Constant Choking

[littlefriends]

I have a little dcb (16 mo) that constantly has his hands in his mouth. He’s just sucking on his fingers, hand all day. Recently he’s taking it a step further and cramming his hand further in which results in him constantly gagging himself. This will even cause him to vomit. He will repeatedly gag and choke and eventually vomit all throughout the day. When he’s eating he’ll shove in too much food at once and gag as well. Idk how to stop this?? I’ve never had a kiddo do this. I’ve given him chew toys but he just throws them down and walks off. Any one ever have this happen? I’m tired of hearing gags and pukes! 😭

[e.j.]

I've had several kids who have done that. Some stop after only once or twice because they figure out pretty fast that choking and vomiting doesn't feel good. The others, who take longer to make that connection, eventually stop on their own but sometimes it feels like I'm repeating, "No! Don't do that," constantly until they do. Next to potty training, it's one of my least favorite kid phases to have to deal with.

[MamaCaf]

My daughter did this and her son does it. The phase didn't last long and it never led to vomiting. I think they were seeking sensory stimulation. I suppose there could be something more going on though. The way you describe it sounds kind of intense.

[Annalee]

I have had some of this same behavior......it is odd to begin with, but I might be off, but the kids I see it with most are the ones who are......if this is a word........'over-coddled'.....i.e. co-sleep, get fed by an adult every bite, take mostly a bottle/cup, don't pick up many toys much less play, can't do anything as an adult is constantly 'over-coddling' them...... make sense?

[littlefriends]

It could be that he’s coddled at home but that doesn’t jive with his parents to me. He has an older sibling too and I know he sleeps in his own room. His mom told me at drop off he did it a lot over the weekend. He’s not done it yet today, tho. I’m hoping it’s a short phase.

[Cat Herder]

It's also possible he has enlarged tonsils secondary to sinus drainage (spring pollen). No big deal, it will pass in a week or so, but it does feel weird and they tend to try to figure out what is back there.