My 9 year old nephew bites into his clothes, seatbelt, hardwook, anything to his comfortable reach. He does good in school. His family is of 5 in total, mom, dad, & two sisters, 20 & 17. I am looking for advice on how to help him. Or if his parents need to look for a professional advice?
Thank you all for your advices. I will try them.
click the internet for: sensory integration disorder or dysfunction. Also: activities for Sensory integration disorder.
As mentioned, this is probably a coping skill he developed to ease anxiety. Work with him on some relaxation skills - deep breathing, visualization (storyteller Jim Weiss has a cd of kids guided visualizations called Sleepy Time - or something like that), periods of quiet time during the day, kids yoga class, expression through art.
When he is biting, engage him in conversation to see if he can identify what he is thinking about.
At this point, try not to engage in power struggles over the behavior, and try not to make too big a deal about it. This can actually increase his anxiety.
You could also try replacing the habit with a more acceptable one - chewing gum, playing with a small ball of silly putty or plastiscene, squeezing a stress ball, playing with a finger exerciser/strengenther, rubbing a worry stone, counting or fingering beads on a bracelet.
Best of luck to you and your nephew's family.
Warmly,
C.
Hi there,
A bitting problem usually means one of two things... He could have a problem in his mouth that he's not talking about; this is usually when kids would grind their teeth but he could be trying to aleve the pain or discomfort through bitting. In this case he should see a dentist. If it's not a true problem in his mouth he should see a children's pshycologist to work through what could be some other type of emotional/expressive problem. Best of luck, I hope he gets the care he needs.
L.
try b vitamin complex ( to relax the nervous system)and Cod liver oil, for mood health.
What I found out is that chewing on things like that is a symptom of anxiety.
If this is a new thing he's doing, then trying to talk to him to find out what new things are going on in his life at home or at school that might have lead to the anxiety would be a good place to start.
If this is not a new thing, he may need to see a specialist to determine if it's anxiety disorder and to determine if there is a need for medication and/or therapy.
My youngest has adhd and anxiety disorder. I had already pretty much figured out the adhd, when we decided it was time to seek additional help for it. But I had no clue about the anxiety and the chewing till we saw the specialist for the adhd.
I hope this helps and good luck and best to him.
Kids bite/chew on clothing, pencils, paper, etc. for a number of reasons. Whether or not professional intervention is warrented isn't clear from just knowing he bites into "anything within comfortable reach". That said, some kids chew to help them focus their attention. There are lots of kids who chew on things--so there are lots of things made specifically for chewing safely. I like products made by ARK Therapeutic Services, Inc, especially the ARK Grabbers. I use the soft ones (little kids) but have friends with older kids who like the XT or XXT. I haven't met a kiddo who bites into hardwood, so something else may be going on. But if it's just a need to chew, a 9 year old needs something that is soft enough to not damage his teeth but hard enough to not let him bite through it. It just might be an ARK Grabber--after checking with the child's pediatrician, of course.
Dear N.,
It could be a sign of anxiety. It could be something that started out as a nervous habit, like nail biting, and has become just that....a habit. He may not even be aware he's doing it sometimes.
I think it's really important to have good, open communication. My son chewed on his bottom lip until it was cracked and yucky. His anxiety was pretty easy to pinpoint, his dad and I are divorced. His father is agressive and pushy and puts pressure on him to be perfect at all times. My son just turned 13, and you would be surprised what kids can get anxious about - peer pressure, feeling awkward in comparison to their classmates, etc.
Fortunately, my son's school has a wonderful school counselor who can spend private time with kids for anything from divorce issues, to self esteem, to resolving class conflicts. You might have the parents look into whether or not anything like that is available.
My nephew and I are pretty close, even though he is 17 now. We still talk on the phone and he tells me things he would never feel comfortable talking to his mom or dad about. When I stay at my sister's, if my son is with his dad, he and I usually stay up late watching TV and talking. Usually, we just get blankets and pillows and sleep in the living room together. He intends to go into the military right out of high school, and believe me, I have really treasured our "slumber parties". Sometimes my sister will talk to me about his grades or his attitude. Although my sister and I agree fundamentally about things, I have a different way of expressing things (plus, I'm not his mom)and he listens to me. I listen to him. And he has really loved it when I've had the chance to take him out to eat or go somewhere just the two of us. He's got 3 older brothers who are in their 30's now so he has really been kind of an only child for quite a while.
It sounds like you really love and care for your nephew, so maybe his mom and dad will be open to you spending some special time with him. Take him to a movie or a museum or fishing. I bet he'd really like it.
Like I said, my nephew tells me everything. He knows he can confide in me.
You didn't mention what your relationship with the parents is like. You always want to be sure not to step on any toes when it comes to parenting.
So, love your nephew! Try spending some time with him and see if he will open up.
Very best of wishes!
Our 10yo daughter used to chew on her clothes. She has mostly outgrown it. Chewing gum or sucking on Tic Tac may help, if that is an option for your nephew. Gum is not allowed at our school and our daughter was not good about keeping from playing with it and getting it all over her hands at home, so that didn't work for us. (But it worked for her, as she still asks for it.) She also still sucks her thumb sometimes.
I would agree that it might be a symptom of anxiety. Our daughter has a learning disorder and has some school related anxiety.
Hi,
It could be an undiagnosed sensory processing disorder. We get my son "chew" toys, e.g., special straws (and regular straws when we're without his chew toys.) Try abilitations - it's website filled with OT tools included lots of sensory tools for things like oral issues.
P.
