4 month old clawing at head - suggestions please (longish)

[hovely]

ds aged 4.5months has recently started clawing his head to bits. He has lost his birth hair, and tends to have a dry scalp, so we have been moisturising lots, but this hasn't helped, and it has escalated over the past week or so. he seems to do it most when he's tired, so I end up virtually lying in the cot to restrain his hands while he nods off, then he just does it in his sleep and wakes himself up. The poor little mite now has a head full of scratch marks and scabs. I have tried changing creams, in case of allergy, but this has made no difference (and he hasn't got any signs of a skin reaction elsewhere on his body). We are presently using an organic salve based on olive oil, and a moisturing cream containing various essential oils. I'm not keen on using products based on petroleum or paraffin. I haven't tried scratch mitts, because he sucks his fingers so much. Obviously I try to keep his nails trimmed down, but he still manages to draw blood every time.
Any suggestions? Has any other baby done this then just grown out of it? Should I treat it as a skin problem or a behaviour problem, ie is it like twiddling your hair to get to sleep?

Hovely, what happens if you stop using any creams? I wonder if they're bothering him? Sorry, no other suggestions, hope someone who has comes along soon.

I would avoid these creams and just use plain olive oil - not the cooking stuff but the stuff from the chemists. Plainer the better.

Thanks for kind thoughts WWW, hav now belatedly seen similar threads on the Allergy topic so will pursue there. Hercules, normally I do try the simple approach, but the salve also contains lavender & calendular, so a little antiseptic & soothing as well (but ludicrously expensive). Am now pinning down ds's arms while he falls asleep (not as unkind as it sounds, he seems to find it comforting & it gets us through the scratching bit).

Hovely, do give scratch mitts a go. I was reluctant to use them for my poor eczema-ridden ds for the same reason but turns out he can still suck his fingers through them. I don't use them in the daytime as he wants to grab and explore things but at night time they make a big difference.
I've also been filing his nails after trimming which is a real faff but does mean the ends are less sharp.
One other thought, if he's attacking the area around his ears rather than all over his scalp, could be an ear infection.
HTH

Hi,

I really feel for you as i know exacly what you are going through, I remember trying to get ds to go to sleep beside me whilst i held both his arms down to stop him clawing, every night was the same after about 10 mins in his cot the scratching would begin...he was also about 4 months when it started,

I looked all over the internet for answers. After a visit to the clininc our HV said it was excema and prescribed a mild steroid cream. Unfortunatley this caused a bad reaction and we had to wash it straight off. I used aveeno oil in the bath and aqueaus cream to moisterise his dry scalp. At 5 months his chest and back also became dry and itchy, again we were told just to use the aqueaus cream. everytime i applied the cream to the affected area it seemed to stop the itching and stop it being so dry, but the rash never really seemed to completley go. After we ran out of Aqueous and applied nothing for a couple of days i noticed that the rash was clering up, but he was becoming extremely dry, i asked db to bring some E45 cream home (as suggested by my mother). He came home with a tube of E45 itch cream, i was a little dubious at first but Wow, it works wonders!!!

Ds is now 9 months, and touch wood. the excema is now almost non existant, i now apply E45 itch relief every night after his bath (moistering his whole body). We now have this cream on perscription and its a good job as the small tubes dont last very long.

Also if it is infantile excema the best advice i received was to keep him cool as heat makes a rash flare up.

Hope this helps!

my ds2 did this, he did grow out of it at 7 months. i understand how distressing this is for you. we found scratch mitts too loose so we used his socks pulled up over his pj top. try the long elasticated ones. and we put a mobile over his bed to distract him and i massaged weleda baby oil into his scalp (organic chamomile, calendula and seseme oil). regards to skin/behavioual problem i think babies just find different ways to go to sleep ie. hair pullinf head rocking etc. i hope you find a way.

just wanted to come back and say thanks to all, combination of scratch mitts and aveeno lotion has been a big help, he is still scratching when tired but less, and his filed nails do much less damage. I only wish I did as much skin care & manicures for myself.