I stopped biting my nails when I was about eight years old. Some adult woman told me that if I kept putting my hands in my mouth, I was going to get cancer in the mouth and my lips would fall off.

That was very effective for me.

To this day, I can't stand to see people putting their hands in their mouths.

As a result, my nails grew healthy and strong. I started using nail clippers to cut my nails like a civilized human being instead of my teeth! Well for my high school senior prom, I decided to get acrylics. I did not like them right away. They were nice, they lasted me a long time, but they just weren't for me. After I took them off, my nails were thin and short and wouldn't grow! I was horrified! It took me a while to find something to make my nails grow, and once I did, they were back to their nice, healthy selves!

In addition to letting you all know how I actually got my nails to grow back, I will also tell you what makes your nails stronger and how to keep them that way!

To get my nails back to their former glory, I used the Rossie System Nail Hardener. If you follow the directions, which is just to paint your nails with the polish every day for ten days, then once a week. Your nails WILL grow. I know everybody is different and certain things don't work for everybody, but I can't imagine this not working! Give it a try! It was slightly annoying (aesthetically) having to put polish on top of polish, but in the end, it's totally worth it!

So once you get those nails, how do you maintain them, you ask? There are a number of ways. But these I find most effective

Heed Those Warnings

First and foremost, keep you fingers out of your mouth! The nail polish will definitely help with that-- it isn't tasty.

Prenatal Pills

This may sound weird, but try prenatal pills. I crush them up and put them in my conditioner to stimulate hair growth. If you notice, when pregnant women take them, they have beautiful hair, nails, and skin! I am still experimenting with the best way to stimulate hair growth with them, but they absolutely make my nails grow when applying the conditioner laced with prenatal pills to my hair.

Garlic

Garlic. Garlic is very good for you, even if it smells bad, and it's likely the oldest trick in the book. I take garlic pills when I feel I am getting sick. But it is also great for your nails and many other natural things. But gosh, whenever you burp, you can totally smell those things!