Chewing

[LastingLight]

I feel like a bit of a fraud posting on this board but I thought this is the place where I'm most likely to get a good answer. DD (almost 12) is mostly NT - deaf in one ear and almost certainly ADD although we don't have a diagnosis.

My question is mostly about chewing... DD never stops, she chews her nails and fingers, paper, bits of plastic, her duvet cover, pens, zips etc. She got into trouble at school yesterday as she had bitten some plastic letters off her pencil bag and was chewing on it so much that the teacher thought she was eating. What could be the reason for this, is it simply a habit or something more? She is also a very fussy eater and doesn't like walking on grass if that is at all relevant. She does not have issues with textures of clothing, seams or lables.

Its hard to say why she might be chewing. It could be due to sensory issues, comfort, anxiety or habit.

Is the chewing just at certain times or is it all of the time?
Does she show any signs of distress or anxiety before she chews?

If she seems fine otherwise then it might just be a habit and she will probably grow out it. I was an avid thumb sucker until i started secondary school where i just stopped without even realising. It used to drive my parents mad, they tried all sorts to stop me but it never worked. I also used to chew on my hair and on my pillow case

Could be a form of sensory-seeking. You can get all sorts of chewy jewellery/toys/accessories etc to channel the chewing in a safer, more appropriate, direction. My DS has the tyre bangle and dog-tag necklaces from this site, and also various chewy/fiddly pencil toppers which he uses at school. Oh and chubes - little plastic tubes which you can attach to eg the strings of a hoodie.

my ds chewed everything he has adhd, he could concentrate more at school if he chewed, if he got anxious he would chew anything (including electric window switches and all the wires that went to them while I was filling car up) we got him a chewy bangle and a tangleze to fiddle with. he would even chew while asleep, ate pillows, duvets, even the mattress wasn't safe lol

Thanks for your replies. I think anxiety plays a role.

Two out of my four are chewers.. one has ASD and LDs..and gets through a pack of pencils (down to stumps) a week.. (like a beaver!) Also his sleeves, hoody ties, etc . The other is completely NT but also a compulsive chewer. He ate all his school sweatshirts...right til the day he left. He is now 21 and only this week I threw out a sweatshirt of his because.. yep he has chewed through the sleeves.

For both of mine I think it is a sensory thing ! We have tried everything for DS2 (asd) to stop him, to no avail.. he swallows the wood too!