Advice on Stopping a 2 Year Old's Nose Picking

Hi J.
Thats a tuff one and no fun.
Try the new Puff tissues with Vicks!! If she doesnt like Vicks Vapor Rub, this mite work! I love Vicks, anyway, only give her the puffs tissue.
Good luck

Hi J. - Whoa! So this sounds like it is about YOU, and not her... Be careful that you don't create another germaphobe by your reaction. (Actually, it's ok to have a few germs around, your child will be healthier for it in the long run - builds up her immune system. It's germaphobes that can make our kids sick!)

So think about this: Germy?? It just came out of her own nose! Did it get more germs in the transfer or what? (I'm hoping you're chuckling by now...)

This is silly. She's two! It's a part of her body that she is exploring - and she's finding treasure! Just act perfectly natural (because it IS...), wipe it off - say bye-bye and it's done.

And just don't give her the darn tissue!

It's not getting her to stop that should be the question(because that's about you), it's just making it a naturally occurring thing that happens - and then it's no big deal in the future - that should be the focus.

The time for teaching social graces is later. For now, let her explore, check out what she's found... Without any big deal either way (you don't want her to end up feeling that her body is gross, right?? eeesh - that's a whole other phobia! :-).

I'm also reading some other responses and I hear these mom's have some good ideas, but for OLDER children. A two year old will never follow that if they get the tissue, then.... bla, bla, bla. And if they don't, then bla, bla, bla.... and next time, bla... bla... bla...

Communication with two year olds should be two words! Goodness - she is just learning english... And there is no way she can reason.

In this case, something like, "wow!" or "look!" (swipe...) "bye-bye". And then, "all gone". Bingo. Acknowledged (very important), and cleaned up by the person in control. You.

Sometimes raising our children becomes more about US and what we want to see in them, than who they are and who they become.

One of my favorite sayings is this: "All stress comes from resisting what is."

Try to relax (and please don't tell her her brains will fall out!). This is all the natural course of childhood and exploration. One thing I can promise you - you ain't seen nothin' yet!

Relax and enjoy your child. Have fun. Show her who to be by who you are in the world. That's the best thing you can do for her.

I disagree with Cindy B about a few things... First, I think now IS the time to teach "social graces." It is MUCH easier to teach and to train RIGHT behavior than it is to try to break a bad habit or RETRAIN out of a bad habit. If you feel nose picking is not a "social grace" then try to teach her NOT to do it - patiently and consistently, but without making a big deal out of it, or freaking out about it. It IS part of their exploring, but that doesn't mean that we have to overlook things. Teach her the behavior that you believe is appropriate. It's not going to go away overnight. But that's why it's called training/teaching. It's a process and eventually she will get it. Don't expect immediate results. Just be consistent in your teaching and also don't freak out to push her to continue the behavior just to see your reaction.

I also disagree with Cindy B (no offense, Cindy) that a two year old can't understand more than 2 words at a time. They can understand A LOT at that age, and "dumbing down" your language for them isn't necessary (to a point, of course). My two year old can CERTAINLY understand most If/then situations, if it's an activity or situation that he is already familiar with. I mean, I can't say "If you invest wisely, then you will make money" or something irrelevant to him, but I can say, "If you run into the road, then you could get hit by a car and get hurt and a big boo boo" he DEFINITELY understands that.

I believe you just need to teach/train, be patient and consistent, and of course, don't freak out. Whatever behavior or social grace you'd like to instill in your children, that is the formula. Not to simply wait until they are 5 and have a bunch of bad habits and are socially annoying with self-indulgent behavior. But maybe that's just me? Am I alone in this thinking these days? Or maybe I'm misunderstanding some people's philosophies...

Anyway, I'm off the point. All in all, the nose picking is normal (my son is discovering it too), but doesn't mean I won't teach him not to do it. I just started saying, "Don't do that, buddy. We don't pick our nose. Let's get a tissue if you need to get something out." I say that every time. I don't make a big deal. I just calmly say it. Matter of fact, mommy teaching moment.

I am certainly not suggesting you take this route but I have to share this. I was a bit of a nose picker when I was a kid and my great grandmother told me if I picked my nose by brains would fall out! It didn't stop me by the way, it just made me curious.

J.,
I'm not so sure this is such an awful thing for your daughter to be doing. After all, adults do it too.
My niece was a nose picker and after her grandma saw her doing it, she said "stop picking your nose!" To which said niece replied, "why not? It's MY nose!"
Your daughter will either grow out of it or become a secret nose picker. Stop reacting to her behavior and buy a kid size broom so she can clean up the shredded tissues with. When she finds the clean up to be bothersome, she'll stop shredding.

