Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

14 months and dribbling

27 replies

qwindsock · 07/03/2005 20:46

Hello everyone

I am new to the board and a bit desperate. My son is now 14 months old and still continues to dribble. He wears his bibs all the time and I am starting to get worried. I spoke to his "Key Worker" at nursery today who says that he has never seen a baby/toddler dribble this much and it is unnatural. Should I be worried? He is normal in all other aspects of his development. Does anyone put there have any advice?

This, coupled with a scorching anal fissure is really getting me down.

Love
Windsock

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Nemo1977 · 07/03/2005 20:47

no advice as such but my ds dribbles but more so when he is teething..at the moment his tops are soaked as he is getting more teeth unfortunately he wont wear a bib. He is nearly 17mths and tbh i thought it was normal for tots to dribble??????

rogan2001 · 07/03/2005 20:58

my ds dribbled badly until he was 3yrs, i was always changing his tops because they would be soaking wet, then it just stopped.
does he use a dummy, cus that makes dribbling worse.

Bonkerz · 07/03/2005 21:01

i care for a little girl who is 14 months adn she dribbles for england. She can go through 10 bibs a day easily. She is perfect in every other way just dribbles alot and im not concerned as just think she is suffering with her teeth! Dont panic.

Original poster

qwindsock · 07/03/2005 21:59

Thanks everyone,

He doesn't use a dummy, but since his key worker said it was unnatural, I got worried and thought I could not just explain it away as teething. I will stop worrying!
windsock xxxx

OP posts:

Amanda3266 · 07/03/2005 22:07

My DS is 2 and a quarter and is still England's greatest dribbler. Even worse when he teethes. I think it's just a maturity thing and am hoping he'll grow out of it soon. He's still wearing bibs - we've a whole drawer full of them.

jamiesam · 07/03/2005 22:12

Another top class dribbler here too. DS1 is 3.5 and has just started dribbling again, having stopped around 6 months ago! Even has rather fetching dribble rash on his chin. Step-m-i-l advises that this may carry on for several years. I do hope she's wrong.

lekki · 07/03/2005 23:20

hia windsock, maybe get a speech therapist to give u some answers u can refer yourself, my daughter has mild dribbling,or maybe its just his teeth????lekki

merrygoround · 08/03/2005 08:56

I'm sure you're already reassured, but just to add another post, my dd dribbled loads till she was just under 3 - even now at a little over 3 we still have dribbly days. I'm not sure that a nursery key worker would be the most qualified person to say what is unnatural - maybe just that it is more dribble than she has observed in her experience. I never found a real REASON for dd's dribbling - she didn't use a dummy for example.

Pinotmum · 08/03/2005 09:01

My ds is almost 2.6 mo and still has dribbly days. In fact I was going to take him to the doctors at one point. It is defo his teeth imho. I don't put a bib on him but when I went to collect him from the creche at the gym they had and I was a little annoyed with that - don't know why really as they were only trying to help. I'm just resigning myself to having Les Patterson as a son in years to come

Pinotmum · 08/03/2005 09:02

Oh it also makes for interesting kisses

Tommy · 08/03/2005 09:15

My 3 year old still dribbles - particularly if he has a cold - it's revolting. I get him to drink through a straw to practise swallowing excess saliva (tip I picked up on MN!)

Pinotmum · 08/03/2005 09:22

Tommy, thanks for the tip, I'll try it.

nnosam · 08/03/2005 16:19

im glad i found this thread, my ds is 2yr+3mts and still gets through 3 t-shirts a day with dribble. i was begining to think that he had a problem as non of my mates kids have this much dribble.
shall try your tip tommy.

Tommy · 08/03/2005 17:17

isn't it funny how you think your child is the only one who does a certain thing until you come on here?! None of my friends' children dribble as much as DS1!

Amanda3266 · 08/03/2005 19:12

Good tip Tommy - will try that with my DS

Mellie14 · 08/03/2005 22:23

Hi Windsock

Of course he's normal! My ds 2yrs dribbles for England - I just give him lots of juice and make sure I have loads of bibs! The dentist said he'd grow out of it, and he is getting better. My nephew was about 5 when he learned to close his mouth and stop drooling everywhere!

I just get upset when it ruins his drawings (watercolours!)

Saker · 08/03/2005 22:27

My ds1 dribbled until over 2. I think changing from an ordinary spouted cup to an Anyway Up Cup helped him to stop because he had to suck harder and it strengthed his jaw muscles. My HV also suggested blowing and sucking through a straw.

Saker · 08/03/2005 22:28

Also meant to say that I don't think it signifies anything much - ironically my ds2 who has development problems including unclear speech, never dribbled much.

PrettyCandles · 08/03/2005 22:39

14m - normal normal normal

Having had a champion dribbler too, I made up my mind to wait until dd's 18m developmental checkup before getting concerned (tho' I checked frequently that her hearing was fine), and a few days before the appointment she stopped dribbling. Suddenly, literally overnight. She has occasional bouts of dribbling, but nothign like before.

A few tips:

If you don't like bibs (and they do get grubby and look gross within a short time) get a dozen or so cotton bandanas or mens' cotton hankies. I found that 3 lasted a day with constant rotation - one on, one drying and one ready.

Woolly vests mean that even if the shirt is soaked you don't need to change because the vest doesn't get clammy like a cotton one would and the child stays warm. I got very good, soft, non-itchy, machine-washable ones from...erm...forgotten - Green Baby Co? Little Green Earthlets?

Wipe chin dry and smear with soemthing greasy - I often used my Neutrogena lip salve - to prevent dribble rash.

singersgirl · 09/03/2005 15:02

My DS1 was the drooliest baby and toddler, right up to 3.5 ish, and DS2, who never dribbled much as a baby, now does, particularly with a cold or when ill - he's 3.5. At 14 months it's very normal!

tipsey · 16/03/2005 22:38

Have a look here:

www.dribble-bandanas.co.uk

Helps to stop that red dribble rash

phatcat · 16/03/2005 23:19

interesting point about the straw - I've never connected it before but ds1 now 23 months has been dribbling a lot less since 18 months when he got the hang of using a straw.

Arabica · 17/03/2005 02:41

DS (4 nest month) still dribbles loads and learning to use a straw made no difference. I think it's to do with breathing through the mouth in preference to the nostrils--he's much worse when he has a cold.

kasmith123 · 14/06/2006 21:02

Hi there I know this thread hasn't been updated for a while but searching net hoping to find out if 11m daughter's excessive dribbling is normal - which it seems it is - I originally thought it may be to do with the reflux she has (currently on gaviscon, domperidone and ranitidine) however she also spits at me when she opens her mouth - not deliberate but where she lifts her tongue a spray of saliva squirts out from underneath - Is this normal? I've spoken to hv and she couldn't see it so wasn't concerned

jambot · 15/06/2006 07:57

My DD (15 months) still dribbles quite a lot. Not as much as a month or two ago though. Only one at her Mums and Tots group who still seems to do so. But I think it's perfectly normal if a bit of a pain. My DD pulls off her bibs and she is always soaking. Has quite a nasty rash on her neck because of it, but anti-fungal cream sorts it out.

Flip

1 2