To I guess offer another data point, I’ve had an obsessive nail-removing[1] habit for about 20 years. I concur that it can happen unconsciously; however noticing it seems to me like 10-20% of the problem; the remaining 80-90% is resisting the urge to follow the habit when you do notice. (As for enjoying it, I think technically yeah but it’s for such a short amount of time that it’s never worth it. Maybe if you just gave in and were constantly biting instead of trying to resist for as long as possible, it’d be different.) I also think I’ve solved the noticing part without really applying any specific technique.
But I don’t think this means the post can’t still be valuable for cases where noticing is the primary obstacle.
To I guess offer another data point, I’ve had an obsessive nail-removing[1] habit for about 20 years. I concur that it can happen unconsciously; however noticing it seems to me like 10-20% of the problem; the remaining 80-90% is resisting the urge to follow the habit when you do notice. (As for enjoying it, I think technically yeah but it’s for such a short amount of time that it’s never worth it. Maybe if you just gave in and were constantly biting instead of trying to resist for as long as possible, it’d be different.) I also think I’ve solved the noticing part without really applying any specific technique.
But I don’t think this means the post can’t still be valuable for cases where noticing is the primary obstacle.
I’m not calling it nail-biting bc it’s not about the biting itself, I can equally remove them with my other fingernails.