Yes, my 22mo. old daughter is pulling strands of her beautiful hair out & putting them in her mouth. Some are ingested & come out the other end. She went through a few week phase of biting her nails. She stopped doing that, not sure why. I ignored it, maybe that's why. Now she is pulling out strands of her hair...sometimes 1, sometimes a few, and putting them in her mouth. Her hair is past her shoulders & curly. I absolutely will not cut it b/c of this, so only other suggestions please. I asked her today "don't you want to have long, beautiful hair like mommy?" & she said "no." She is very smart...already talks in 10 word sentences, sings the abc song. I think this is either an OCD type thing, a self-soothing mechanism, or just a bad habit. Should I just ignore it like I did w/ the nail biting? It just drives me crazy to see her do this...plus I don't want it causing some sort of damage inside her body.
I will add that she is extremely smart...we have conversations, literally, when most of the other babies her age are only saying 1 word. She definitely isn't autistic or anything like that...she more has the mind of a 3 year old than < 1 year old.
I researched a little & found out this is not considered "abnormal" until after 24 months old. So, I will wait 2 more months & see if it goes away. If not, I'll bring it up to her pediatrician. I really think it's just a bad habit, she does it b/c she can (she is a strong willed little girl) & will go away...but if not, I'll ask my dr. Thanks!
My nephew did this at about the same age and we were told it was stress. Considering his childhood and family situation at the time, I believe it it was. Eventually he stopped but my sister had to shave his head bald for a while. =(
There's another explanation other than pica.
Pica usually refers to eating strange things
that aren't part of the body . . . . crayons, dirt, peeled paint, etc.
There's a habit of hair-pulling that seems to run in families.
Long name starting with trich . . . .
If/when you have an opportunity,
consider asking your mom, your grandmother, maybe aunts
if any of them did this when they were children.
I liked the story below of transferring the behavior to a stuffed animal.
That would probably be a good thing to do, if you can persuade her.
I understand why you don't want to cut her hair.
I hope she'll get over this quickly.
S.
Don't ignore it. I have a feeling that you need to make an appointment with a Developmental Pediatrician. Call your nearest children's hospital, and have them connect you with their Developmentalists.
She sounds like a beautiful little girl, it will all be OK.
M.
I used to do that when I was younger... I second the ponytail idea... if she tries pulling that maybe braid it. I can't remember when I started, but I was about 8 when I stopped... (probably NOT what you wanted to hear. lol)
I used to babysit a girl who as a younger girl (probably near the age of your daughter) would pull her hair out in clumps. She didn't eat it though, so this suggestion may not work. Her parents were able to transfer the hair pulling habit to a stuffed animal so that she would only pull it's fur out instead of her hair.
Regardless of how it all turns out, consider getting an appointment with Early Intervention (even though she is advanced) or a developmental pediatrician to assess her development. They can help you figure out how to channel her habits into more positive ones. Also, they could help you figure out if it's OCD, a bad habit or self soothing.
She sounds like an amazing little girl!
She may have a medical disorder called Pica. It is a metabolic disorder,sometimes it's a side effect of celiac disease which is a gluten intolerance. If she has Pica is not your fault. Take her to the Doctor. If the Doctor doesn't take this seriously, find another Doctor and try again.
This sounds like trichotillomania (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/trichotillomania/DS00895). I'd recommend talking with a child mental health specialists. If it is trichotillomania, it can be effectively treated and isn't necessarily associated with other mental health problems. However, there can be medical complications if it continues.
Put her hair in a pony tail or two and try to keep it that way. It should discourage her from pulling it out.
