My Oral Child

[Phoebe]

All this talk of body parts and potty-training- all of which I am avoiding for my almost 2.5 year old daughter- reminds me of her unsanitary habit. Everything goes in her mouth. Today she was putting her feet in her mouth, licking our windows, she bit my arm, stuck her fingers in paint and tried to lick it off and put her mouth on our bathroom faucet. She eats dog food (we don't have a dog), and sand. I had to tell her MDO teachers to watch her on the playground because she may eat the peagravel. To blow bubbles she licks the wand and when she was 1 yr I caught her licking our brick fireplace. I won't even mention what she has done after sticking fingers in her nose.

I am constantly pulling her hands out of her mouth or removing her lips/tongue from something inappropriate. It is embarrassing and grose! I don't know if this is a normal stage or if she will need psychoanalyses later in life from being stuck in the oral phase. She still uses a pacifier only when she sleeps. Maybe letting that go on too long corrupted her!

Jennifer

Re: My Oral Child

She eats dog food (we don't have a dog), and sand. I had to tell her MDO teachers to watch her on the playground because she may eat the peagravel.
Jennifer

Jennifer, she doesn't really eat the stuff, does she? This would worry me if she actually ate it, and I would recommend consulting your pediatrician. But I think up until age 3 it is still pretty normal for children to explore with their mouths.

[houseelf]

Jennifer,

This sounds normal...or at least like something my kid would do. Don't feel bad, my kid took his pacifier with him to bed until his fourth birthday . We tried to take it away earlier, but he started in on his thumb so we gave it back. Our big "oral" thing is that my son sneaks to drink pool water, lake water, bathtub water, etc. just because it is vorboten.

For what it is worth, my pediatrician always says that kids are a lot than they look. I hope so, because I have all my eggs in that basket.

Kelly

[SueC]

I think it sounds pretty normal for 2 also. My friend's son (who is 4 now btw) still tries to eat dog food sometimes when he comes over. My girls only did it a few times, but I think it was less intriguing to them since we have a dog and it is readily available to them. (Also they have to make dog food safe for the consumption of children for that very reason, though I'm sure what is in there isn't anything you'd prefer that she be eating!)
I'm sure as she gets a little older and gets a little more experience with all of those things she feels the need to taste, she will feel the need to taste them a little less often!!

[Phoebe]

I think it is more of a situation of putting things in her mouth such as the sand and really wierd items. She ended up chewing the sand because it was so gritty and hard to get out of her mouth. She never ate the peagravel but I was worried she would put it in her mouth during playtime. With the dog food, she saw the dog eating it and must have thought it was ok to put it in her mouth. I don't know why she licks windows and the faucet. I think part of it is because I tell her not too.

We had her tested for lead because our house was very old, but her levels were very low so we weren't concerned with pica. Avery sees her ped in a couple weeks. I think I will ask her. I asked DH about it last night and he thinks she is being exploratory. He said when he was little he used to sit on the front porch after dinner and eat spoonfuls of dirt. I wondered what was wrong with him. 8O

Jennifer