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I need help from the experienced parents on this board! My FD is 2.5 years old and is biting herself. She has a couple of scabs on her index finger from where she chews on her finger when she's falling asleep. I've caught her biting her arms and when I tell her to stop, she does and laughs and watches the bite marks disappear. I don't know why, but this is freaking me out. I can deal with her speech delays, her eating issues and delayed motor skills from the neglect she suffered, but this one has me really worried. I emailed her SW, who I've had a great relationship with, and she completely downplayed it. She said that a lot of kids this age are experimenting with their bodies and boundaries, and when it hurts, they stop. Really? :confused: I did fill out a checklist last week that her EI therapist asked me to do to have her evaluated for a sensory processing disorder. Is this part of that, you think? And should I stop worrying about it?
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It sounds very much to me like a self stimulating behavior. I wouldn't ignore it but I wouldn't freak out about it either. The sensory processing disorder is a good place to start checking. If it is self stimulation, it may help to give her something else to do to distract herself. My son has a stim behavior where he rocks back and forth so we try to get him to do something like tappig his finger instead.
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It can be normal for any kid to do that but in my experience it's more common with kids who have speech delays and other delays as they have a harder time getting "out" what they want to say. My FS did and sometimes still does do this, but when he came in care at 2 1/2 he was a self inflicting pain! Always had marks from biting himself, in and out of anger. Document every time she does it so you have a record of when and where and was she just doing it or was she mad. Good luck.
Taydoo
It sounds very much to me like a self stimulating behavior. I wouldn't ignore it but I wouldn't freak out about it either. The sensory processing disorder is a good place to start checking. If it is self stimulation, it may help to give her something else to do to distract herself.
This sounds exactly like my 2 year old FD. She was evaluated for a sensory disorder, and I think incorrectly diagnosed as NOT having one. She mostly does it out of frustration or in her sleep. She was severely abused and 90% of the biting herself is in reaction to a visit with family. We have tried SOOO many things to stop it. 100% engagment and supervision is about the only thing that helps her. She wont do it if Im right beside her, engaging her in some activity. She also has speech delays and the biting has improved now that she is communicating better. Painting my FD's finger nails has helped her with biting her fingers. I tell her she will mess up her pretty nails, but she still will bite her arms. Hopefully they will correctly diagnose her IF she does in fact have a sensory processing disorder, the checklist my FD's psychologist used wasnt very helpful. Good luck
Thank you ladies! I feel better. I will keep her busy, because she seems to do it when she's bored. I called her therapist, who sounded concerned, and arranged for an OT to review her file faster. I'm having a rough day because I'm worried about this, but also dealing with making a transition plan with her aunt to move her across the country. I'm happy for her, sad for me, and now dealing with this. I need to start a new thread of how to stay engaged with a FK that's leaving, because it's hard to advocate for this child when I know she might be gone by Halloween!
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