09 June 2008

Keratin Deficiency

I'm feeling kind of chatty today, so I decided to do a bit of exploring and see if I could figure out why I'm a nail-biter.

Nail-biting (or the fancy medical term - onychophagia) is a nervous habit. Mine mostly stems from boredom or inactivity. I'll be watching TV or reading, and next thing I know, my thumbnail is a stub. The article I read lumps nail-biting in with skin-picking, teeth-grinding, thumb-sucking and nose-picking. As I also suffer from the teeth-grinding issue, I have to wonder if I have some deep-seated stress issues. Nah.

The article also mentioned that nail-biting can be a learned behavior. Something to blame Mom and Dad for? Would Freud think that I had a subconscious desire for my father? Considering I am a smoker AND a nail-biter, I seem to have a bit of an oral fixation. Kinky.


There was a ray of hope - apparently most people stop biting their nails by age 30. I have noticed that I can curb the habit more now than I could a couple of years ago. And people think I'm crazy for being excited to turn 30. It's like the magical doorway to adulthood.

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