2 year old DD rubbing herself - how do I handle this...?

[TwoTimesMum]

Hi All,

I am really hoping for some advice on a slightly embarrassing topic...

My DD is now just over 2 and has for the last 6-8 months been rubbing herself - I guess because it feels nice. She will sit down and rock her pelvis, getting quite hot and flustered and is very upset if she gets interrupted. She is almost in her own little zone. Once she is done she will then get up and is ready to play. She has been doing it on and off but not for the last few months. However it seems to have come back in the last week and she is at it several times a day - any change she gets really...

I was not really sure what this was about at first, but now it seems pretty obvious... :) I thought that this was too young for this kind of behaviour but from some of the older posts here I can see that it is quite normal.

So my question is really how do I handle this? I know I am suppose to ignore it or to distract her but that is just really difficult - she is a very determined little girl and just wants to finish first...

It is slightly easier to cope with at home but what do you do when you are out? And her childminder is now questioning what she is doing...How do I have this conversation with her...?

Any help and advise would be greatly appreciated... :)

I remember having this issue with my first DD when she was around the same age... It does make you feel really awkward!!

It is normal and she mustn't be made to feel that what she is doing is wrong, she's just exploring her body. At home, let her carry on but maybe keep an eye that she doesn't make herself sore, if it's all the time try distracting her. while your out you should try and explain that this isn't something that she can do when there are lots of strange people about. just try and distract her with a book or toy.

If you have any concerns you should speak to your HV.

Thank you so much - it is nice to hear that I am not alone with this problem. Did you ever speak to your HV about this? Do you know whether there are any leaflets or information that I could use for the conversation with my childminder?

DD (now 3) and DS (4) know that they can do whatever they want to themselves, but not when there are other people in the room.

It reduced in both of them because they are sociable. They didn't like it that I would either leave the room or take them to an empty room.

My DD did this a lot at around the same age. She's 5 now and it can happen when she's particularly tired or stressed..
I admit I didn't find it easy at the beginning as I was petrified she'd hurt herself, but she never did. In fact I think it was probably researching how to deal with this that first brought me to Mumsnet.. so it's not just us!