Daughter Gags Herself

Just like you and most of the other mothers my son did the same thing. He would do it in the car and throw up all over himself. Not fun, especially since I quit carrying extra clothes. Anyway he eventually grew out of it. I think they just like to explore there bodies and see what they can do.

My son went through the same thing when he was about 10 months he outgrew it after a few months. I wouldn't worry about it, just keep doing what you've been to distract her. Good luck =)
M.

Hi. My oldest daughter did the same thing. She would stick her finger in her mouth and start gagging herself. She found it the funniest thing in the world to freak my mother and I out. We would be in the car headed to my doctor's appointment when I was pregnant with my second daughter(who is exactly 19mos younger than her). But it came down to the attention. If my mother and I were engaged in conversation and not paying attention to her, she would do it. The second we were talking to her she'd laugh and quit. Whenever we would go back to talking she'd do it again.
I noticed you said you're doing foster care and wanting another child. Just an idea, but do you suppose she feels she isn't getting all the attention she used? Which is understandable with more children that it will happen. But I think it's very hard for an oldest child who's used to having the attention because there isn't others to divide it up amongst. So they do stuff to get attention. I would just let her know you love her and love spending time with her, but that there's other children you need to play with too and all of you can do stuff together. Children are a lot smarter than some people give them credit for. So she might understand the whole situation, on a child level anyway.

Believe it or not, my son is 21 months old and for the last 3-4 months he has done the same thing. Luckily, he has never thrown up, but he comes close sometimes. He will stick his finger in his mouth all the way to the back of his throat and gag, then just bust out laughing. I don't know either, but I agree that it has to be an exploration thing and seeing the horrified look on my face must just make it hilarious to him. He has quit doing it so much lately, only when he is in a really silly mood. Just wanted you to know that you are not alone!

My daughter will be 21 months in 2 days. Sometimes she does it too. I think it is a phase. When she does it I tell her to stop and that it is bad. Sometimes I have to tap her hand. I don't think it is dangerous but I think alot of kids do it because they like that gag reflex feeling. She will grow out of it. My daughter doesn't do it as much. She does it mostly when we are in the car. Good luck.

Yeah it's normal. It's part of their exploration of their own bodies. My boys have all done it until they get that one stomach virus which makes them throw up all the time and then they were over it.

Just keep putting her away from you when she starts it and prepare for messes. When she does vomit stay as emotionless as possible as you clean it up. No poor baby, or see you shouldn't do this because both feed a need for attention that she doesn't need fed.

My 15 month old daughter does this too. She thinks it's funny (but to me it's not). If I don't catch her doing it but hear the sound, I tell to take her fingers out of her mouth and remove her fingers from her mouth as well. I thought it was just me too, but apparently it's not.

I would at least mention it to your pediatrician just to make sure it isn't a behavioral issue. Is she doing this frequently throughout the day? Does she vomit several times a day? If so, this needs to be stopped. If she makes herself vomit frequently, she can cause dehydration. I would consult your ped.