My 17 month old daughter has been focused on her crotch area for the past several weeks. She seems to want to apply pressure there and will get a toy or something and just hold it there for a few minutes while holding her breath at times. Is this normal? My babysitter thinks she's just discovering her body and is curious. We had a month where we had a couple of different sitters filling in and my husband is suspicious now. Is this something we should worry about? She literally will lay on her back with her legs open and just apply pressure. It doesn't happen all the time but at least once a day or every couple of days. I hope this isn't too sensitive or awkward of a topic to post - I just don't know what to do and I haven't spoken to her doctor yet. Any thoughts??
It's normal. Dr. Sears who is a childhood expert addresses this and what you can do about it here:
http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/az9.asp
Masturbation is absolutely normal starting in the toddler years. Pressure on the pubic bone or clitoris feels good at any age. When she is old enough to understand, just suggest that she do that in private. I clearly remember my mother telling me that as a very young child, before starting Kindergarten.
I have a few friends who had daughters that "masturbated" as toddlers. I think it is normal for some girls to enjoy that feeling, and not necessarily a sign of any problem.
100% normal, normal, normal. There is a clitoris there. It feels good. She may be learning to self soothe.
Or, is she appearing uncomfortable? If not, normal discovery of her own body and what feels good.
BTW, that is good, very good. It is not sexual, it body awareness, of which you want her to have.
a rash. bacterial infection. yeast infection. curiosity.
Of course you hate to think the worst, but dont want to turn a blind eye either. My advice is rule the benign stuff out 1st before you panic.
I think it is very normal for your daughter to be doing this, but as others have said, don't turn a blind eye to it. Speak with your doctor as well and get his/her perspective. Has your daughter shown any other questionable actions? When changing her diaper have you noticed anything out of the ordinary about her private areas? Did she exhibit any uncomfortable behavior around the babysitters? How did you find your babysitters? I wouldn't out and out accuse anyone of anything because that is a huge allegation, but at the same time you are your child's advocate especially at an age in which she cannot articulate what is going on when you are not around. Don't worry too much about it, but do get more answers from your doctor. I used to be a school teacher and it was not uncommon to have young students that touched themselves in this manner. Hope this helps!
A.
Well the topic makes me feel uncomfortable. But I think it's because I was molested. I know about 3 times when I was between 9 and 11 years. But I have a suspicion that it happened when I was too young to remember.
I don't know the right answer. I don't know what anyone can do about a child this young to find out if anything happened. Wrongly accusing someone would be HORRIBLE. I think you should just try and distract her and not draw attention to the behavior.
wellll it would make me uncomfortable, and i was not molested. i know she's little - redirect redirect redirect! don't wait until she's "old enough" to correct it. get her focused on something else. maybe natural, maybe normal, maybe unavoidable - doesn't mean it should be allowed to continue. if not now, then how old before you stop it? i'd hate to be in the middle of walmart and my little girl start doing that in front of god and everybody...and they don't know the difference between "in public" and "in private" at that age.
She's masterbating. My 2 yr old has been doing it also since she was a year and a half. She does it the same thing but always uses her blanky which makes it easy for me to stop it. I take blanky away and distract her with something else. Its normal.My little sister also does this, however she is 6 and still doing it with her legs. Her parents do not stop her which drives me crazy. i think its inapropriate and stop my daughter as soon as i notice she is doing it.
