Confess something weird you did as a child, that you don't know why.

[iloveeverykindofcat]

Inspired by the secret thread, which reminded me of this.

When I was about five I drew a house in biro on my parents' single piece of antique furniture. I have no idea why I did this. I was generally an extremely obedient, rule-abiding child, the sort that got nervous when other children were acting out. I was just suddenly overcome with an irresistble urge to draw the house. I still remember the feeling, and I don't know why I did it.

Did you ever do something inexplicable and out of character, that you still don't understand?

I went through a phase of wanting to crack open eggs and play with the yolk when I was about 9.

@BrassyLocks

I opened the washing machine mid cycle and flooded the kitchen.

Me too. I wanted to put an item inside. I don't know why I didn't think the water would come rushing out!

Had a bad habit of going behind the sofa, taking all my clothes off and jumping out screaming TADA! Did it once when an estate agent was around apparently. I was only 4-5.

I used to get so excited at the start of the Christmas holidays that I would attempt to go into hibernation to make the time until the big day go faster. I'd make a sort of dark cave out of duvets, pack some sandwiches in a little box, and then settle down to begin hibernating. I'd come out thinking I had managed a reasonably long hibernation stint, only to be told that I'd been in there 20 minutes. I did this a few years running. Always with unsatisfactory results.

I also used to mix talcum powder with water to form a think, spreadable paste and cover my face in it. Then I'd look at myself in the mirror for ages and imagine I was a vampire.

I was around 5 yo and decided to paint my Nan's golden retriever with lipstick

I ate raw bacon out of the fridge when no one was watching.

@AnxiousAlpaca

Had a bad habit of going behind the sofa, taking all my clothes off and jumping out screaming TADA! Did it once when an estate agent was around apparently. I was only 4-5.

This reminds me, we once we're having our windows cleaned when I had a friend round. The window cleaner was doing my (first storey) bedroom window, and showing off to my friend I crept under the window then jumped up to surprise him. The poor man nearly fell off his ladder, could have been so dangerous. I genuinely just didn't think of the consequences and just wanted to impress my friend. Very unlike me. The window cleaner told my parents who rightly bollocked me and made me realise how dangerous it had been.

Went through a stage of wanting to be a member of the Secret Seven which involved climbing through the downstairs loo window and through the window of my Grandad's shed repeatedly despite being told off. Finally got my comeuppance when I got the leg of my brand new dungaree shorts stuck on the window latch and was left dangling there for a few moments before the shorts completely ripped. Mum went absolutely ape shit and I had to wear a darned pair of dungaree shorts for the rest of the summer.

Apparently I painted a wooden sideboard blue. I have absolutely NO recollection of doing this I suspect my older sister tbh Luckily my mum is arty so she painted the rest of it blue and stencilled patterns onto it.

For several years I was convinced the toilet would suck me in when I flushed. so I would either not flush, or flush and run away as fast as I could.

I once ran my finger along my dads razor, 2 very neat cuts on my fingertip, it was totally obvious what I'd done but I still vehemently denied it

I was obsessed with dogs and horses (love both but horribly allergic) so I used to play at being a dog or horse. I spent years crawling on the floor and the skin on my knees is rough as fuck 20+ years later.

I was about 9 and staying with my Godmother for the weekend. It must have been an era when polystyrene tiles were all the rage, because I remember her being very pleased that her bathroom had just been done - pink ceramic tiles to about 2ft around the bath, then polystyrene on the rest of the walls and ceiling, looking v smart for that period! When I was having a bath that night I don't know what possessed me - I clearly remember there being no malevolent intent - but it came to me that the perfect thing to do with the new poystyrene tiles was to use my finger to jab my name in them as a kind of memento for her. I remember her being aghast when she came in and saw my handiwork, but don't recall the consequences, if any. She was a very kind and patient lady!

i used to eat paper. all my books had the corners chewed off every page. i also used to ‘rub out’ some of the words with my fingernail, no idea why as it was only me who was inconvenienced by it.

i was a very weird child. i grew up in a horribly abusive environment and developed OCD quite early on. i had loads of rituals and always counted the syllables in sentences and songs off on my fingers. it was very important that they ended on a 5 or a 10. i always had words or phrases stuck in my head on endless rotation and never listened to the people around me as my brain was so busy. infuriated my mother.

i also used to chew the skin off my fingers, down to the first knuckle. literally flayed my fingers. it just made my mother furious and i was smacked for doing it. looking back, i was clearly a very troubled child (as an adult i live with mental illness including C-PTSD and BPD) but none of my adults cared enough to do anything about it...

christ, that got dark! sorry.

