My 5yr old son has always had minor OCD issues although he has never been "officially diagnosed." Lately it has become worse, it is a complete nightmare to get out of the house in the morning. At the time, it is his shoes that are the focus of his attention. He ties his own shoes and pulls the strings to tight that I cannot imagine how he still gets circulation to his feet. Also, the loops and strings must be exactly the same or he has to start over again and again. I've tried the velcro shoe but he ends up breaking the straps from pulling them so tight each day... and he doesn't like them b/c he cannot get them tight enough. I have tried everything I know how - anyone have any suggestions? How do you deal with OCD?
I have a Grandson that is OCD. You need a lot of counseling and a good Psychiatrist for meds. It won't just get better. Buy flip flops. OCD is an anxiety disorder.
It took me almost a decade of ADULT YEARS to put my OCD in check. I'd take him to a pediatric psychologist who specializes in this. I can't imagine how terribly frustrating life must be for him right now (and you!) At 5, he doesn't understand why he's so compelled to do things a certain way, so he can't begin to correct the behavior, since he just doesn't know. You'll need help with this one mama! Good luck!
First, get him in for a formal evaluation to make sure it's OCD. You'll want to see a specialist like a child psychiatrist or neuropsychologist. Our son has OCD and it's treated successfully with medication.
We also went through nightmares getting out the door due to shoes and socks. Same went for his karate belt at one time. If it didn't line up perfectly, he was inconsolable. The OCD focus can shift, too. So, it may be shoes today, but other activities later. If it's OCD, you really want a medical specialist guiding you through treatment.
There is an excellent book called "Talking Back to OCD" that is written for children. It is a workbook that he can draw pictures of his feelings, etc.
More importantly, has he ever had strep? PANDAS is a very real thing, and two of the main symptoms are OCD, tics and chorea (fidgeting, arm and leg involuntary jerky motions - often diagnosed as Tourettes). Please visit www.pandasnetwork.org. Pediatric Autoimmune Disorder Associated with Streptococcus. Basically something causes the brain to create too many antibodies that then turn right around and attack the Basal Ganglia of the brain, causing OCD and movement disorder. I'm happy to answer any questions if you want to contact me personally.
My son does the SAME thing with his shoes. He uses velcroe shoes and straps them as tight as he can. He also goes around making sure every door is shut along with all cabinets and drawers,etc. I've wondered if it's really OCD or if there could be some underlying issue. (which he does have).
Is he seeing a psychologist? If not, that would be the first thing I would do.
I don't have any advice, but I am with you on how hard OCD can be in a little one. My son was right sock, left sock, right shoe, left shoe and if you tried to do it differently he'd FREAK out. One day we were in the car and he realized he'd put his shoes on the wrong feet. An error he has only made once in his life. He started screaming and I had to pull over. The way he was acting you would have thought his feet were on fire!! I had to soothe him and fix the problem. I sure never predicted when I became a mom I'd be on the side of the road fixing such a problem!! haha the crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow. good luck with your little man. OCD is SO hard. He sees a psychologist for it and they tell me I can't play into his OCD b/c it makes it worse to accommodate him but sometimes it's SO hard. I pick my battles. :-)
Bananas are nature's OCD cure. Eat as many as he can stand, as often as he can stand. Smoothies (you make, store bought have too much sugar), on toast with peanut butter, with yogurt, baked like french fries, etc.
Also, eat apples, which are for general depression and chemical imbalance. And try to get him to take a vitamin if he can at that age. Slow-releasing niacin and a complex B Vitamin also cure depressive states, which the OCD spectrum is always a part of.
That said, get a physical or occupational therapist (try Therapy 2000) to come by once or twice to teach you how to use a sensory brush, which is a brush you use on his arms, legs, etc, in a special technique to "reset" the nerves in his body. It works wonders on sensory issues.
Here is an example of one; http://www.nationalautismresources.com/wilbarger-brush.html
Our daughter has OCD and sensory issues, like the tightness you refer to, and this all helped tremendously! You can send me a message if you wanna chat. Good Luck!
You go get a diagnosis and let the experts help you. Try Excel Pediatrics in Rockwall. They are fantastic. And they will give you coping skills you never EVER would have thought of on your own.
Good luck.
Sometimes eliminating certain things from the diet help when children are struggling with emotional challenges. Does he consume fructose, artificial colors/flavors, corn syrup (sodas, processed foods), msg (found in all fast food and most chain resturaunt foods) ? Many of these things can become neurotoxins in a small childs developing brain.
You can help him, you can give extra time, you can buy lots of extra velcro shoes, etc. Maybe try shoes like Keen or Merrell that have elastic toggle pulls. You can get them super tight and it's really easy and fast.
If he's upset about it, you could talk to an OCD/kid specialist. There are behavioral therapies that might help, but I wouldn't do that if you thought it would bum him out worse than the shoes.
The problem is if you "fix" the shoe obsession, he'll focus on something else. I know I have minor ocd, although never diagnosed. You just have to allot the extra time in the AM or do as many things the night before as you can.
