M.H.
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Part One:
Ok, so my 5YO son started eating the tops of his X-Large pencils for School last fall. He bites little peices off and spits it out until he destroys the eraser; he spits the peices under his desk (at home) in an attempt to hid it. Weird, but his teacher seemed to think that he would get over it. Then he destroyed another eraser and another one...so now he can't be alone with the pencils, LOL, we keep them at our desk until it's time to do homework. And then we found out that he has been eating the eraser (the big pink kind) that he keeps at school! Little bites around all the edges.
Part Two:
My son has a Ikea (unfinished) pine bed. It has four walls about a foot high (so he won't roll out) and an opening for the stairs and a cool canopy over the whole structure (it's a very cool bunk bed.) Last night I took the canopy off to clean it and I couldn't believe what I saw...Little bite marks taken out of the frame. ALL THE WAY AROUND IT!!! It looks like a little beaver came along and chewed the entire frame. How I missed this I don't know!!!
Help...has anyone ever gone through this? He says he spits the wood out but I could only find a few peices. For all the damage he's done there should be more...I am at a total loss. Did I mention that he also picks his fingers so badly that they bleed (his doctor said that he would eventually "get over" that and didn't seem concerned.) I am at my wits end...I don't know how to help. Is this normal?
Hi K.,
My thought is that maybe he is missing something from his diet, and/or may be having trouble processing some kind of vitamin or mineral in his diet? When I was pregnant I had an incredible craving to eat chalk! Who wants to eat chalk? Yuck! But that's what I honestly felt like I wanted to eat. My doctor suggested that I might need more calcium and suggested I get a big Costco-sized thing of Tums and just eat them whenever I wanted. That stopped my craving.
So... I don't know. Maybe have him tested for deficiencies in his diet?
Other than that, if it does turn out to be an obsessive-compulsive thing, I have heard that anti-depressants can help with that.
I hope you find something that helps, and fast!
I would push teh issue with your ped a little bit harder. I have heard that when people start to eat funny things it can be an indication of something else. Like the other moms said it is probaly a vitamin thing. Try giving him a supplement.
If that is not the case and it a behavioral thing, get tough. Start to take things away, use time out, what ever you have to do. IF he was going to grow out of it he probaly would have already.
Good luck
Wow!! K.!!! I was reading this and it is like a story from a movie- one that you never really think will be true- you have a beaver for a child. WOW!!! I cannot even imagine my child doing this- this is not normal.
Could he be hungry? Could he be nervous about something, has he just started doing this? Has something changed over your life that has affected him? I mean, the part of chewing his fingers til they bleed- I used to do that, but not the eating wood and the eraser off pencils- this would bother me.
Has he wet his bed since this started, maybe this is his way of getting your attention?? Maybe there is something bothering him? How was the transition to his own room? Was he scared? Is he still scared and this is how he deals with it? Maybe its time to sit him down and talk to him about this, without the yelling and without being upset- really talk to him about not only how sick this is for his tummy, but how he is feeling- why, why, why? why is he doign this? Have him talk to you about it, he is old enouhg to use words to tell you why or how he feels. I am sure it doesnt' taste good- as far as the doctor goes, him not caring enough about this issue, maybe it is time to seek a new pediatrician?? One that actually understands your struggles and is actually listening to your concerns. This has to be stopped. Good luck and please let me know what happens :)
So many compulsive habits would make me a little nervous, too. Contrary to what your dr. said, these habits will not be that easy to "get over." I imagine the bed chewing will stop at some point, the fingers not so easily. I would definitely make sure there is nothing toxic in the bed. I do remember chewing on pencils as a child, (and that was when pencils had lead in them), and that stopped. I remember pulling out my hair for a while in 6th grade. That stopped also, fortunately.
Still trying to stop my other compulsive habits...
I think your son suffers from vitamin deficiencies.
There are several vitamins that must be plentiful to our bodies for our nervous system to run smoothly:
1.Potassium: regulates nerves and the degree to how excitable they become.
2. Manganese: healthy nerves
3. Magnesium: (works w/calcium) to regulate nerve tone. it acts as a gate blocker to keep nerve relaxed.
4.Copper: Preserves mylin shealth around nerves.
5.Calcium- (low calcium can cause teeth grinding which is a similar action to chewing and also causes agitation)
Zinc - low zinc can cause PICA which is the desire to eat non edible things. White marks on fingernails tells of low zinc levels.
Vitamin A - Low vit. A can cause peeling finger tips and palms, and will affect appetite. One of the telltale signs of Vit A deficiency is small bumps on the back of upper arms or front of thighs, maybe even on cheeks.
Vitamin B complex (B1-B12) B vitamins regulate the nervous system. B-4 regulates nerve impulses. They use B to treat neuropathy. Many scaling, cracked and chapped skin issues, acne, exzema,phsoriasis, concentration and agression behaviors can be related to vit B.
You can get a good supply of the first 6 minerals (Plus a bunch of other trace minerals, 60+ in all) in FULVIC ACID. Plus it oxygenates, and clears the body of toxins, heavy metals and poisons of all kinds.
If you could give him daily:
*Fulvic Acid/ 1 capful twice a day
*Cod liver oil (for vit A)/ once or twice a day
*B complex liquid vitamin/ under his tounge 3 x a day
I think you will see improvement or total healing.
(My son had a habit of chewing his shirt, pencils, paper wads, leggos, coins, practically anything he could get in his mouth.) This has helped him.
Blessings,
Gail
