I think it might be a normal phase that all kids go through but I'm not certain. My boys did the same thing and here is what I did. Maybe you can give it a try with her.
Any time you see her doing it pull her aside and say "If you want to hold your private parts that's ok but you must do it in your bedroom. It is perfectly normal for you to be curious about your own body but it is a private behavior." and ask her if she would like to excuse herself to her room.
My boys are both 7 year old and Autistic and we don't want to discourage them from exploring their own bodies because that is absolutely normal but she might just need to know that even though it's perfectly normal, there are boundaries to this behavior and she needs to do it in private.
Worked for my boys! They no longer do it that I know of unless they gotta go potty now!
Quoting BaBeezandMe:I think it might be a normal phase that all kids go through but I'm not certain. My boys did the same thing and here is what I did. Maybe you can give it a try with her.
Any time you see her doing it pull her aside and say "If you want to hold your private parts that's ok but you must do it in your bedroom. It is perfectly normal for you to be curious about your own body but it is a private behavior." and ask her if she would like to excuse herself to her room.
My boys are both 7 year old and Autistic and we don't want to discourage them from exploring their own bodies because that is absolutely normal but she might just need to know that even though it's perfectly normal, there are boundaries to this behavior and she needs to do it in private.
Worked for my boys! They no longer do it that I know of unless they gotta go potty now!
Quoting NESmith63:
What about when your out in public? I don't feel like its an exploring her body thing more then just a strange habit. Shes only turned 3 in feb so I think even if I try to explain that she has to do that in her room she will think she is being punished and sent to her room and I don't want her to think she will be punished.
Quoting BaBeezandMe:I think it might be a normal phase that all kids go through but I'm not certain. My boys did the same thing and here is what I did. Maybe you can give it a try with her.
Any time you see her doing it pull her aside and say "If you want to hold your private parts that's ok but you must do it in your bedroom. It is perfectly normal for you to be curious about your own body but it is a private behavior." and ask her if she would like to excuse herself to her room.
My boys are both 7 year old and Autistic and we don't want to discourage them from exploring their own bodies because that is absolutely normal but she might just need to know that even though it's perfectly normal, there are boundaries to this behavior and she needs to do it in private.
Worked for my boys! They no longer do it that I know of unless they gotta go potty now!
When we were out in public I explained to the boys that if they needed to do that then they needed to go to the restroom. My boys started doing it at around 3 1/2 and didn't always understand but I kept with it and they finally did and they don't do it anymore.
I'm not sure if it is an exploring her body thing for sure. They do explore themselves at different times. It could just be one of those quirky things she picked up somewhere like you said and just may need a gentle reminder to not do that if she doesn't have to go potty.
Have you tried talking to her pediatrician about it?
Best of luck to you.
Am I overreacting or?
- NESmith63
on Jun. 30, 2012 at 10:16 PM