DD appears to get - or says she has - tummy ache when she is worrying about something

[FabIsGoingToGetFit]

or in a new situation.

This is normal, yes?

Mine is five and has just started doing this, so I hope it is normal.

I still get this and I'm 34.

it's not uncommon, children can suffer from migraines in their tummies too which of course can all be just stress related.

She is 6, Spero so I will take it is normal.

cyteen - I get similar too.

Any ideas how to handle it? She won't always tell me and if I suggest something she doesn't always like it. She is very stubborn, clear about her own mind and very much her own person.

Very normal IME, I have 3 DCs and the older 2 have at one stage or another had tummy ache when something has troubled them.

dd does this, also the glands in her tummy always come up when she is ill. sensitive wee thing.

I get that!

Totally normal but she needs coping strategies- focus on breathing etc.

I am guessing today it was because she was at a new friends house for tea and didn't want to eat everything on her plate but would have been too polite to say.

Same as Eric, whenever my DCs are coming down with something it always starts off as a tummy ache even if what they end up with is a cold!

Thanks all.

I am off to bed.

So tired I could cry.

Goodnight

sometimes they don't have the ability to vocalise what is worrying them so having a "tummy ache" is a way of telling you that they do not feel right ... read that somewhere, makes sense ?

OMG I used to get them so much when i was a child, when i was worried the tummy ach would start, diaorhea not eating. When i stayed with my half brother I was in my very early teens, spent all night in the loo and all week being so nervous and anxious i could not eat. My brothers wife was a bit and i did not really get on with her so thats why i was so worried mainly and also being away from home. I still get them sometimes when i am stressed or worried, i had a constant tummy ache and nausea when I was going through a stressful period in my life and lots of anxieties going through me.

My 5 year old son did this before Christmas. It started after he'd been off ill so I thought at first it was linked to him liking the time off school. He would start crying and complaining of a pain as we were about to leave for school or just before arriving. He was also sent home once, an hour or 2 after arriving following more upset and crying. I kept asking him if he was worried about anything and finally, he confided one night before bed that he was worried about one of the boys in his class being horrible to him etc...After trying to help him with how to deal with this child, the best thing that put his mind at ease was a promise to talk to the teacher and support staff about my son's fears. I did so and have so far had no repeats of these tummy aches. At the time it was a big worry but luckily it didn't last once we got to the bottom of it. Hope it doesn't last too long for you too.

My Daughters 9 and she still does this although its less often than it used to be. I even took her to the doctors at one point but there was nothing wrong.....lots of reassurance and cuddles do the trick for her now when she gets this.

I used to get this as a child (and sometimes as an adult as well)and my DS, also 6, complains of tummy aches when he's worried or stressed. I told him very warm baths and/or hot water bottles used to help my tummy relax, and now this really works for him! So if he's worried about school the next day, I pop him in for a warm soak and then talk about what's worrying him. I'm sure any relaxation ritual will help your DD - a bit of 'yoga', or breathing, or weak tea and a cuddle... strategies she can keep using as she gets older. But tackling the root problem is always the most helpful thing, of course.

Thanks so much for all your posts. It really helps me to know this is normal. DD is a very complex child and sometimes I get it so wrong with her when I am trying to help.

DD (5.6) gets this too - it started just before she started school last year. Glad to hear it's not just her going through this.