Nose picking

[aprilsnow]

What do you do about nose picking in an 18 month old? Her finger is CONSTANTLY in her nose, all day long, the past few weeks. If I say "finger out of nose, please," she ignores it 90% of the time (or if I gently move her hand, she puts it back), and the other 10% of the time she does stop picking but fusses or cries. Should I just ignore it even though it grosses out other people? Is there anything else I can do? Help!

[lotusdebi]

I'd ignore it or show her how to use a tissue/ hankerchief. Could her nose be bothering her because of dryness? In the winter, with the heat on in the house, noses tend to be more irritated. If that's the case, a humidifier might help.

[PAgreenmama]

dd (20 months) went through that not too long ago. i would just say yuck yuck and remove her finger and sometimes ignore it. we didn't make a big deal about it. and she stopped on her own after a few weeks.

i think it's a normal phase when they discover that little hole that their finger fits so perfectly inside. i wouldn't worry about it.

[eastkygal]

My 4 year old has just started doing this for the first time. She picks and picks. She has had several nose bleeds because of the irritation she is causing. I try to tell her to use a tissue and blow her nose. It works sometimes. When she gets a nosebleed she will stop doing so much for a few days, then she is back at it. I've noticed she had has other habits like this that come and then go after a few months. I'm hoping this will be the same.

[One_Girl]

Dr. Sear's recommends gently squeezing and rubbing both sides of the nose from the top to the tip because children often pick their nose because something inside is irritating them. I taught my dd how to do this herself and it helps a lot.

[skreader]

Originally Posted by One_Girl

Dr. Sear's recommends gently squeezing and rubbing both sides of the nose from the top to the tip because children often pick their nose because something inside is irritating them. I taught my dd how to do this herself and it helps a lot.

It could be that. Sometimes if it's quite dry that makes it irritable, so we would sometimes moisturize the inside of the nose.

Another thing is it might be a form of self-soothing. It was like that for my DS for a while. So, you might want to try and see if something like stroking a hanky may be useful. Or even twiddling her thumbs.

When she gets older, you can start reminding "bad habit". When DS got to be older, I would sometimes suggest that if he wanted to pick his nose, he go into the bathroom to do it - so others didn't ahev to watch.

[Super_mommy]

Nothing to worry.. Get her to concentrate on other things so that she forgets this.. Always try to keep some toys in her hands..

[aprilsnow]

Thanks for the ideas!