Hi all,

My 4yr old has recently started spitting all the time and for no apparent reason. It is such an annoying thing and I was wondering if anyone has tips on how to get her to stop.

Is your daughter verbal? If so, ask her if she has a taste in her mouth, or if she feels like there is something caught in her throat. The taste in mouth may indicate a need for a zinc supplement, and if it is more like something being caught, she may be producing a lot of mucus, either from dairy & milk ingestion, and/or allergies. I would check with her primary doc.

Hi,
A little boy in my son's class had this habit and I was very concerned that my son would pick up on it. They treated it as part of his behavioral plan and, thankfully, the boy stopped doing it. Maybe this will help you:
Don't acknowledge the spitting in a negative OR positive way. In a calm manner, (easier said than done sometimes http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif require that every time she spits that she get a tissue (have boxes nearby but not too close- you don't want to make it too easy for her)then SHE must wipe her mouth and throw the tissue in the garbage. Eventually the spitting was not "fun" anymore for my son's classmate because it required some work behind it.
Hope this helps you.

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Leslie, Mom to Tristan 6 autistic and Lucas 8 NT

[This message has been edited by LeslieC (edited 07-02-2003).]

My 6 year old went thru that phase twice. He liked to spit on windows and mirrors as a stimulation. He also spit bathtub water on out french style bathroom window mold that it rotted and had to be replaced. We finally forced him to clean up all saliva with a towel. Not sure if that cuased him to stop or whether he just grew out of it.