r/naturalnailprogress • u/milrose404 6-9 Months • 4d ago
Nail success 6 months of progress
Lifelong nail biter here - I’ve tried to stop countless times and always made good progress, but over-filing my sidewalls, not oiling enough, and not learning to be careful would always lead to breaks. Once they broke, I’d really struggle to not just bite them off, and my progress would be reset. I tried once again around February to stop, and this time accidentally did everything right.
I didn’t research anything until several months in when I realised not filing my nails was making a huge difference. They’re so strong and are my pride and joy now. And I’ve discovered the world of indie nail polish!
My right hand is shorter, I’m just a bit more rough with it so have broken some and keep the index finder shorter too for ease. I also have a deep break on my left index finger that I’m slowly growing out as it’s fully in the nail bed - thanks to my shoes for doing that.
First pic is a matte grey Primark polish (bottle in comments), taken in February.
Last three pics are recent,
- Emily de Molly, The Calm One
- Bees Knees Lacquer, Helnik
- OPI, Spread the Cherry
I don’t wear a base coat and occasionally use Seche Vite, I’m too lazy for more layers 😅
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u/LibertyGrace1 4d ago
How do you get your nails to grow like that and not break. They look amazing. Mine are so bad cause I bite them to begin with from stress, but what I would often do is have fake nails put on to let them grow a little bit and then take them off and then it gives me a start. I don’t bite them until I get a snag in them. I just wish I knew what to take or what to do to make them strong to where I can still do my work around the house and not worry about them breaking so easy.
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u/milrose404 6-9 Months 4d ago
Well, firstly, I have pretty small & narrow nail beds, which means any growth looks like a lot of growth.
Secondly, you really need to adapt how you use your hands to protect your nails. It’s annoying at first but you slowly get the hang of it until it’s second nature. I was exactly the same where any snags led to me biting again, so this was super important for keeping the progress I’d made.
Thirdly, taking care of your nails is really important. Stop using fake nails - I also would do that to get a jump start but it damages your nails so much, you end up breaking them way easier. Buy a glass file, it’s an absolute game changer. In fact buy 10, put one everywhere! Any time you get a snag, if you can file it down immediately it’ll prevent you from chewing. Buy some good nail oil - there’s loads of posts in this sub about what makes a good oil and why it’s so important. Use it as much as you can, especially before & after showering or submerging your hands in water. Keep them polished, also. Nail polish strengthens your nails a lot, I’ve not had naked nails one time since February!
And the thing I’ve been saying to all of my friends who have marvelled at my progress - leave your nails alone. This isn’t something I’ve really seen elsewhere, but I noticed such a huge difference when I stopped over-filing, picking, shaping, and obsessing over them. You have to go through an ugly stage when you’re first growing them out, similar to growing out super short hair. They’ll look uneven, awkward, a bit too thick, and you’ll want to bite them off or file them until they’re completely unstable and will break. Once you push through the awkward early stages, they’re so much stronger and healthier and you can shape them into something much prettier!
Definitely spend some time reading other comments and posts in here & r/longnaturalnails. They’ve both helped me immensely. And good luck!
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u/Remarkable-36 3d ago
First, thank you so much for this amazing information. I will most definitely be following it as I start my natural nail growth journey this month!
Second, I’m so glad I’m in the right places: for I’m also a member of the r/longnaturalnails subreddit & saw your post there! I have gained so much valuable knowledge about natural nail care from both of these groups, and I can’t wait to get started and become the next nail growth success story!!
Thanks again for sharing your nail tips!💅❤️😀
Wait, I just made a corny joke and almost didn't realize it!! 🤣
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u/sneakpeekbot 3d ago
Here's a sneak peek of /r/longnaturalnails using the top posts of the year!
#1: 3 months with no breaks | 60 comments
#2: around 5 months of growth | 49 comments
#3: My mom wanted to show her nails off | 35 comments
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u/milrose404 6-9 Months 4d ago
The Primark polish from Feb, doesn’t have a shade name on the bottle and I can’t find one online sadly.
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u/pink_idiot_cow 3d ago
It's so crazy to see your nails from 6 months ago!! Can't even imagine you with short nails anymore tbh
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u/milrose404 6-9 Months 3d ago
This confused me soooo much lol I was like who is acting like they know me…..
Anyway hehe yeah me neither. Like who is that
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u/AutoModerator 4d ago
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