These are so fascinating and funny to read. I can clearly remember the urge to cut holes in things, draw on things, see what happened if I did xyz...we can't all be weirdos! Would love to hear a psychologist take on what it all means, must be a stage of learning/development?

In my early teens I used to have to kick a wall every few metres I just HAD to.
I used to look back every few seconds when i was out walking anywhere
I was such a weirdo

Crying laughing at some of these. Copied mum & dads wallpapering by using cards and toothpaste and stuck them to said new wallpaper. Couldn’t understand why parents went crazy as I thought it looked lovely. The dry toothpaste tore holes in the paper when the cards were removed

Aged about 4 or 5 I Stuck a pin in my space hopper that was a birthday gift even though I knew it would break it -

I also played with razor blades -
And drank vinegar out of the bottle

A great thread, funny and entertaining. As a PP has said, it would be great to get an expert to explain this stuff.

When I was about 5 we moved into a house near the sea. My mum found some beautiful glass fisherman's floats buried in the garden and hung them up as garden ornaments. I was convinced they were bouncy balls and one day clambered up to get them...they were most certainly not bouncy balls. My mum was gutted.

I once ate a glass Christmas tree bauble. Ouch!

I seem to have a thing about glass!

@Thighdentitycrisis

Aged about 4 or 5 I Stuck a pin in my space hopper that was a birthday gift even though I knew it would break it -

I also played with razor blades -
And drank vinegar out of the bottle

I used to drink vinegar out of the bottle too! And eat teaspoons of salt

I saw our neighbours giving our cat some milk. I decided to write a letter to them warning them not to do it again as "she's allergic to milk". I threw the letter over the fence. I'm still mortified when I think back to that - I've always been very shy and non-confronational. I'm guessing I was around 7-9.

Pretended to faint in the school loos

Got jealous of the attention my sister with dyscalculia got from parents and teachers so pretended to get maths answers wrong...I actually was struggling at school and am sure I would be diagnosed nowadays with something (sister never had formal dx, but it was known she had problems) but don't think anyone was aware except my teacher who would get cross and tell me off!

A girl at school had her dad die and i was envious of her. So I would pretend my mum was dying.

A weird one- I used to chew my hair (nerves I think as was being abused and got anxious) and also chewed paper, cardboard and loo paper up until I was about 11 or 12. I stopped, don't know why. I was always eating as well, felt empty inside if I didn't have food in my mouth

I had an imaginary friend who was.a guinea pig!

Looking back I was a well weird child

I used to bite myself and get really huge rages. And pick holes in my skin. I still do. Cut myself as an older child right through until fairly recently. I didn't deal with strong emotions like anger or feeling invalidated or abandoned easily.

DP used to pick his scabs and collect them on his shelf. He was heartbroken when his mum cleaned them all up, she thought it was loads of dust. He built a right collection apparently, for no reason.

Engraved the initial of my school crush into my thigh with one of those geometry compasses. Could still see it 20 years later whenever I caught the sun.

Also pierced my own belly button as I didn't know where to go to have it done professionally - it wasn't really a thing in the country I grew up in.

Had first tattoo age 16 and when my sister ratted on me about that to our parents after a fight, I drew over it in permanent marker and said I'd just drawn it on.

Remembered another one. I used to put paper clips through the skin on the soles of my feet and make a chain connecting my feet together. I must have had hard skin because this never hurt or drew blood.

Also me and my friends aged about 10 thought smoking looked cool but were too scared to smoke an actual cigarette so we'd roll up sheets of paper and smoke that 🙈