4 year old fixates & screams over simple issues -fits last long time

[amyjo73]

My 4 year old fixates- her hair is not tight enough, her shoes aren't tight enough, her pants; her shirts aren't long enough; her glasses aren't clean enough.  All of this intensifies when she is on antibiotics- the 20 minute fits last as  long as 2 hours.  She has just finished an hour screaming spell---"Clean my glasses; they're dirty."  When she gets in these moods, she turns aggressive to me and pinches or hits me.  We try to get her mind off the issue--take her outside, begin counting, read her favorite books, turn on music she normally loves, nothing stops the fixation.  WHAT DO I DO?

[supermomma531]

Has she ever been tested for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder? What you explain here screams OCD to me. Take her to your doctor and make them send u to a child psychiatrist to have her assessed. I'm certainly not a doctor but I know people with OCD.  Good Luck.

[Mariana101]

Another posibility is "Sensory Integration Issues".... and ANXIETY related issues like OCD but I will rule out the sensory issues first. She can be treated in the meantime as an anxious child though, while the specialist figure out what's happening here. Good luck!

[Harmond]

   Have you tried giving your child positive or negative reinforcements? Like giving rewards if your child was able to perform a behavior that is favorable... and maybe, punish if the child performs otherwise... i'm not really an expert but i've tried it a number of times and so far it has been working...

[KellyE_79]

have you tried just ignoring her?  It almost sounds like she does it because she knows you're going to go crazy trying to give her everything she could ever want to make her stop.  Now, don't take offense to that.  But in the last sentence or two of your paragraph that is what you are doing.  I think she wants attention and is acting out to get it.  Just my opinion.  I have a problem child of my own(read my post, it'll make your kid look heavenly)!  Whatever the problem, patience, consistency, and a little luck never hurt anyone!  Good luck to you, and do try to ignore her.  As long as she's not in danger, she'll eventually stop.  Or teach her self reliance.  Clean her own glasses.  She won't like that a bit!   ;)

[KHenson10]

I feel your pain!!! My 4 year old is the same way!!!  She is driving me CRAZY.  She is in her room screaming RIGHT NOW.  I don't know what to do anymore!!!  Let me know if you figured something out please!  I need help!

[allmymarbles]

When my first daughter was about 7 or 8 months old she would throw a tantrum almost every afternoon. I could not figure out why. My neighbor suggested I turn on the tap in the kitchen sink and bathe her head under it with cool water.  I tried it. It worked. She stopped crying immediately and breathed a sigh of relief. And then fell asleep. I tried to figure out what had been happening. I think she cried for some reason (unknown to me) and couldn't stop and it excalated. Then she probably got overheated. The cool water aborted the process.

I don't know if this works with an older child. But I would try it. Since she is an older child you might try colder water.