Yesterday when we were at our inlaws house, our 3.5 year old played in the pool, swings, etc for about 2 hours. Shortly after going inside, she did a very strange thing (that I have never seen at our house, but mother in law says she has done for weeks)
She made this funny face (kind of slack face, pursed lips, half closed eyes) then opened her eyes and took this breath (with the right half of her mouth opened and the left closed. VERY STRANGE
When we asked her if she was having trouble breathing, she said, yes, she couldn't breathe. When we asked her who does that, she said mermaids do. I am not sure if she saw this somewhere or it is a breathing problem of some sort. I think it is a real problem and not just imitation because she did it as she was dozing off to sleep.
I am thinking asthma, allergies, stress?
Has ANYONE encountered this before?
I'm making a dr appt tomorrow but you know how doctors are. They just blow over things. I feel like I have a 50/50 chance of this being properly diagnosed. I would make an appt with a specialist but I am not sure which kind of specialist (Ear nose and throat, respitory, or ?)
Thanks!
Does she seem aware of what she's doing? Spacey or sleepy afterwards? My daughter has seizures, and I'm wondering if this could be a possibility. They can sometimes affect just certain parts of the body for a few seconds. Just a thought, if the breathing issue is ruled out. A neurologist could let you know for sure. Take care - you'll get to the bottom of this.
My son also had seizures that affected his breathing. They were not "typical" seizures that you would recognize as such. He would make funny sucking noises with his lips, excessively blink his eyes and then not get much air until it was over (15-45 seconds). It is possible that she is having mild seizures due to an allergy triggered by something in your Mother in law's house. If your gut is that this behavivor is signifigant, don't ignore it or let the dr. blow it off. Your the mom and we have mother's intuition for a reason :)
My granddaughter had some weird things like that happen and we found out they were seizures. She is now on medication and doing well. I'm sorry I don't know where to go about it. But it is serious enough to get it under control ASAP.
In addition to whatever your dr says, I heartily encourage you to seek polarity therapy for her. There are a number of good therapists at SWIHA in Tempe, if you are in this area. Whatever is causing it, I really believe polarity can be most helpful and it is so non-invasive. It might only take one treatment, too! I have found Polarity a really useful therapy!
Hi Amy
I'm a chiropractor and have treated many kids and adults for years. What you are describing, I would like you to see a neurologist after your pediatrician (if they oversee things as you had put it, hehehe). Also, I read an article somewhere regarding kids after swimming, may swallow some water and it kind of fills their lungs a little and doesn't allow them to breathe properly and causes them to sufficate (I think it is called dry drowning). I do not by any means mean to scare you, however, I would like you to be aware of it, since at grandma's house and you weren't there when they swim, in case they had a little incident/ scare or something that they may have not shared with you or grandma.... (Just keeping an eye on all kinds of possibilities just to be on the safe side)
And hopefully it is not a problem and it can be fixed. If at any point you like me to take a look at her to make sure structurally she is ok for nerve impingments from her spine to her lungs, let me know. I'll be happy to do that for you. Please email me and let me know what the doctors said. I'm interested in knowing.
Farid R., DC
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