It can be useful to know more about your child's repetitive behaviors to know when it becomes a concern. There are various types of repetitive behaviors. It can be unhealthy habits like nail-biting, thumb-sucking, nose picking, or hair twirling. It can also be tics that are said to have a more neurobiological basis. There is also a possibility that your child might be suffering from disorders like OCD or ADHD.
Parents often get overstressed when they find repetitive behaviors in their children. This can happen if you don't know what symptoms are concerning. Your child might be suffering from a transient tic while you get anxious about their health.
In a lot of cases, it is beneficial to ignore these repetitive behaviors. However, in other instances, your child might require more attention and help. Although repetitive behavior can have all kinds of implications, you might want to be aware of a few things before deciding if your child's behavior is a concern.
Brain Balance Achievement Centers says, "Repetitive behaviors are characteristic of a variety of disorders or dysfunctions of brain development, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). There are also various repetitive behaviors that children with learning differences, ADHD, autism, or other mental health conditions or social or behavioral issues display that may be cause for concern, including stimming (self-stimulatory behavior), tapping or fidgeting."
Repetitive Behaviors That Are Mostly Harmless
If your child has repetitive behavior, it does not necessarily mean they suffer from a tic or a mental disorder. Repetitive behaviors that are not tics are just bad habits that children might pick up from the adults around them, their peers, or by themselves.
These can include hair-twirling, nail-biting, or lip-licking and are mostly harmless in the sense that children grow out of these with time. You might want to ignore these instead of putting too much focus on them and making the child nervous.
However, if these habits don't disappear with time, you can try other alternatives like keeping them occupied or distracted. If they still don't grow out of it, you might want to contact your pediatrician as these might be symptoms of stress disorders or OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder).
Chronic Tics & Transient Tics
There are different kinds of tic disorders - vocal or motor, complex or straightforward tics. These can include throat clearing, touching things and people, knee-jerking, nose twitching, etc. These might start to show before your child reaches adulthood.
Sometimes it can be a cluster of vocal and motor tics, and it might be a symptom of Tourette Syndrome, which is a complex disorder. But you are advised not to stress over your child's tic disorder because Tourette Syndrome is relatively rare. It may not necessarily be Tourette Syndrome and might be a tic disorder.
Tics can be transient, which means your child can be cured with time. Chronic tics that keep coming back are less common than transient ones. So if you think your child has a tic problem, they might recover in some time. However, if they don't, you can seek professional help to get them properly diagnosed.
Repetitive Behaviors That Require Diagnosis
As a parent, you might be concerned about the possibility of your child having ASD or Autism Spectrum Disorder. However, exhibiting repetitive behaviors does not have to mean that they have ASD. It can be useful to be aware of the possible symptoms of ASD to help avoid unnecessary stress and concern over your child's health.
The first thing that you might want to remember is that the symptoms of ASD usually show themselves when your child is still very young. Sometimes it can get manifested when they are within 18 months of age. If your child starts showing signs of repetitive behavior when they are older than 3 or 4 years, it might not be ASD.
"Those with ASD typically demonstrate symptoms by two to three years of age. However, many will display signs earlier in development and ASD can be reliably diagnosed around 18 months of age," as published on The Conversation.
Since this disorder comes with its spectrum, the symptoms can be manifold. But it might be useful to be aware of the common symptoms. If your child exhibits overly sensitive reactions to sensory stimulations and you might want to get them diagnosed on a repetitive basis. Similarly, if they keep staring at an object or if they start pacing back and forth continuously, it might be a matter of concern.
Depending on whether your child's repetitive behavior is a matter of concern or not, you might want to devise methods to help them get out of it. Sometimes, ignoring the entire thing works well. But at other times, you might have to push them harder to get rid of a bad habit.
Source: The Conversation, 360 Behavioral Health, Medical News Today, Great Schools, Brain Balance Centers
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