurt. I don't think there's any quick fix for this kind of thing - it's just keeping on it.
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Permalink Reply by mightyninjamom on -
I wonder if Chewelry would work for him. They sell it at Amazon!
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We used to liken the struggle to get GirlWho to give up her "suckie" to quitting smoking. She had it for longer than I care to admit. I still miss hearing the little squeak of the pacifier as she contentedly sucked away.
hermit crab said:Three seems like such a stressed-out age. We just let ours keep the pacifier when he's in the house.* It's definitely a chill-out device. If three-year-olds could develop a nervous smoking habit, they probably would.
*His very understanding dentist replied to our concerns about it - "well, you can either pay for orthodontia or for therapy later on. Orthodontia's probably cheaper."
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Permalink Reply by Jake on
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Pacifier is probably the most appropriately named thing ever. He was an addict. But about a year after kicking the habit, he found one of his old ones in an old backpack. He got really excited, immediately crammed it in his mouth, took a couple sucks, and then it fell out as if he'd forgotten how to use it. He laughed like it was the silliest thing he'd ever seen. Like he was thinking, Man, I sure was a goof when I was a baby.
Did I mention that I put some of that BITE IT polish on my thumb last night? Well, every time I bite my thumbnail now, it tastes awful and makes me mad. Hasn't stopped me (yet?) from biting my nails -- it's just pissing me off. I think I'm going to try it on my kid tonight; we'll see if his results are better...
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Permalink Reply by G to the G on -
hermit crab - i love your ortho! love!
hi jake welcome back to the 'hood.
El D bit his nails for less than a year and just stopped. Stone cold stopped. But it was because the example stopped too. Have you tried not to bite in front of him?
Good luck on the nose picking. I say get your finger out of your nose entirely too much.
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Permalink Reply by Diggy on -
I used Wookie's treatment for nose picking and that worked well. Every time we saw him pick his nose, we made him wash his hands. As long as you keep at it (not easy, especially with two younger ones) it should stop it soon. Unless he develops an addiction to hand washing. Then you might be trouble. Ours didn't, so it was all good.
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Permalink Reply by Herasmus B. Dragon on
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Every time I see a pick, I ask if they need a tissue. O will stop mining and quickly do something else, and Ebay will take me up on my offer. O is one of those kids who can't blow her nose, so I'm sure she's doing a lot of picking behind closed doors. She would never admit to it.
Diggy said:I used Wookie's treatment for nose picking and that worked well. Every time we saw him pick his nose, we made him wash his hands. As long as you keep at it (not easy, especially with two younger ones) it should stop it soon. Unless he develops an addiction to hand washing. Then you might be trouble. Ours didn't, so it was all good.
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