I know they go through stages of playing with themselves but my son always has his hand down his pants (playing especially with his bottom). He will do it while walking, watching his kid shows, while trying to go to sleep, and almost anytime that we are not watching him 100+% of the time. He is very active and plays with his toys quite a bit. But when there is any downtime, his hand goes in the pants. Any suggestions to help him cool off this habit would be appreciated. Thanks.
Thanks for your suggestions. A few months of growing up has helped tremendously. When we see him putting his fingers in his bottom, he has to go immediately wash his hands. This has cut down on the habit a lot.
I know that it must be frustrating but I think that it is just a stage that he is going through. Just verbalize to him that it is inappropriate and talk about germs. I hope that this helps. Unforunately I know grown men who still does it. :-)
Oh A., you are one Mom that will so appreciate this...just last month we (all 5 of us) went to a homeschool book sale at a church down the street. My 7yr old decided he would push the 2yr old around the room in a stroller. The oldest son, 12yr old, was looking around at stuff. When they all came together at my husband's feet, I was reading about a math workbook but I noticed a fuss going on behind me. I turned to take care of it when I heard the oldest say, "get the baby, get the baby!!" I looked down immedately to find that the 2yr old has his hand down the front of his shorts just content as can be. Once I stopped him, the thought crossed my mind, "oh my gosh, how many people have seen him do that? How long had it been?" LOL now! I was so embarassed! We all get a good laugh out of it now. And just you wait until he is older! I will let him know what he did! LOL ALL 3 of our boys have and still do find themselves doing the same thing; especially infront of the t.v. during a good movie.
So guess what? I just read about this in a good book I'm reading called How To Make Children Mind Without Loosing Yours. It said that of course this behavior is normal. He said not to make the child feel like their privates and bottoms are dirty, this is how God made us. He suggests we let them know there is a place for that and it's not in front of other people.
We have always told our boys to stop in front of the t.v. or when they are young like yours and my little one we watch and stop them. I tell my little one that if he needs to check his bottom he needs to go to the bathroom and get a wipe. He uses the Kandoo wipes. And if it's his privates, I ask him if it hurts and needs medicine. If not, then I tell him he can go to his room if he needs to check on it but not out here. I tell them that I know that's how God made you and all of our parts have a purpose but I don't want to see it out here, okay?
I hope this helps. At least you know you are not alone. LOL Just wait until he's 12yrs old! LOL!!!!
Hope you have a great day!
Take Care,
N. :)
SAHM homeschooling 3 boys 12, 7 & 2 yrs old while dad works so very hard for us. Married to Mr. Wonderful for almost 15yrs.
I have seen this happen in the day care. What it boiled down to was that this was the way that the child comforted himself during down time. The first responder said to try using a belt, the child that I have seen do this would figure out how to take a belt off but it is worth a try. Maybe trying to introduce a special downtime toy would help. I used to use something soft and cuddly with the little guy that was in my class, and eventually he started using his "baby" for comfort instead of his hand in his pants. I went and purchased an infants soft stuffed animal that had silky ears that he could rub with his hands or chew on if he wanted. The only time he would get this special toy was when he was getting ready for nap, it was movie day, or we were having story time. He came to love that little toy after about 2 months of telling him that he could have his baby at those times and only if he kept his hands out of his pants. This little boy was only 18 months old, so I do not think that your little guy would have any trouble adjusting to this type of comfort item.
Hope this helps a little!
Hi A.,
Have you talked with your pediatrician about your concerns?
Along with inquiring from the child's doctor, have you thought about taking parenting classes and getting into a support group for moms?
Hope this helps. Good luck. D.
Are you sure he's playing with his bottom? My daughter was doing this from 3 years and up (currently 5 and still doing it). It turned out that she was playing with the tag on her pants. She has a blanket that has a satin edge that she cuddled with from birth. The satin tags were an attraction in her shorts/pants when she couldn't have the blanket. She now will even resort to carrying a pair of panties around the house because she can hide them in her hand, but still fiddle with the tag in them for comfort. We slowly broke her of the whole habit, but every once in a while it comes out. When she was old enough, we made it a point to make her aware of what she was doing-mostly it was boredom.
Hi A.
Here are two suggestions. Hope one is helpful.
1. Try putting on a belt. If the pants are tighter around his waste, then there's no room for his hand.
2. Try putting a long shirt on him that gets tucked into his pants. Then if the hand does go into the pants, the shirt keeps it clean.
M.
My 4-year-old daughter now gets a big laugh out of "butts". She'll poke hers out and say, "look at my butt." I think it's just a stage they go through, awareness of the body. I teach her young ladies do not poke out their butts, then remind her when she forgets. I wouldn't worry, though. Teach him, young men do not play with their bottoms. I'd remind him that Daddy doesn't walk around rubbing his bottom. He's growing to be a young man, like Daddy. Maybe getting him to see Dad as his male role model for behavior might help.
If he's been doing it for a while it may have become habit of boredom. It probably bothers you more than it is a problem. Talk to him about private parts, who can/cannot see/touch, and when it's okay for him to touch but beyond that I wouldn't be too hard on him for it or it could backfire and he could think he's doing something wrong and feel ashamed.
Good luck!
Start introducing the concept of appropraite touching. Along the lines of "it is okay to touch your own body, in private." It may not do the trick at that age, but "privacy" and "private parts" is a good issue to start discussing at that age.
I would have him checked for worms...seriously. If he feels a tickling sensation, that could be why. Also, have him checked for yeast, because that also causes a tickling, irritating sensation.
