Nail biting: A body-focused repetitive behavior case report
Akanksha Juneja, Anisha Juneja, Amina Sultan
Abstract
The psyche of an individual is influenced by his/her interactions with the society. The socio occupational - personal functioning of the individual henceforth result from such interactions. Body-focused repetitive behavior is one psychological phenomenon, a symbolic representation of unresolved unconscious conflicts or maladaptive behavior triggered by distorted or unhelpful thoughts generated in certain situations and maintained by positive or negative reinforcement. One such condition is of nail biting (NB) in which a patient shows self-harming potentials, due to surrounding stressful and social conditions. Such behaviors act as a coping mechanism for patients during stressful conditions. This paper is a review and case report of a patient experiencing dental problems, found to have NB as a causative factor on in-depth exploration. The dental and psychological management of the case is discussed and the need for more research in the domain of NB is emphasized from a multidisciplinary angle.