The onicofagia is a psychological syndrome associated with obsessive - compulsive disorder. The main symptom of people who suffer from it is the urgent need to bite their nails, even when doing so can cause aesthetic, social or even health problems.
Nail biting itself doesn't have to be a bad thing, it may just be a slightly annoying bad habit. For an individual to be considered to have onychophagia, it is necessary that the consequences of this habit are much more severe, and that some symptoms related to it appear.
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For example, many of the patients with onychophagia feel great anxiety that can only be resolved by the act of nail biting. This habit, therefore, becomes a compulsion, and people with the disorder feel that they do not have the ability to control themselves even when they know that their actions are harming them.
Today, onychophagia is included in the DSM - V, the official manual used in the field of psychology to diagnose mental disorders. Specifically, it is classified as a specific obsessive disorder. As such, the treatment of this problem will have to be aimed first at eliminating compulsions and obsessions, and later at solving the underlying causes.
Symptoms
As we have already seen, onychophagia is mainly characterized by the habit of compulsive nail biting. This habit, however, does not have to indicate the presence of a mental disorder by itself, but may simply be the result of a bad habit. So what is the difference between habit and psychological illness?
As with other variants of obsessive compulsive disorder, the first warning sign of the presence of this psychological problem is the appearance of extreme mental distress or anxiety. This discomfort only disappears when the person performs a specific action; in this case, nail biting.
At the same time, in many cases the individual affected by onychophagia has the belief that something horrible is going to happen if they do not bite their nails. Most of the time, these catastrophic ideas have to do with the possibility of having an anxiety attack, losing control, or being overwhelmed by your emotions.
On the other hand, the person who suffers from onychophagia is usually assaulted by negative emotions such as shame or guilt for the fact of biting the nails; Although they can also be related to the physical appearance of your fingers, which will often be very damaged.
This symptom usually causes the person to try to hide the condition of their nails and fingers. In very extreme versions of onychophagia, shame can lead those affected to avoid social contact, thus suffering deterioration in areas of their life such as family or work.
Causes
As is often the case when it comes to mental disorders, it is not possible to point to a single cause for onychophagia. Its appearance can be mediated by factors of all kinds, including from the genetics of the person who suffers it to their environment, their experiences, their way of thinking or their previous learning.
For example, it is believed that there may be a certain innate component that makes onychophagia more likely. Some research suggests that certain families may have a greater propensity to develop anxiety, suffer from compulsive behaviors or have a tendency to become obsessed.
On the other hand, nail biting can be an effect of poor learning during development. Some experts claim that this habit is the direct evolution of others, such as thumb sucking; and that in most cases it is maintained from childhood and gets worse over time.
Emotional health also plays a fundamental role in the appearance of onychophagia. This disorder is known to be much more common in people who have very high levels of negative emotions, such as anxiety, worry, stress, or even boredom. Nail biting could be a coping strategy that gets out of control due to various circumstances.
Lastly, onychophagia could also appear as a consequence of the presence of another underlying psychological disorder, such as ADHD or generalized anxiety; or because the person has experienced traumatic experiences, such as an abusive relationship, a divorce or the death of a relative.
Related disorders
Sometimes onychophagia is caused by a more serious underlying psychological disorder. For example, it has been proven that in 75% of the cases in which a person has ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) they also have the habit of biting their nails.
Something similar occurs with other disorders such as oppositional defiant disorder, separation anxiety disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder.
Consequences
For nail biting to be considered part of a psychological disorder, this habit has to cause significant discomfort to the person doing it and cause significant deterioration in some areas of their life.
On the one hand, the most obvious consequences of onychophagia are those that have to do with physical health. Nail biting often causes very negative effects on the fingers, such as the appearance of infections, constant pain in the hands, the deformation of the nails or even the creation of oral problems, such as tooth damage.
In addition to this, people with onychophagia often suffer significant impairment in all areas where there is a social component. This is mainly due to two factors: the stigma normally associated with nail biting, and the negative emotions of the affected person himself, who may feel ashamed for being carrying out a behavior that he knows is negative.
If the disorder is not treated, and the symptoms continue to worsen, the person may end up socially isolating themselves, either because they avoid others of their own free will or because they end up being pushed aside by their loved ones.
Degrees
When we talk about nail biting, the first thing to understand is that this habit can only be considered as part of a mental disorder if it occurs together with the other symptoms mentioned above and causes considerable deterioration to one or more areas of life. of the person.
In this way, a distinction is normally made between three types of nail-biting addiction: those that do not represent any danger to mental health, those that have a subclinical nature, and those that constitute by themselves a mental disorder or appear together with others more serious.
In the case of people who only have the habit of biting their nails but do not suffer any other negative symptoms, such as the need to do so to alleviate their anxiety or the deterioration in their social relationships, it is usually considered that they do not really have onychophagia. On the contrary, in this case we would speak of a bad habit, which would still be convenient to eliminate.
One step further would be the subclinical version of onychophagia. In these cases, those affected have one or more of the symptoms associated with compulsive nail biting, but the negative consequences they experience in their life due to it are quite mild. When this version appears, in some cases it will remain stable, while in others it will get worse over time.
Finally, onychophagia is considered a true mental disorder when the deterioration caused in the person's daily life is very severe. When this appears, the intervention of a mental health professional is usually necessary to help the affected person to properly cope with this syndrome.
Treatments
Depending on which nail biting addiction occurs, many different types of treatments can be used. In cases where it is simply a bad habit, it will be possible to use behavioral techniques that help the person associate this act with something unpleasant, in such a way that it is easier for them to stop doing it.
For example, many people choose to paint their nails with a nail polish that is colorless but has a very unpleasant taste. Thus, by biting them and noticing an unpleasant sensation, it is easier for them to break this habit quickly.
In cases where onychophagia is more severe, however, behavioral techniques are often not enough. Often times, it is necessary to provide the person with healthier coping techniques that allow them to solve the underlying problem, reduce their anxiety and better control their emotions.
In this sense, there are many different techniques and therapies that can be used successfully for the treatment of this disorder. Some of the best known with the cognitive - behavioral and acceptance and commitment.
In addition, on certain occasions psychological therapy can also be complemented with the use of drugs, which help the person to improve their mood and better cope with the problem.
References
- "Onychophagia (Nail Biting)" in: Psychology Today. Retrieved on: October 23, 2019 from Psychology Today: psychologytoday.com.
- "What is onychophagia?" in: Sha Magazine. Retrieved on: October 23, 2019 from Sha Magazine: shawellnessclinic.com.
- "What is onychophagia? Causes and solution for not biting nails ”in: Psychoadapt. Retrieved on: October 23, 2019 from Psicoadapta: psicoadapta.es.
- "10 tricks to stop biting nails" in: Psychology and Mind. Retrieved on: October 23, 2019 from Psychology and Mind: psicologiaymente.com.
- "Nail biting" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: October 23, 2019 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.