Odd to Ask but Pretty Sure It's Normal...

That is something normal- or so I've heard! I have a friend thats in her 60's and her daughter is my age, but she use to tell me about how her daughter would do that and sometimes even start "humping" the floor,bed, etc! I asked her what did she do about it and she said nothing, but she also said that when she would ignore her that she eventually stopped. I have never experienced this with my kid's but it's not an unusual thing to hear about. She'll grow out of it! Good luck!

Thank you for posting this, I thought we were the only ones! Last year I created an alternate profile just so I could ask about my then 2yr old's habit of masturbating in the car. Everyone "yelled" at me and assured me it was normal exploration, not masturbation, but I'm telling you, with my daughter it is masturbation. She still does it, though not nearly as frequently. She used to do it every day for about 5-10 minutes, now it's about once a week. I have no idea if it's normal or not because every time I ask someone about it they get uncomfortable and assure me that I must be mistaken...except that I'm not. There is an "end point" to her play, so I know this is not just simple exploration. Personally I am bothered by it. I ignore it as much as I can mostly because I don't know what to say to her about it. Now that she's bigger she finds it difficult to do it in the car, and she's been complaining about it. I don't know how to respond!!! I usually just give her a blanket or something soft to hold and try to distract her. We are just hoping that she continues to grow less interested in this behavior. She has also done it at the grocery store and she gets very angry with me when I tell her wait until we get home. It's embarrassing, I know how you feel!
I'm sorry I'm not much help to you. I just wanted you to know you're not the only one!

got another opinion. Her diaper could be too tight or too small. and it's become a habit.

Have you asked her why she does it? If she says it feels good, ask her where it feels good - if she says her vagina, tell her that is something she can do when she is in private, in her room. And leave it at that.

Could be growing pains, or something else, too.

Carla

Do you think she's growing and her muscles are sore? She could just be massaging her muscles then if she does it and it hurts it's because she's been squeezing too much. It might not be something crazy I'm a massage therapist and I'll rub my daughters hands and feet and she loves it, even tries to do it on her own.. the glutes are a muscle too, if they are rubbed it feels good. Just a thought before you jump to sensory issues or anything like that..

Do you mean she takes her hands, palms on her butt cheeks and squeezes her hands to pinch or 'grope' (for lack of a better word) her own butt?

***After explanation****
Ah ok - now I understand LOL

No, I don't think it's obsessive... it's normal behavior, just wait until she starts exploring herself with her hands and fingers!! I just tell my 5 y/o that she must do these things in her room or bathroom... washing her hands FIRST and AFTER. Those are the only 'restrictions' I put on her.

It may or may not be a sensory issue . . . you might want to see if your library has a book called "The Out-of-Sync Child" to see if any of that info seems to apply to your child.

The other thing that popped into my head (especially when it seems almost uncontrollable) was a motor tic (though I have never heard of this one specifically). Has she had any strep or strep symptoms? If so you may want to research PANDAS. Also, tics are not always (or even commonly) related to strep or PANDAS.

These issues may not apply at all - just giving your some suggestions to consider. I would also ask your doctor for his/her feedback. If you notice it frequently it could be an issue for her. Or it may just be a phase!

I'm not a health care provider of any type - this is just my "mom" opinion.

Good luck.

Perfectly normal!! I have raised 4 children, currently they are 23. 16. 13 .and 12. The last one did as you described. We/I (being the mother and caregiver) let her. It is a natural thing for their bodies to comfort themselves. It's not "sexual" in the way we think of it, it a form of comfort for them. This particular child I have found to be my most self-less of them all. I guess when we just accept them for who they are as individuals , as normal God-given blessings. Too often we shame our children and don't even realize it. And if others look at your kid as being "different", it's on them, because God made them all perfect..

As for her butt hurting her....that's quite another thing. Now that concerns me. What we are talking about shouldn't hurt and a child that small will not do anything to themselves that will cause hurting. If there's hurting, it may be coming from a different source. I have red flags over that. SOMETHING else is going on if her butt "hurts".