6Yr Old Daughter, Blurting Out

Updated on February 02, 2012
K.M. asks from Lake Oswego, OR
7 answers

I have a 6 yr old daughter she's an only child, and about a year ago she developed a small tic blurting out JERK or it would be under her breath and would say it repetively jerk jerk...I cried, I was very concerned, and just like that it went away.... lately, I have noticed her playing in her room, and I will walk over and listen to her playing w/ dolls ect... and we all did voiceovers as children - but my concern is i've been hearing her say "WHAT" in a darker tone and almost like it's forced. So I have brought this to her attention, but without making her feel badly about it, but something like "oh we're you talking to me" did you want me? And she replies with i'm just talking to myself. or I didn't say anything.
I'm wondering if it's because my boyfriend (that's been in her life since she was 3) just picked up and left us, or could it be the stress of school? her best friend just left and went to another school... could it be food dyes that are triggering these episodes? She's not jerking her body around or having movement tics or blinking shrugging ect...it's just all vocal- and somedays nothing and other days she's off her rocker. Any thoughts???

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M.L.

answers from Houston on

She's 6, I would talk to her pediatrician about this for an evaluation. My cousin has Tourette syndrome and it started out a lot like this when she was a young child, it got worse as she got older, then it went away once she hit her late teens, which is fairly common. It doesn't always have to involve ticks or jerking body movements. Stress, excitement and worry can make tics worse. I would journal the days that she is worse, to see if there is a pattern, if those are more stressful days for her. It's still early and she can learn to help control it with a little bit of therapy on coping skills.

http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/tc/tourettes-disorder-...
http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/brain_nerv...

4 moms found this helpful

S.T.

answers from Washington DC on

i'd get her evaluated. sounds like it could be mild tourette's, which is often accompanied by OCD. and yet it may be no more than a habit or a phase. you sound concerned, so go ahead and get it checked out. and if it is tourette's, don't panic! it's a very manageable condition.
khairete
S.

3 moms found this helpful

M.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

have you had her evaluated by a medical doctor? None of us here can tell you for sure or not, but Tourette's is a very serious and often mis-understood condition. You dont have to swear, jerk, or tick to have it. Occasionally impulse control is lost and things will be said and it is out of the persons control. I would first rule out she has anything medically wrong, then rule out mental disorders, and then I would start looking at Behavioral. Its disturbing for you I am sure. I do hope that you get her in for a check up. Many times addressing these issues early on get much more favorable results.

3 moms found this helpful

N.G.

answers from Dallas on

I agree with Momma L., I would make an appt. with the pedi right away and perhaps even a child psychologist. You mentioned she has had to deal with some stressful situations so it couldn't hurt to have her speak to someone. She may be doing it to cope, like an OCD type thing.

2 moms found this helpful
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N.D.

answers from Portland on

my daughter's friend gets tics and twitches that are directly related to her diet. once they figured out to cut out all sugar and dairy, they went away. you might have to make a food diary of what your daughter is eating to figure out just what it is..

1 mom found this helpful

L.G.

answers from Eugene on

Many mothers whose ideas are like my own keep recommending Dr. Sears books on this site that I think he could help you too. I used other books when I needed references about childrearing ideas. Books are a great help since they can point out very quickly for us what is normal behavior for a child of a certain age.

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C.R.

answers from Chicago on

Call her DR. ASAP......

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