I’m wondering what the best therapy would be for my almost 4 year old. She’s very bright but has self-regulation issues (i.e., blurting out sounds at home and school as well as repeating herself often- very sensitive and can have a complete breakdown over little things – if I accidentally press the elevator button or flush the toilet, etc. – …
Q&A: How Can I Help my Child with Oral Fixation?
How can I minimize my 3 1/2 year old’s oral fixation? He sucks his thumb, never took to the pacifier, and was breast fed for three months. His speech is becoming clearer and he has a speech therapist in school. He puts his shirt, cars and balls in his mouth (during soccer game) and he bites when he can’t get …
Q&A: Child Pulling on Tongue and Sticking Tongue Out
My daughter has always done strange thing with her tongue. From the second she was born, she had been sticking it out. Now she is pulling on it. She even refuses to drink from a sippy cup. Some children whose tongues protrude from their mouths do so because they have low muscle tone in their mouth, lips and jaw. Some children …
Q&A: 4 Year Old Was Potty Trained, But Now Won’t Poop in the Toilet
My oldest boy (of 3) just turned 4 last week. He self-potty trained at 2 1/2 but would not poop in the potty. When my youngest was born 4 months ago (so, when my son was about 3 1/2), he started pooping in the potty, but reluctantly. Now, he has completely abandoned the potty and will instead hold in his …
Q&A: Adopted Daughter Behaving Younger Than She Is
My question is about my adopted Russian daughter, now 12 but adopted at 2, with issues regarding social interaction as she was always behaving about 3 or 4 years younger than her peers. Now she is in middle school and getting more withdrawn and ostracized by peers. These seem to be developmental problems and she has been in after school …
Q&A: Adopted Son Doesn’t Want to Eat or Drink
My husband and I just adopted a 17 month boy from Russia. He is at the 25 percentile for both height and weight. However, since arriving home he has begun refusing to drink or eat. He acts hungry, but then only takes a few sips or a few bites then turns his head, arches away from me, seals his lips …
Q&A: My Kindergartener is Having Behavior Problems
My 6 year old has been getting in a lot of trouble at school lately. He is having a hard time listening; he has had to have his seat moved in class 3 times, and has a bit of an attitude. The majority of his bad behavior is during unstructured time, so I figured he was just bored. After getting …
Q&A: My Son Is Hitting and Throwing Chairs in Daycare
My 3-year old son has been dismissed from a second daycare because of hitting and throwing chairs and I am at my wits end. I am a single mother and his dad has never been in his life because he’s incarcerated. He’s had timeouts (that don’t work), had his toys taken away along with television (he’s ok with this) and I’ve …
Q&A: How to Handle Violent & Severe Temper Tantrums
I have a 4 yr old little girl and she throws violent uncontrollable temper tantrums. I’ve taken her to her PCP and she says every kid does it. It will start over anything even the smallest thing. She lost her red color, she doesn’t want to wear that, she wants to eat something else, her TV show ended. Anyway, these …
Q&A: How Can I Handle a Bad Temper Tantrum?
My daughter has a bad temper tantrum where she throws herself on the floor and hits her head. She would also throw things at people. I really don’t know what to do. It also got so bad that she took a glass off a table and almost broke it. I don’t want this to get any worse. You did not …