I was curious about blood banking when i was pregnant. my son is now 17 months. We could afford it but didn't need the added expense, it is expensive! I did some research, and you can actually donate your cord blood, and if your child should need some he/she will get it. Ask your doctor about it, there was a number to call for information. And they come to pick it up right from the hospital room, and its free.

I dont know if I am of any help, but when my son use to do this, one time he was picking his nose and it started bleeding. I kinda scared him to the fact that you never pick your nose cause it will bleed and you will have a Boo-Boo!! Maybe you could tell her she will get a boo-boo.

I was gonna say, if she was eating it too (sorry to be gross), you could put some lemon juice on her finger so she may not want to put it in her mouth?

But all in all........... Bite your tongue and dont give her a reaction when she does it, kids love that and will continue the habit......... Just tell her she shouldnt do it, make her wash her hands and leave it at that..

I hope this passes for you, I'm sure it will!!

I agree with Cindy, no big deal. Stop making such a big deal out of it and ignore it.

J., I am also in the same boat with you. My daughter is a little over 2 years old and does the same thing. She thinks its funny, she'll always pick and most of the time comes out with nothing, she says.."ohhhh mommy look..yuckies.." I just go over with a tissue and say oh yep...OK I got it, no more yuckies. My daughter also likes to shred tissue, she calles them snowflakes. I tried telling her thats gross, its yucky and even you'll pick your brains out, but she just laughs and thinks that is funny, so I have come to the conclusion to just let her be and hopefully she will outgrow it.

I don't think there is any real solution to making them stop picking their nose, at this point its curiosity and the need to know and experiment with everything around them. Its harmless at this stage, she will stop when it no longer becomes any more fun. Try not to react to it to much, I think the more you react to it the more she will do it. I used to react everytime, and try to pull her hand away from her nose, but after a few times of that I realized she did it more every time, so now that I have stoped reacting she has been doing it alot less and when she does do it, she does it cause she realizes there is a boogey in her nose, then I just wash her hands and say OK the boogey monsters are all gone. She has a good laugh and goes on with whatever she was doing. The key is to just not make a big deal out of it, she'll outgrow it.

Take Care
R.

I have yet to deal with this myself (although when dd was 11 mos - my sister, the lovely girl, taught my dd to PICK & FLICK, thankfully dd didnt have a clue what she was doing and has since stopped ... but imagine explaining that to DCP!!!)

I agree with Cindy B though.

Leave it alone. Who cares? Let her exlpore and pray that it is a phase. :)

If you make it an issue - it will be.

Acknowledge her discovery and then move on.... I wouldnt get excited but, "Oh, ok - now lets clean it off your finger", etc.

My dd is a tissue shredder as well. I dont know why but it doesnt bother me... keeps her occupied plus she thinks its fun to clean it up after.... she takes after me in that respect (I love to throw things away).

As far as you being a "germaphobe" - thats a good thing but to an extent. As long as you dont make it a fear of hers, rather than an awareness to safety and healthiness. My dd is obsessed with washing her hands and using sanitizer. I gave her her own special soap (from huggies - its cute) and she has her own bottle of sanitizer that momma opens only, etc. Make these things fun for her rather than a rule and you will be surprised at how she reacts.

I dont know though, good luck.

Try giving her a wetwipe instead of a tissue. They are a lot harder to shred. As for picking the nose, tell her she must go into the bathroom to do it or her own room because it isn't nice to pick your nose in public or infront of people. But this can turn into a habit. So in the morning, make sure you wipe her nose and you get those boogies before she has time to cram those fingers into her nose. If there are no boogies, then she is less likely to pick her nose. All kids like to pick their noses. But this is how they get colds. So just make sure her hands are clean and that she does it with a wetwipe, and in the bathroom. If she continues to do it in front of you or without the proper tools (wetwipe), you should give her a timeout and tell her that she needs to go to the bathroom because it is rude or inappropriate to pick your nose in front of people. There isn't much more you can do, but to reinforce the issue of putting boogies in a tissue, etc. doing in privately and with clean hands. good luck!

Well - you might be able to get her to stop picking her nose to get a tissue if you let the tissues be at her level, where she can get to them. However, then you have to deal with the making a big mess and shredding them... Which is a bigger issue?

The "If/Then" can work for you. Say things like: If you don't shred the tissues, then I'll let you have the box to blow your nose if you want." and "If you want to shred those tissues, then you can do it over the trash can and wash your hands afterwards".

Creating a win win situation is important... :D I don't know if it will work on your daughter, but If/Then works well in my home (and lets my son know there are consequences for every action).