By
Laura Kay
I
have been biting my nails since I cut my first few teeth as a toddler, and it’s
something I have always hated about myself. Two years ago, shortly after having
my third child, I finally decided that enough was enough and I was going to
grow my nails out. It was a very long and arduous journey! I decided to put on
acrylics because I simply could not harness the need to bite. I got my acrylics
filled religiously for 6 weeks. Finally, I felt like there was enough nail
grown out beneath them to have them taken off. As all of you who have had false
nails before know, my natural nails were even more of a mess then they had been
before from me biting them. Now the top of my nail had been brutally filed off
and was very weak, rough and ugly. Still, I knew I could grow them now that I
was seeing a tiny bit of white nail! Think of the hobbits from Lord of the
Rings and that’s what my nails usually look like… no white in site and so short
that sometimes they would bleed from my biting. Hideous!
To
help my weakened nails grow, I tried a number of different products. The first
one I went with, after lots of internet research, was Haken Nail Magic. I
ordered a bottle on Amazon to see how I liked it before investing in a stash of
the ‘magical’ potion. It BURNED when I applied it to my nails, most likely
because of all the buffing and filing from having false nails, but it really
did work. My nails were so much stronger and I was able to grow the weak, thin
part of my nail out and file weekly until stronger nail replaced it.
Really
long story short, my nails got super long and looked awesome!
(Photo taken 14
September 2012)
As you can see, what a huge and
awful difference! I was back to hating wearing rings or having anyone notice my
hands. I was always hiding them and gnawing my paws shamefully in a dark corner
whenever I could get away with it. I didn’t want to go the false nail route
after my bad experience last time, so I purchased Mavala Stop from Amazon. This
stuff is amazing! It seriously tastes AWFUL. I put it on and for one whole week
(may have lasted longer than that but I didn’t give it a chance) I was still
tasting the awful stuff any time it got near my mouth. There was one downside,
if you’d call it that, to Mavala and that was the fact that snack foods got
really annoying. If I ate popcorn, chicken, chips, any finger food, it tasted
like the nasty chemicals. So not only did I stop biting my nails, I lost a
little bit of weight because I got tired of battling the chemicals to get a
snack in. NOT really a negative in my book! After two weeks of wearing Mavala,
my need to bite was 100% gone. I still have it, in case I ever find myself
battling the old habit, but so far I’m 3 months in and haven’t bitten so much
as a hangnail.
I tried using Haken Nail Magic
again once my nails grew out enough I was worried about them breaking. For some
reason, it was not working for me this go around. It would peel off my nails
minutes after applying it. I recently read that buffing your nails weakens them
horribly, so I no longer do it. I think before, when I was buffing my nails, it
gave the polish something to grab onto. I got frustrated with the Nail Magic
and stopped using it. My nails still felt thin though, from having been bitten
so long, so I knew I needed to add something. I try to take Biotin but am
horrible about doing it religiously. I have since given up on it. Then I
discovered something amazing… NutraNail 5 to 7 Day Nail Growth Formula. It is
$5 at your local Walmart and this stuff WORKS! I used it at first 4 to 5 times
a day, I just loved putting it on and watching it soak into my nails and leave
them looking healthy and beautiful. It’s not a polish, it simply soaks into the
nails and hydrates them. For me this was perfect because I don’t have to worry
about removing nail polish every few days and reapplying.
After using that formula for a
few weeks, I switched to the NutraNails Naturals Nail Growth Serum. I just
wanted to avoid a few more chemicals if at all possible, and it has been
working great for me so far! The final step to my recent nail success is
another NutraNail product – their Strengthener with Green Tea Antioxidants. I
bought this by mistake at Walmart one day when I was looking for a quick drying
top coat. I threw it in a drawer and forgot it was there for a few weeks. Then
one day, I decided to use it. It was the same day I tossed my Haken Nail Magic
because it was no longer working for me. If you read up on the NutraNail Strengthener,
it says that it bonds the fibers of the nails together to make them stronger.
This one is a polish, not a serum like the others I mentioned, but I really
wanted something to protect my nails in case I slam them in a drawer or accidentally
try to cut them off with my razor or potato peeler (both of those things have
happened in the past, don’t judge!). Now we all have those shampoo bottles that
promise perfect manes and flowing locks, they never live up to our expectations
or their promises. But let me tell you… this nail strengthener does exactly
what it says! Even after I remove it with polish remover, I can tell that my
nails are much stronger and durable. Just make sure you apply it on bare nails
after wiping them lightly with polish remover to make sure no oils are on your
nails. I used this stuff on Thanksgiving Day; it survived 8 hours of cooking, 2
hours of dishwashing and bathing 4 kids that day! That is amazing to me. Other
polishes would have peeled and chipped off quicker than you can say “Sh*t!”
Here is a photo of my nails from
December 7th of this year. As you can see, a huge difference from
September to December!
The only reason I am doing this
blog is to encourage others like myself who are looking to quit a nasty habit
and are not sure where to start. Hopefully some of you will find this helpful!
One final tip is to constantly moisturize your hands when going through this
process. I use raw virgin coconut oil ($5.99 at Trader Joe’s) and Burt’s Bees
Banana Hand Crème to moisturize my hands throughout the day. I never wear
gloves and am always doing housework, so I have to use lotion on a regular
basis to avoid dry nails, cracked fingers and rough hands. Best of luck in your
nail journey, let me know if you have questions and I’ll do my best to answer
them! J
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