I've been biting my nails since I was 14 and I'm 26 now. It was never super aggressive, I mostly just trimmed my nails down to the natural edge they would grow at and never messed with my nail bed. Over time though my nail bed has been pushed back 2-3mm on each finger. For a long time I wanted to stop but wasn't really motivated, and I was often biting unconsciously when my fingers or mouth had nothing else to do.

Two days ago, I was doing food prep for the upcoming week and decided to make some pretty complicated dishes. I spent roughly 3 hours chopping, blending, and cooking stuff, and at the end I started to feel pain. Pain in the tips of my fingers where my skin was being pressed into the front edge of my nails I'd been biting back for so long. Enough pain that I had to take a break from chopping because gripping things hurt so much.

This was my wake up call that biting my nails was going to cause actual problems. I literally had trouble cooking myself food because my fingers hurt due to the tips not having a nail as a backbone, and that reduced their strength and endurance. I've now started taking this very seriously and anytime I start to move my hands towards my face I notice and stop. I've read the wiki and am prepared to go to any lengths to stop myself.

Just wanted to share somewhere that I'm serious and to keep myself accountable. I am done, and I won't be starting again if I can help it. Photo for reference.

I finally realized nail biting is a serious problem