Granddaughter Gags Herself

Is she putting her fingers in her mouth because she's teething? There's a homeopathic called Chamomila that would be great for that and you can get it at CVS.

My niece used to do it for attention though, and her mom wouldn't give her attention when she did it. She would take her fingers out of her mouth and then use them to clap together and she would laugh. My niece finally got the idea that she wouldn't get a smile from mom unless she clapped.

Best of luck!

My son started making himself throw up when he was still an infant. (Maybe 6 or 7 months old.) He learned to stand up and throw up into a toilet long before he learned to walk or go potty in the toilet. (Not one of my prouder moments as a parent.)

My mother swore up and down that Alex was not doing the barfing to get attention, but it became quickly apparent that he was working himself into a tantrum and throwing up so that he could get attention. So, we stopped giving it to him.

We would yank him out of his bed (or wherever he was playing), deposit him in the bathroom and leave him there to barf. When he got older, he also had to help clean up. We didn't hug him and coddle him when he would barf. We just monitored from outside the bathroom and cleaned him up quickly when he was done.

As he got into toddler-hood, this became much less gratifying for him. Especially since he had to help clean up. He eventually stopped tantruming into barf-fests.

He does have an easy gag reflex, and he will gag when he smells something bad, eats something he doesn't like, etc. But, we don't coddle him or reward him for that behavior, so now he is making an effort to stop.

Give your granddaughter time. It's not going to stop overnight, but if she is really doing it for attention, it will pass.

Good luck!

my daughter did that a few times, and did throw up once in the car seat. I don't think it was for attention though... just the 1yr-old version of scientific discovery, so we told her to take her fingers out of her mouth (physically removing them, when needed), and the phase passed.

I would just try giving her more positive attention for other things and quickly stop the gagging without a lot of "to-do" about it. Hopefully that would prevent the need for any inappropriate attention getter... good luck--I'm sure you have lots of motherly experience to help her :-)

My grandson did this and we told him also to keep his hands out of his mouth. His gag reflex is easy he will gag naturally at a nasty smell etc. When he plays he and some of the other boys make gagging sounds and we just tell him to remember that is something he is not allowed to do. He thinks about it and stops.

Are you sure it is for attention? My son did this when he was getting his molars.

I know this isn't the same thing but it might work. When my daughter was about 1 she would have a temper cryying tantrum and hold her breath. Someone told me to carry her in the kitchen and wet my hand with water and kind of flick it off so a spray hits her face, she would immediately take a deep breath and it worked after only a few times. It's worth a try and might work. Would be interested to know if it does. Hope you will get some good advice on this. Sandy

It´s normal exploration how things work and feel , -my son did it when he was a toddler and my daughter is experimenting with it on and off (she is now 2).

If you leave her alone, she will eventually move on to something new, -I promise :-)