In the last decade, our understanding of the neurology of habit formation has been transformed.
A quiet revolution has upended our concept of the way patterns work within our lives, societies, and organizations. And much of what we have learned has come from studying the simplest of habits — such as why people bite their nails.
In the summer of 2006, for instance, a 24-year-old graduate student named Mandy walked into the counseling center at Mississippi State University. For most of her life, Mandy had bitten her nails, gnawing them until they bled.
Lots of people bite their nails. For chronic nail biters, however, it’s a problem of a different scale.
Before posting, please read our blog moderation guidelines. The comments below begin with the oldest comments first. Click on the last comments page to jump to the most recent comments.
Before posting, please read our blog moderation guidelines.
Post a Comment:
Copyright © 1995-2013 Psych Central. All rights reserved.
Site last updated: 17 May 2013
|
This article is inspiring. I am curious how successfully people do this on their own without someone meeting with them and guiding them in their progress.
Interesting. I stopped biting my nails by substituting using a nail file instead. I did this by myself many years ago. Something I’ve noticed is that if my nails get too long (long enough to catch on things) I’ll get that urge to bite them again, but a quick round with nail clippers (gave up the file some time ago) fixes that nicely. I don’t know if someone like Mandy would find the file as useful as checking off urges on an index card, but I can see similarities in the approach, with regards to being aware of cues and choosing a different “reward”.
What about eating habits? It seems a therapist trained in these techniques might really help people who have habits that relate to depression.