Sensory Problems??

I don't think the fact that she likes to keep clean hands means she has a sensory disorder. I know of a few kids with this, and they often have issues eating (preferring only certain textures, like baby foods instead of solids) and have problems concentrating. When a child has a sensory issue, everything is magnified. So, they hear every little noise. They often have problems with speech as well.

My daughter is a bit of a clean freak. She doesn't want to be dirty. But, that's just who she is. We just spent two weeks with my sister, who is a pediatric nurse and who also has a lot of background with special needs, and she never once mentioned a sensory issue. My daughter is just a bit of a princess!

My sister's son was recently diagnosed with Sensory Integration Disorder. They can do oocupational therapy to help you and your little one cope with some of these issues. Here are a few books that will be helpful :
Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Integration Issues by Lindsey Biel
The Out-of-Sync Child : Recognizing and Coping With Sensory Integration Dysfunction
By Carol Stock Kranowitz
The Out-Of-Sync Child Has Fun: Activities for Kids With Sensory Integration Dysfunction
By Carol Stock Kranowitz
Parenting a Child with Sensory Processing Disorder
By Christopher Auer and Susan Blumberg
Building Bridges through Sensory Integration
by Ellen Yack, Paula Aquilla, Shirley Sutton

I think she's the right age to be evaluated by ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) and it couldn't hurt to have it done. They'll check for that type of stuff. You can find out more about them at:
http://www.dars.state.tx.us/ecis/index.shtml

my daughter went through this and it was just a phase. She hated her hands even the slightest bit dirty, even with just a bit of food, speck of dirt, etc. And she hated anything on her hands or feet that wasn't just "normal" (ie shoes on the wrong feet, socks crumpled, tape, band-aids, etc), but it was a phase.
If this was my child, I'd probably watch her and wait to make a decission, but you know your child best and if you think she is WAY, WAY, WAY sensative and you don't think it is a phase, it is always best to get it checked out - better safe than sorry. And with the methods of help these days, the statistics say that when started early enough, almost anything can be helped to a major degree. So, go with your heart-you know what is best for your child!

Best of luck!
T.

Well, I can see where that may be on the radar, but with her age and what you have described....she sounds normal to me. My 2.5 year old also used to FREAK out over the band-aids, now she likes them, but that is due to us using them in play...we put band aids on her stuffed animals etc. Then slowly she would let us put them on her leg (would not let us take it off) and now she will let us put them on her finger, leg, pretty much anywhere. She also did not like anything on her hands...but now she is more tolerant, although she request paper towels often. I try to engage her in messy stuff as well to let her know messy is not all bad. From my special ed background, these two things alone do not alarm me. Here is a website that offers a checklist that may ease your mind. http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/sensory-proces...

I think we all have some quirks about ourselves, it just matters if it impedes our daily life...these two concerns do not greatly effect her life, so unless other symptoms come about as she gets older, I would not worry too much.

My son has Sensory Integration behavior and he experienced the some of the same things that your daughter is experiencing. I bought the book The Out of Sync Child, read it, talked with co-workers who are social workers, and then made an appointment with my doctor. My doctor gave me a referral and I had my son tested for Sensory Integration (SI).

Once he was diagnosed, we went to Occupational Therapy (OT) twice a week, then once a week, then two times a month, until the OT thought we could handle the exercises at home. Of all the places I went, I liked Cook's Childrens the best. They were very hard to get into though.

I also work at Gladney Center for Adoption and we've had an awesome opportunity to have training on this by Dr. Karyn Purvis. You can purchase her training online at http://www.haguetraining.com.

Hope this helps!

It sounds like it could be sensory integration disorder. It can be any sense (sound, touch, taste, texture, etc). My son has it with sound, but when they evaluated him they also tested him for taste and touch.

If you are concerned about it, get her evaluated. At least you would have peace of mind that way. YOu can do this through ECI or even a private organization. The reason I mention a private organization is because I think they are a little more in tune with this type of disorder, just from the experience we've had with our son. We used Our Children's House Baylor. They have several locations including Frisco, Dallas, and Allen, among others. YOu will have to get a "prescription" from your ped., but that usually isn't a problem. Our insurance covered the evaluation (we ended up doing a full one) and the occupational therapy (up to a point).

Just a word of advice. If you are going to do an evaluation anyway, ask for a full eval. That way ALL areas are covered and you don't have to go through the entire process again (we made this mistake).

Good luck to you!! I hope it ends up she's just picky :)

You know, L....it's so hard to tell at such a young age. When my daughter was 2 she couldn't stand anything on her hands either. She was wanting to wash her hands all the time. She also insisted on wearing shoes all the time, or something on her feet...she even insisted on sleeping with her socks on. Although this was worrisome at that time, she is now 5 year old and she isn't like that at all anymore. Runs around the house in bare feet, sleeps in bare feet, doesn't mind if her hands are dirty.

Your daughter could very well grow out of this as mine has. According to many occupational therapists I've spoken with, we all, even as adults, have sensory things that bother us. Like, some people don't like tags on the inside of their clothes or socks with seams. Some people can't stand long sleeve shirts and are always pushing up the sleeves...that's me. Some don't like bracelets or necklaces. We all have a few sensory issues. However, it's when a child or adult, like my 9 year old daughter who is on the autistic spectrum, overreacts to sensory things that would not normally bother you and I. Wait a couple of years and see if she outgrows it.