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GreatSphinx
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28 Jun 2011, 4:53 pm

I don't know what to do, but this is getting worse. My youngest daughter (8 - who has not been diagnosed with anything, but has a lot of traits) will not keep anything out of her mouth. This includes, objects, other people's body parts, clothing, anything. Just now, she fell down and hurt her arm. She refused to let me hold her, kiss it or touch her, but she leaned over and placed her mouth on my forearm for about 7 seconds. I just asked her if it made her feel better, and she said that she didn't know. Then she put my arm around around her neck.

I know this is a form of stimming (and comfort), but is there any way I can get her to not do it as much, or to suggest something else for her to do? It is one thing when she is placing her mouth on herself, but when it is other people, it can be a little inappropriate.



Mama_to_Grace
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28 Jun 2011, 5:04 pm

My daughter also has always done this. What I do is give her something to chew/suck on that is more appropriate. Gum, hard candy, anything. During school she has a chewy necklace but is getting to the point where using it makes her embarrassed so she is back to chewing holes in her clothes-unless I give her some gum. As far as her placing her mouth on you, well my daughter does that too. It does help calm her. I don't try to chastise her from this. I just explain that it's not appropriate to do it to someone else. Getting your daughter some sensory stimulation might help her oral fixation-such as pressure, weghted clothing, fidgets, etc. And your daughter is old enough that you need to explain to her what germs are and why she shouldn't put her mouth on anything that's not hers or it will cause her to get sick!



GreatSphinx
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28 Jun 2011, 5:21 pm

Thank you!! That is a great idea (candy and that). I just gave her a cinnamon stick to suck on. One of my friend's does this to help him since he stopped smoking. As long as this works, and she did not inherit my allergy to cinnamon, this may be awesome.

I actually do tell her that mouthing other people is not polite, but she doesn't always realize she is doing it. As for the germs, she knows that things can be dirty, and I have never seen her place objects in her mouth out in public (other than napkins at restaurants), but at home, most anything is fare game. She does know things she is not allowed to touch, like cleaning supplies and medicines, but pencils, spoons, paper, toys and things like that are always being removed. We had the hardest time breaking her of the binky habit. It was very sad, and there was a lot of night time rocking as a result. :(



Bombaloo
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28 Jun 2011, 5:28 pm

Often part of what the child needs is a workout for the jaw and tongue muscles. The cinnamon stick as a replacement for just something to have in her mouth is probably good but you might also try something she can really CHEW on. I have read OTs that recommend giving them multiple pieces of gum at one time to chew so that they really get a lot of oral stimulation. That probably isn't something you want to have her doing all the time but once in a while at home would probably be OK. Our OT also recommended drinking really think liquids, like well pureed applesauce, through a straw.



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28 Jun 2011, 5:58 pm

I have the same problem. I broke a total of three wacom tablet pens in a period of a month by chewing on them. Things like gum or chew toys meant spefically for autistic people were just too soft. I just broke down and bought a dog toy that was made for big dogs that are agressive chewers. It solved the problem.


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Mama_to_Grace
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28 Jun 2011, 8:13 pm

Bombaloo wrote:
Our OT also recommended drinking really think liquids, like well pureed applesauce, through a straw.


This is true. My daughter sucks a thick smoothie through a straw each morning-then she takes the straw and chews on it a while afterwards.

Just be sure whatever you give her is safe. You can get food grade tubing from a plumbing supply store (the kind they use for soda dispensers) fairly inexpensively and it comes in various diameters and density to suit her.



liloleme
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29 Jun 2011, 8:20 am

I can so relate...and its my fault because it genetically comes from me. My Dad nicknamed me Mouse because I chewed on everything. I still chew my nails and soft plastic things....when we lived in the US I chewed on the little tab that went around the milk jug. My kids chew a lot, especially my daughter who has classic autism. She has even chewed up wires (not plugged in thankfully) like a puppy or a bunny. I found these things called Chewlery you can get them on Amazon here is a link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001H9 ... WO0LUO5S0Q
They are good because she can wear them and stretch and chew them. I am also going to try a new chewy here is the link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002Z3 ... WO0LUO5S0Q
We have not tried this one yet but it looks nice and It has a break away necklace for safety.
Good luck!

Also Im going to get these for my son because they are small and easy to hide in your pocket....they are also scented and flavored.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002MZ ... 5VOQFNTF6H

Also just read about the "binky" thing....sounds terrible, I know how hard that is, I had to take away my older daughters bottle (shes 21 now) because her teeth were falling apart. My oldest (24 now) gave up his at age 5 and my nearly nine year old son gave up his at age 6. My Autie still has hers at 6 but they are not affecting her teeth and she knows she can only have them at home and in the car.