There is one little thing that is driving me crazy...

[bellona]

I am pretty patient with my kids. But there is one little thing that is driving me up the wall. Ds (6yo) puts his hands in his mouth. He has never been a finger sucker, this has never been an issue. But lately, he puts his hand to his face and licks from the bottom of his palm to the tips of his fingers. Or he sticks his tongue out and runs his fingers back and forth over it. Or he puts all his finger tips and thumb together on both hands and touches them to his tongue.

I do not know why, but this is driving me insane. He does it a hundred times a day probably. He does not know why he does it. I thought maybe his hands were dry and gave him lotion, no luck. I thought maybe having something in his mouth to occupy it would help and gave him some gum, no luck.

Any ideas? I have explained to him why it is gross to walk around with spit on your hands all day, but it just goes on and on. I have tried having him wash his hands when he does it, and although it took a tremendous amount of self control I tried ignoring it.

[oliversmum2000]

sorry no ideas - just hugs

evryone has something i guess

dh does this weird noise that he says scratches his throat but ihate it it sounds like hes about to puke...

[straighthaircurly]

If he is doing it a hundred times a day and doesn't know why, it may be a sign of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). I would talk to his ped.

[Quinn'sMommy]

I did the same thing when I was a kid. I didn’t know why I did it and it drove my mother crazy. Now as an adult I know exactly why I did it (no I’m not OCD), it was just a nervous habit, made worse by my parents hatred of the tic I couldn’t control. I grew out of it and I’m sure he will to. My best advice is to ignore the tic and address the nervousness, give him a hug when he does it, tell him you love him. Trust me it drives him crazy too. Maybe the two of you can come up with a plan for him to replace the tic with a better habit. Deep breathing or a positive affirmation he can say to himself instead of the licking. It will take time, at this point it’s a habit and he most likely is unaware of how often he does it. I really do feel for your son I know exactly how he feels and a loving, helpful parent will go along way to working thru some of that nervousness. Just having you on his side will help a lot.

Rachel

[familylove]

DS (almost 4) has a very unusual behavior that is hereditary (his great-gpa, gma and daddy all do it to varying degrees.) When he's excited or really engaged in something, he raises both hands up by his ears and "waggles" them around. Our ped said there was nothing to worry about (and it did make feel better to have a ped confirm that).

We have started gently and quietly asking DS to put his hands down. He puts them down and does his hand movements around his waist. We have to say this, literally, 100s of times a day...but he seems unfazed by it (ie: doesn't embarrass or shame him). Like I said, its heredity rather than a comforting activity so I would imagine you have to treat a soothing behavior differently.

Just to make yourself feel better, you might check with your ped. He/She might also have suggestions as to minimizing his behavior.