Anxious 8 Year Old Sucking Skin

[Inthewaysince82]

Hi, looking for some advice on how to deal with this please.

8 year old who can be very anxious and worried. We have done lots with her to tackle this and give her coping strategies etc. She has seen the school counsellor and seemed to really benefit from their sessions (10 in all). She has worry stones and fidget toys to have in school for when she feels anxious and is good at talking to us about what’s bothering her.

The issue is that she will occasionally suck on her skin so hard that it leaves a mark. Yesterday she came home with two of these marks on her arm. When I talked to her about it she said she didn’t really know why she was doing it. She did it when the teacher was out of the class.

I’ve tried asking her if she likes the feeling or if doing it makes her feel less worried but she can’t really articulate an answer.

Am I over-thinking this? Is it just boredom or is there a more worrying pattern beginning here?

Have a look at chewellery which can be worn. Some children need the sensory input from skin. Would she wear a bobble or spiral bobble to gently “ flick “ on her wrist?

This is so helpful, thank you. I haven’t heard of chewllery before but a quick google tells me it might be something she’d find useful.

Hope it helps. Some children do things to help them to cope, especially in school, as a low level stress response.
If you find something that helps I’d make sure her teacher knows and shares the info with other staff in class so that it is a known “ validated object” or sensory support.