Specialists: There are many possible causes for these behaviors
#Lifestyle..when a child develops strange habits..parents should remain calm
Strange behaviors can be a major embarrassment for parents.
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Sometimes children suddenly develop an unusual habit, such as pulling their hair or sucking on the sleeves of clothes, and this can be a source of great embarrassment and confusion for parents.
But Fait Rosner, professor of child and adolescent psychology in Dresden, Germany, says it is nearly impossible to stop such behaviour.
He explains: "The spasm is like hiccups. It is a sudden movement that repeats itself, and you cannot control it of your own free will."
The possible causes are many. Perhaps the child is trying to release some internal tension, or he is facing a major change that he cannot handle, such as the beginning of school attendance, and he may just feel bored.
In any case, says Dana Munt, the German government's education consultant, parents should remain calm and "generally disappear on their own".
Spasms, such as a blink of an eye, a grimace or a sniffing, can occur temporarily in 15% of primary school children, then disappear after a few weeks, and the exact causes remain unclear.
In addition to the spasms, some children develop ritualistic or compulsive behaviors, such as not leaving the house without their favorite toy, or avoiding walking on cracks in the sidewalk.
Montt advises parents to "note the above, and not focus on it permanently", because the important thing is that the child does not feel that he is being provoked.
While child and adolescent psychotherapist Michaela Felhawk-Voykar says parents should not make the situation worse by distress.
Parents can try talking to primary school-aged children about this, but without asking them to “stop the behavior immediately,” but with the aim of finding out what causes it. ».
Three months, he says, is enough time to "look again at what and how something is developing", but if the spasms or compulsive behaviors become so entrenched that they interfere with a child's daily life, an expert should be consulted.
Sometimes children need weather for a certain period of time to feel safe.
If the behaviors have become entrenched to a large extent and for a long time, an expert should be consulted.
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