Question
Our 5 year old adopted child was born drug addicted, had a trach and gtube for first 4 years of her life. In NICU for first 6 months. To comfort herself she rocks back and forth, slams her back and head against the sofa, sometimes exerting a good amount of pressure. We never discouraged it because it helped with her mucous buildup and eliminated other lung percussion needs. She has been trach free for over a year and of course still rocks. Problem is that she sometimes rocks so hard that she is losing some of her hair. This is something she does for comfort or when listening to music. She rarely does it at school. She is not mentally impaired or delayed as a result of the drug addiction. Should we discourage this behavior?
