My 27 month old holds and pulls his ears alot…most of the time when he is tired…sleepy…drinking his milk…and when trying to sleep…he’s been doing this since he was 20months old but not much regularly…what do you think might be the reason?
He doesnt get irritated or complains when doing this…
Plus he doesnt talk…not sure if its the reason…he can speak 20-30 words so far but never seems interested in talking…
no personal experience as such in this matter but would suggest taking him to another paediatric for 2nd opinion OR getting his ears checked for by an ENT
my daughter only shows irritation or put hands on her ears whenever there is pain.
if you’re located in Karachi I can share details of some good peds with you
Thankyou diamond! I thought its normal…
Will take him to ped again…I live in middle east and most arabian peads in govt hospitals are so rude and never give a satisfying response…will get him checked in american hospital…
ask him to stop, he might have seen other kids doing it or saw something on tv, kids are good at copying others. don’t worry about speech 20 to 30 words are pretty good at this stage, once he start his nursery you will see changes
Yes wendy I thought its just a habit like a.comforting thing to.do.when drinking milk or trying.to.go.to sleep but its been.a.week he has started the habit while playing…like if he’s hearing something very loud…I dont know how to explain
Thanks devilish so no need to go to speech therapist then :)…
Are you sure it’s not just a simple habit that many kids form?
I am told that I used to hold/play with my ear when I was sleepy or having my bottle. It was just a habit and went away as I grew up.
My cousin used to hold his mother’s braid to get to sleep and then would look for it in the middle of the night…it got so bad for my phupho that she eventually grew her hair long enough to cut off enough length so that he could have it in his crib and she wouldn’t have to be with him all night.
My nephew grabs the shirt of either his mom or dad when he’s in their arms having milk from his bottle.
I believe these are considered “self-soothing” techniques and children could resort to them if they are scared or need reassurance.
Apparently I started out playing with the ears of whomever may be holding me when I was sleepy. Ammi tired of it and Papa complained so she started training me to reach for my own ear.
I think there’s a pic of me somewhere with a pacifier in my mouth and my hand holding my ear. I wonder who has it…
I would suggest you get the possibility of any infections or any other issue out of the way,first.
My daughter used to to rub and pull and twist (basically do anything she could with the poor ears) her ears when she was around a year old to upto she was two years old.It was a signal for us that she is tired or sleepy and wants to sleep.It was also the reason I never got her ears pierced at that time.It was just a habit and she grew out of it.
My younger sister used to pull her hair when she was a baby and drinking milk and trying to sleep.She used to pull mom’s hair but ammi one day put her hand on her head and it changed then.She used to wrap hair on her finger and pull on them.She stopped doing it once she realized that it can hurt,hehe.
In that case…worry not!
He’s soothing himself and that’s perfectly fine.
Sometimes it’s better to let little things like this slip and let them sort themselves out rather than pursue and turn an insignificant thing into a major issue.
hehe