My 9 year old son is always mmoving his hands. Allways.(unless asleep) The best was to describe what he does is it looks like he is cracking his knuckles but is not. I usually just put my hands over his and bring his hands down and say you don't need to do that or are you nervous g? My husband yells at him to stop. ( I do tell my husband to stop yelling at him since I know he can't stop) I asked him if he is nervous and he says no. He is a drummer and I thought maybe he just needs to have busy hands when bored. However yesterday he had a football scrimmage and there he is lining up as outside linebacker hands moving..he is definatly not bored on the field. I don't want him getting picked on because it does look wierd but aside from that my main thing is the why does he do it?
So smart ladies what do you think or do you have any knowledge/experience? Nerves? A phase? Something else? I am not a panicy mom but I am concerned about this. Anything I could do to stop or help him? I need advice? Thanks in advance!
Gigis I don't think it's sugar since he was doing it while we walked to school this morning. He had toast and a glass of water. Good point though.
I will add he had no disability and this started a few weeks ago.
I would say the stress balls may be too big and a distraction for others at school...and keeping his hands in his pockets may make the teacher wonder what else he is doing in there lol. What about a small worry stone? gl.
Could he have tics? My daughter was diagnosed with tics at age 5 and I was shocked to learn that 20 percent of the population has tics. they get worse with less sleep or stress, but remain there most of the time. She has learned to manage them and can sometime change them from one thing to another less embarassing thing if needed. It's a possibility, but there's not much you can do to help...the meds to treat are by far worse than the tics themselves :(
I'm guessing it's just a nervous habit, like nail biting.
Lots of kids go through phases like this. Some kids wiggle their feet, suck on their hair (gross, I know!) pick at their skin. My niece's hair tugging/pulling habit got so bad she developed a bald spot on her head!
I wouldn't make a big deal out of it, and your husband certainly shouldn't be yelling at him, he truly can't help it. I was (am) an off and on nail biter (comes and goes with stressful times) and I can tell you yelling or making negative remarks does nothing but make a kid feel even more anxious :(
get him some of those little squeezy stress balls. Talk to him about how it looks to others when he's doing this. He's 9 so he should understand. He can keep the ball in his pocket and fiddle with it when he feels that urge.
It's probably a touch of anxiety, no different than being a nail biter, and probably just a phase. I would assume once one of his peers brings it to his attention he'll become more aware and stop himself when he does it. Maybe put a stress ball in each pocket and tell him to keep his hands in his pockets instead?
Perhaps this is something that has just developed.
It does sound like a nervous habit that is forming up.
It wouldn't hurt to see a doctor about it and see what they say about it.
He might not even be aware he's doing it.
I don't think yelling at him is going to help any.
What new things are happening in school right now that might be causing him some concerns?
Giving his hands something to do might help some of the time (he can learn to tie knots, origami, (sign language?,) etc) but he can't do those things while standing in line at school.
I would probably just give him something to do with his hands, like the squeezy stress ball that Grandma T suggested. My younger stepson has always been like this, constantly moving some part of his body, even when just laying on the couch watching TV - he's just super fidgety. He's gotten better as he's gotten older (now 17) but even when he went to see a movie recently with his dad, he kept squirming and fidgeting in his seat until his dad told him to settle down. I had a friend in college that was diagnosed as ADHD as a kid and interestingly was a drummer too. He moved his hands CONSTANTLY, especially drumming on whatever surface he could find - sometimes with his hands and sometimes with pencils. He just had a lot of nervous energy. I am sorry if this doesn't help much, but I just wonder if it's a nervous habit he has developed and it would be best to ignore it. I tend to twirl and twist my hair when nervous or thinking hard about something, but it's nothing that I need to be treated for.
My son is 9 and when he gets nervous he wrings his hands. nonstop. It's wierd because when I ask him about it he is not even aware that he is doing it. He does it a lot when he is on the soccer field or when he is put in a situation that he is unfamiliar with. When he gets off the field I will ask him if he was nervous and he says no. He doesn't do it when he is running and getting the ball, just when he is standing around. I am not worried about it though. I guess I just figure that he is nervous and that's what he does to settle himself. Really, he doesn't notice it at all! I bet your son doesn't either. I wouldn't say anything to draw attention to it. Just let him be. I think that me constantly asking my son if he's nervous and why he wrings his hands probably makes it worse! Makes him more self conscious.
You could ask the doctor about it if you are still concerned, but I would probably do that out of earshot of your son.
L.
We noticed my son started doing something similar a few months ago. His sort of looks like he is counting. He'll have his hand in a fist and then brings his fingers out one at a time (but only does his thumb, pointer and middle finger) and then starts over. It's not a constant thing or anything. We didn't really think anything of it, just assumed it was a nervous habit or something. Sorry, I don't have any advice but I'm curious to read your answers.
M., hello. I don't think it's sounds like something he can help. Why don't you take him to a doctor and have it checked out to be safe. Could he be drinking too much caffeine, cocoa cola or any other sugar caffeinated drink. If not, have it looked at. Let us know what the result is.
Hope all works out well.
Have you asked him why he feels the need to do it?
I'd mention it to the pediatrician, but it's probably a phase :)
Do he have some of disability that could be causing it? Is this something that just started or has he done it for a long time?
I ask b/c my son has Autism and he flaps, which is something he doesn't notice and he's done it all his life. I've never worried about it too much, but his therapists have tried to stop it as they say it's not what other kids do. I'll confess that I don't get so worked up about it, but if he's doing it too much I will tell him to calm his body down and he will use a weighted vest for the sensory input. So, I guess you need to figure out WHY your son is doing this and try to find a replacement behavior such as clasping hands together instead of moving them. I really wouldn't worry too much, but it seems like it's something he just does like a habit. I myself like busy hands and will pull out my sewing when I'm sitting and visiting with someone :-)
Some guys have what I call nervous energy. They need to keep something busy. For him its his hands and it looks like it might have turned into a click. Maybe his mind is racing a mile a minute and this helps him think. Have you tried to get him one of those stress balls and just let him hold it. He will be messing with the stress ball instead of his own hands and maybe he will be able to work itout.
My son was and is still the same way! I used to joke with him and tell him to sit on his hands :) the doc said he is bodily kinesthetic and there is nothing wrong with him. He has somewhat out grown it but at almost 15 he couldn't sit still to save his life! He's my special jumping bean! I think he's fine and he just can't help it! Yelling at him isn't going to do a bit of good. Talk to the doc if your worried but I thu k he's just fine :)
my 6 year old bites his nails... chews on pencils... anything he can get his hands on after he has chewed his fingers up! I worry about him #1 for the sanatation isue but #2 kids do pick on him. Last year at school he said they called him a baby and already this year at open house his desk has pieces of chewed up erasers in it and the boy that sits next to him said "he eats erasers ALLLLL day"... If i tell him to stop he immediately does, but will go back to doing it withing 5 minutes. I actually asked about this on here once and got some good responses if you wanna look through my questions. I take him to the dr today for his yearly check up and i have plans of talking to his dr about it! I am interested to see what kind of responses you get!
Is he on any kind of medication?
EDIT: Is there any history of hyperglycemia? Have you noticed any other strange postures or movements? How about his feet?
Check him out when he's sleeping? Any strange positions? Arms bent oddly? Above the head? Generally looking uncomfortable?
I use to have so much energy as a kid I could not stop moving -- liked to click pens - drove people crazy
I had to learn to tap my toe inside my shoe so others did not see my constant moving. your child may not even realize they are doing it.
