Thumb Sucking, Behavior Regression, and Teeth Grinding

Just when I think I'm finally starting to figure out some of my kids' quirks, a few more pop up that leave me completely at a loss.


Caleb has always been more reserved and timid than the other kids.


We have really had to work with him since he doesn't have much motivation to learn new developmental skills and is just happy watching the chaos that is our home. Even when Sean and I tried really hard to include him in family play time, he wasn't interested. On the flip-side though, he is the most patient of the bunch and okay with waiting for his turn to do something.


There are definitely pros and cons to every personality trait!

We started working with our occupational and physical therapists about a year ago, and with lots of therapy, he started to come out of his shell a bit. He was still reserved but willing to jump into the chaos, visit with people who came over to help, and started picking up more developmental skills. Honestly, I was so relieved, because he would just sit in the corner before. 

About six weeks ago, all four kids came down with a pretty bad virus. It was our first big round of illness for the kids and it was a miserable five days for all of us. Poor Caleb got the worst of it with a fever of 104.5 and an ear infection. We were able to get him some antibiotics and physically he got better.

But behaviorally and personality-wise, we have seen a big shift.

Caleb

• Since being sick, he has started sucking his thumb. All. The. Time. He had never shown even a hint of wanting to do that prior to being ill. He has those little callouses that kids get when they are thumb or finger suckers. I wasn't expecting to see them since Ellie and Abby have been sucking their thumbs for over a year and don't have those callouses. I can only assume that he got them because his thumb never comes out of his mouth. He even multitasks by playing with one hand and sucking on the other now.

• He wants nothing to do with strangers and screams if he is in a new place. It seems the only thing that helps him in a strange place is being held by me or Sean. Even if no one is bothering him and he knows that we aren't going to leave, he still screams until we hold him. We went to our niece's first birthday party this morning, and surprisingly, he kept the screaming under control, but couldn't handle it if he wasn't in our arms.

• He runs around and plays with the other kids just fine at home, but has become a TON more clingy to us. He will stand at the gate and yell for me if I'm trying to cook in the kitchen. It doesn't matter if he can easily see me. He has also regressed in how reserved he is. He used to be fine with other adults and now won't have any of it. Even in our own home with Sean and I sitting right there. 

I know that kids go through a separation anxiety phase, but this seems like a lot more than that given the brand-new, yet constant thumb sucking, clinginess, and his unwillingness to be around people or situations even if we are right there. I've talked to his therapists about it, but they don't seem to have any thoughts on it at this point.


On top of that, he started grinding his teeth this week. Like some seriously heavy grinding. It's so loud that I can hear it in the other room! It is positively driving me INSANE! Couple that with needing to be held a lot, and I feel like I'm going to tear my hair out! We've tried handing him toys to chew on, and I've even gone so far as to shove his thumb back in his mouth (I know, I know), but if he wants to grind his teeth, nothing detours him. 

This is becoming a very frustrating chapter at our house. Caleb is as sweet as ever, but I'm worried about the sudden regression behaviorally, the thumb sucking (starting at 15 months?!), and the teeth grinding.


Has anyone else dealt with any of this with their kids or have any ideas on how to help him...and me??

Just when I think I'm finally starting to figure out some of my kids' quirks, a few more pop up that leave me completely at a loss.


Caleb has always been more reserved and timid than the other kids.


We have really had to work with him since he doesn't have much motivation to learn new developmental skills and is just happy watching the chaos that is our home. Even when Sean and I tried really hard to include him in family play time, he wasn't interested. On the flip-side though, he is the most patient of the bunch and okay with waiting for his turn to do something.


There are definitely pros and cons to every personality trait!

We started working with our occupational and physical therapists about a year ago, and with lots of therapy, he started to come out of his shell a bit. He was still reserved but willing to jump into the chaos, visit with people who came over to help, and started picking up more developmental skills. Honestly, I was so relieved, because he would just sit in the corner before. 

About six weeks ago, all four kids came down with a pretty bad virus. It was our first big round of illness for the kids and it was a miserable five days for all of us. Poor Caleb got the worst of it with a fever of 104.5 and an ear infection. We were able to get him some antibiotics and physically he got better.

But behaviorally and personality-wise, we have seen a big shift.

Caleb

• Since being sick, he has started sucking his thumb. All. The. Time. He had never shown even a hint of wanting to do that prior to being ill. He has those little callouses that kids get when they are thumb or finger suckers. I wasn't expecting to see them since Ellie and Abby have been sucking their thumbs for over a year and don't have those callouses. I can only assume that he got them because his thumb never comes out of his mouth. He even multitasks by playing with one hand and sucking on the other now.

• He wants nothing to do with strangers and screams if he is in a new place. It seems the only thing that helps him in a strange place is being held by me or Sean. Even if no one is bothering him and he knows that we aren't going to leave, he still screams until we hold him. We went to our niece's first birthday party this morning, and surprisingly, he kept the screaming under control, but couldn't handle it if he wasn't in our arms.

• He runs around and plays with the other kids just fine at home, but has become a TON more clingy to us. He will stand at the gate and yell for me if I'm trying to cook in the kitchen. It doesn't matter if he can easily see me. He has also regressed in how reserved he is. He used to be fine with other adults and now won't have any of it. Even in our own home with Sean and I sitting right there. 

I know that kids go through a separation anxiety phase, but this seems like a lot more than that given the brand-new, yet constant thumb sucking, clinginess, and his unwillingness to be around people or situations even if we are right there. I've talked to his therapists about it, but they don't seem to have any thoughts on it at this point.


On top of that, he started grinding his teeth this week. Like some seriously heavy grinding. It's so loud that I can hear it in the other room! It is positively driving me INSANE! Couple that with needing to be held a lot, and I feel like I'm going to tear my hair out! We've tried handing him toys to chew on, and I've even gone so far as to shove his thumb back in his mouth (I know, I know), but if he wants to grind his teeth, nothing detours him. 

This is becoming a very frustrating chapter at our house. Caleb is as sweet as ever, but I'm worried about the sudden regression behaviorally, the thumb sucking (starting at 15 months?!), and the teeth grinding.


Has anyone else dealt with any of this with their kids or have any ideas on how to help him...and me??