Excessive and Hard Blinking

I do the same thing every year from late Sept. through early Dec. because of allergies. That is harvest season around here and my eyes get itchy so I blink harder and more often.

L.,

If it worries you, call the nearest children's hospital's occupational therapy department and ask for a referral to a developmental optometrist. This kind of eye doctor will look at the development of the muscles in the eye and not just vision acuity.

If you think that it is involuntary, and she does not always blink like this, it could be a "tick" so you should watch it carefully to see if it happens because of stress. I would just watch her development carefully, read some books about typical development so that you know that she is on track.

M.

Is it possible that this is her version of winking? My 2 year old did that for a while a few months ago and still does it occassionally and it's her version of winking because she can't control just one eyelid to wink. Just a thought :-)

I don't have any experience with it but I would be concerned. Your pediatrician does not specialize in eyes so he should not be so cavalier as to just blow it off. I would see a specialist if I were you because, although it could just be a tic or something, it could also be something more serious. Hopefully it's not, but you never know and you don't want to risk your child's eye sight.

Here are a couple of resources about it that I found online:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/406211

http://www.starsinyoureyes.com/files/INFANT%20AND%20TODDL...

Hi L.,
What about allergies? Or dry eyes?
I get dry eyes, especiallly this time of year and it causes me to squeeze my eyes shut or blink hard.
Hope this helps.
D.

Not sure if anyone has suggested this yet..but could it be due to allergies?? Maybe have her tested, or bring this up to your doctor.

My son did the same thing @ 2 years. When his eyes were checked the Dr. told me that at this age they are just now getting their full eyesight. He was adjusting to that. I would still get your daughter's eyes checked to be on the safe side.

J.

My daughter did the same thing about 2 years old. I happened to take her to the doctor for her 2 yr visit and asked the doctor about it. Her doctor said it is a normal thing some kids do and she would outgrow it in a couple of months. Sure enough she did it for about 4 months and then it was gone. If your doctor has seen her then I would give it some time before worrying about it.

Do you think it is possible she has created a habit? Maybe initially she was doing it just to do it. Or maybe she likes the way she "sees" with them squeezed. When I do it I see a lot of bluish type spots.Do you think that could be? I think people with dry eye will blink like that, maybe have her see an eye dr. just to rule anything out.

my older son did the same thing for about a month. It wasn't an attention thing or anything medical. Nothing seemed wrong. We finally decided it was just sensory exploration. Hope it's the same for your little girl!

We had this exact same problem this summer (my daughter will be three next month). Our pediatrician was also not concerned and said it was likely allergies, and to give her eyedrops if it continues beyond a day or so. Well, she wouldn't stand for the eyedrops, and the blinking went away after a couple of weeks.

So you could try the eye drops, or just wait a little while to see what happens. I have terrible eyesight, and I thought this was the beginning of that, but her sight checked fine.

Hi L., my daughter does this weird thing with her mouth everytime she is deep concentration and she has done it since about 10 months and she is three. I think it could be something like that or she is just having fun doing the new "thing" she can do. Blessings to you, B.

I'd have her eyes checked by an optomitrist to be sure.

However, Just an FYI: Your daughter is not too young to be very manipulative. I doubt that this is what she is doing now, but two is definitely not to young for some serious manipulative moves. Two y.o. temper tantrums are all about control and manipulation.

Good luck with the blinking issues. I hope that a thorough eye exam will solve the mystery and/or relieve your concerns.

Carol B

I do not have any personal experience with this..but am wondering. Tis the season for hayfever and allergies..Could she be having an allergy problem of some sort and maybe have dry eyes? Maybe that is her way of itching them or lubricating them with a long blink. Good Luck

Both of my kids did this. They're just trying to figure out where light goes when they close their eyes. Its part of the learning process and I made a game out of it, turning it into a sort of peek a boo game that they loved to play. I wouldn't worry about it.

One of my sons did this same thing at around age 3. I was worried just as you are and took him to the doctor, but nothing was found to be wrong. He did stop doing it on his own after about a month. He has never had any problems seeing or any other eye complications since then and he's 8 now. So it seems that at least with him it was just a phase that happened and then went away. Hope this helps to ease your worries!

I have heard of something like this, but I am so sorry, I do not remember the name of the condition or any details, but I think I remember the mom saying that it started with blinking and tugging at the eyelids???
I would recommend seeing an opthalmologist at Cincinnati Childrens -- they are great! My daughter sees Dr Motley.

God Bless,
M.

Actually, your girl is at the perfect age to be manipulative. That's one of the things 2 year olds begin to explore and one of the many reasons that the age of 2 is often referred to as the terrible 2's. Testing the limits, that's all. Trust me, my little one is the same age and she's pushing her limits.

I also don't think it's an attention getting thing. It could be nothing or it could be serious, I would get her checked out just in case. It could be that she finds it amusing to make her eyes go all stars. You can try it and you'll know what I mean. There's also an ear muscle that can sometimes contract and make a sort of "woosh" sound when one closes their eyes tightly. This could also be what she's doing because it's amusing to her.

Good luck to you.

I would take her to an ophthalmologist just to have everything checked out.
Otherwise, it is probably just a phase. Maybe she has seen people wink and is trying to imitate that.

My three year old just stared doing the same thing but she also complains that her eyes burn or hurt sometimes with it too. I plan to take her to the dr to find out what exactly it is that is causing the problem seeing how she is too young to be having this type of problem

My 22 month old has started doing the same thing within the past three weeks. He blinks hard with a slight jerk of his head each time. The blinks typically come in sets of two to four hard blinks, then several seconds or minutes may pass and he will do it again. He may then go twenty or thirty minutes before he does it again. Like your child, mine doesn't seem to even notice it, but my wife and I certainly do. It seems to be only when he is focusing in on something, like the television or a book, or something he is examining up close. At first we were thinking he may need glasses, but as the days pass it becomes more frequent and more obvious, and the fact that it just started suddenly is a concern. It started about the time he developed an ear infection, but before he was on any medication for the infection, so it wouldn't be the meds. We took him to his pediatrician today, who suggested we see a pediatric ophthalmologist. He said it could be nothing at all, although my son didn't do it in front of the doctor, but he did say we should have it checked out. He didn’t want to start guessing as to what it could be. We have an appointment in a couple of weeks with the ophthalmologist. It really concerns me because it started suddenly and was subtle at first, has become more and more frequent and seemingly more intense, and he doesn't seem to notice it or be able to control it. If anyone has any experience or knowledge of this, I would certainly appreciate knowing about it.