One Year Old Annoying Habit

Oh my Gosh! I am so glad you asked this question because my 17 month old is doing the very same thing!!! UUGGH!

Nope. My kid must have been a weirdo too. Got to love em! I think it's a phase. I honestly don't remember what we did to get it to stop. I think it just makes a funny noise and response so they keep doing it. Good luck!

I think they all do this. It is like finding out something interesting about your body. She is just learning what everything does. So relax because she is very normal and not weird at all. She will stop doing it.
:)

My daughter used to do that, too. The doctor said not to comment on it, and if she threw up to clean it up without saying anything. And to do that however often she did it. I have no idea how long it took, but she's 4 now and hasn't done it in years. The doc said it was attention-getting, which I can understand as my son (twin to my daughter) was very high maintenance and demanding.

I hope this helps!
H.

I think they all do it. My 18 month old did and my year old nephew has begone doing it also. She may also be teething. My son is getting some molars right now and sticks his fingers so far back to chew on them that sometimes he gags himself. Relax your daughter isn't wierd.

Hi C.,

All three of my children went through that phase. It was annoying, but it was just a phase, and happily did not last long. I would say that ignoring is probably the best way to deal with it.
I hope that helps.
Jessie

My son does this too. He started at about that age or a little earlier and still does it one year later! Argh... I HATE IT! I did talk to the DR and he believes it is behavioral and more attention. He told me to ignore it. How do you ignore your child gagging and puking? Well, when we are at home, I am able to ignore it for a minute or so and then clean it up, but in the car, I always try to get him to stop before he pukes because I don't want vomit in the car. I have noticed the behavior most in the car seat, stroller and highchair... I guess he is telling me he is bored. I hope that he outgrows it. I do tell him "NO" very firmly when he starts this in the car especially. He definately does it a lot less than he used to, so that should give you hope!

Good luck,

L.

My daughter who is 13 months does it and she as been doing it for about 3 months, we asked the docotr about it and he said hat it is just a phase and that she will out grow it. Hope this helps.

Hi - my son did the same thing and I had never heard of a kid that young doing it...it lasted a month or 2 and now he is 15 mths and has lost interest. I'm sure she'll do the same.

Hi C.,

Isn't great when you hear that sound, "eeegghhh", and then look to see your child with fingers down their throat. My 13 month old son has been doing this for a few months now and just last week I put my fingers in his mouth only to find one molar already cutting and the other 3 just about to cut. He is teething pretty bad and sometimes puts his fingers too far into his mouth and gags. Some teeth take forever and perhaps your child is teething molars too! Good luck.

she is only one, a consequence like losing breakfast is inappropriate. If you feel she's done, then say oh I see you are all done and remove the food (just as you would if she started throwing her food on the floor). Ignore the gagging behavior. You will notice it's the first of many annoying, not harmful behaviors that will grab your attention. The more you make a big deal about it, the bigger chance it will morph into other behaviors you also do not like. then you will establish a pattern where she does an undesirable behavior and you react and she does it or something else again.... then who is in charge?
If you don't want to ignore it, comment on the fact she has discovered a new thing that looks like it feels yucky, you are helping her to see her own role in her own comfort and to learn what she likes and doesn't like.
Good luck

C. -

My daughter did this right around the same age. I was completely freaked out as she did it almost daily. I spoke with her doctor and she assured me that she was fine and that she was looking more for "cause and effect" as opposed to attention. The doctor said she probably did it by accident once and then realized she could cause a reaction in her throat. It only lasted a couple of months. But my daughter, too, frequently brought up milk or some food when she did it. I tried mostly to ignore it and she eventually got bored doing it. Hang in there!

B.

I agree it is an annoying habit.......my neice did the same thing when she was that age, for attention. Although annoying to have to clean her, she never had any long lasting effects from it. She grew out of it after a period of time. Good Luck!!!!

Ugh, both my girls did this, the youngest was the worst, it grossed me out so bad!!! lol, they eventually get over it, but I would say to try to distract her with a toy/ snack etc, the more you say no, the more shell want to do it to get a rise out of you! Good luck!

My two oldest children did the same thing! but I didn't make a big deal out if it, it is a phase, if you don't pay too much attention to it, and remember, this is a child and they want a reaction, give them a mild one. Just remember to stay calm and say " you'll lose your breakfast and that won't be fun" and leave it at that. If they keep doing it, they will learn that they will lose their breakfast! My little girl had to learn it that way, not the worst thing that could have happened, but ever since, she's lost interest in that 'interesting' habit. My son got over it by us not making a big deal out if it. I would just tell him that it's not a good habit and leave it at that. He got it after a week or so. Lost interest too I suppose. There are going to be plenty more worse things they will test you with, pick your battles.

mine did it too. It stopped once I ignored it.

My oldest daughter was a BIG gagger. She started at about 11 mos old and was unrepentant about the whole thing. Like you, I tried to stop or discourage it. Sometimes she would throw up part or all of a meal as a result, too. Unfortunately, this easy puker learned to make herself do it hands-free when she was angry or upset, too. So for the first 2.5 yrs or so, she would throw up during temper tantrums at least a couple of times a week. On purpose. It was miserable, especially since vomit is the thing I have the hardest time with. The pediatrician said this is a control behavior that some kids do--like the way that some kids bang their heads or hold their breath.

Two pieces of advice: first, try not to react when she does it. It's hard, but try to ignore it completely. If she throws something up, clean it without making faces, noises, or any obvious disgust or frustration. If they get a reaction they're more likely to continue. This was certainly true of my daughter--when I started ignoring it she did it less and less.

Second: if the behavior continues and results in frequent vomiting, examine her diet for possible irritants. I discovered after a while that, although she isn't classically allergic to dairy, she did seem to vomit more often during temper tantrums when she had dairy products. I think it just irritated her system enough to make the issue worse.

Good luck and feel free to contact me if you have questions or need support. It's a really tough quirk, but it does get better. My daughter is 5 now and only vomits when she's sick! Hopefully with good ignoring on your part early she won't escalate!

My daughter did the same thing around that age. It's quite gross, and often she made herself throw up. Paying any type of attention to it seemed to make her want to do it more. We ignored it & eventually she grew out of it. It's a gross little phase, but it will pass. Good luck