Touching the forehead

When I was a kid a rectal temperature would always be preceded by my parents touching my forehead to feel if I felt warmer than usual. I clearly remember how anxious I always felt when they did this, knowing that depending on how my forehead felt, they would proceed to take my temperature rectally. Until this day touching the forehead with the palm is a trigger for me, strongly associated with rectal temperatures. How was it for you? What are your triggers?

My mother touched my forehead with her lips, then told me her decision: if I wasn't hot and I could go and play, if I was hot, she would take my temperature, rectally of course!

@Lee95 That sounds very nice!

Touching the forhead was common in our house when we complained about not feeling well. Abnormal temps could also be detected by a kiss to the forehead on our way off to school. My mother was adamant (obsessed) about not missing school, so even if she suspected a temp she gave us an aspirin and sent us off anyway. Rarely took our temp with a thermometer unless we were very sick, then only orally.

We didn't do the same with our kids. If we believed they were sick, we kept them home. But we still use the hand to the forehead as the main test for running a temp, even on ourselves.

@Rigel: Touching the forhead was common in our house when we complained about not feeling well.

Yes and thanks for bringing back memories of that.

Gently touching the forehead is something that moms seem to do automatically when they suspect a fever. I’ve done this with my daughters and my husband, and actually I was pretty good at predicting a temp within a degree or so. Moms seem to have that skill. It’s part of our DNA. lol

A hand on the forehead is definitely a trigger for me. Having my wife feel my forehead, frown, then head into the bathroom (even if it's just to get the ear thermometer!) is enough to bring me back to childhood and get my imagination going.

I can’t remember if my mother used to do this. But I’m aware that I do it. Touching the forehead is the first thing that I do when my partner or daughter complain about not feeling well or look overheated.

Yes mom would do that!

Mom was famous for doing this. She'd always roll up her shirt sleeve and get my forehead with the back of her forearm. Usually soon thereafter the thermometer would follow. Oral after 5-6.

In the mom manual, hand to the forehead and then sometimes lips.

Actually, though I had my temperature taken rectally then orally for years, I abhorred when that (feeling the forehead) was done.

I know my Mother did it out of genuine concern but I had to tell her to stop. The slightest sniffle, cough, sneeze and she was there, hand on my forehead.

It was not necessarily a precursor to a temperature taking either rectally or orally, but it was really annoying.

If mom thought I wasn't feeling good when I was a kid this is how she usually checked to see if I had a fever. Was by putting the back of her hand against my forehead. Then if she thought I was warm she would sometimes use a thermometer under my armpit. I can only remember one occasion when I had my temperature taken another way. And that was at the doctor's office.

Mom always touched my forehead when I felt ill or feverish. She could already tell by then if I have a high temperature.

@biene Same. This would however always be followed by a thermometer in the behind if she thought I seemed feverish.

My mom always did this too, and if it was warm, I was told to “lay down” on my bed, while my mom would go into the bathroom.to prepare everythig. With my own son, I found it was easier to feel a fever by putting my hand on his lower back, under his shirt.

Feeling my forehead quite often led to a clinic appointment where both my pants and dignity would be lowered with certainty.

Brings back memory of having a handkerchief with alcohol tied around my forehead when I had a fever back in the late 1940's...

Brings back memory of having a handkerchief with alcohol tied around my forehead when I had a fever back in the late 1940's...

That might cool your forehead, but I doubt it reduced your temp. Back when we had our hunting dogs, we carried rubbing alcohol to put on their belly in case they over heated. The rapid evaporation supposedly cooled them down. Don’t know if it helped or not, an ice bath would be more effective, but was harder to pack!

Yes that happened often that my mom or my dad said I was looking ill and then they touched my forehead and my cheeks. That was causing kinda tickling in my bum, because my temperature was measured there afterwards and I got these feelings even right before when it was said my temp will be checked.

As soon as I would come home mom would feel my forehead, and if I was warm she would go get the thermometer, shake it down, take my shirt off and insert it underneath my arm for five minutes. Then if I was warm, she would check me rectally. Flash forward to today and my wife does the same thing. If I suspect she is warm it is off with everything and start with a reading under her arm for eight minutes. While waiting on it to register, I listen to her heart and lungs. If she is warm then she rolls over and I insert the thermometer for five minutes and wait for it to read. All the while seeing her moist labia. I think it arouses her but when I ask her she will not admit it

Touching the kids for heads was my best way to find out if they had a fever. Then know if they were actually sick or not.

I do the same with my sub to determine if he mat be runnimg a fever.

I remember this one! My mum would do it, although she never took my rectal temp...I remember posting in another topic that in the UK it really never seemed to be a thing for my generation, it was always the thermometer under the tongue for me.

It's not a fetish trigger for me exactly, but I do have a favourite memory of the forehead-temp thing, which is that sometimes after school I used to be looked after by a family my parents knew well and trusted, who also had a daughter who was in my year at school. One time, I had to go home from school sick and my dad was working and my mum was staying at the hospital with my sister who was having long-term treatment, so the nominated person to take care of me was my friend's mum, and I remember her saying 'Don't worry, I'm just going to take your temperature my magic way' and she put her hand on my forehead and she said 'You're hotter than you should be and you've definitely got the flu.' Hell was she right, I spent the whole day watching TV with my friend at her house while we both puked up constantly, ached and ran a temperature. It was Christmas time, and I missed the school Christmas party because of it, and I can laugh about it now but at the time it was terrible!

Feeling the forehead for fever I believe has been called the “ sympathy feel”

I remember my mom or dad could tell me I looked pale and touched my forehead to feel if I was warm. After I felt their cold hand I knew what was going to happen. They told me go to my bedroom, rest in my bed and lower my underwear. Touching my forehead was definitely a trigger, strongly connected to having my temperature taken.

Yes my mom would touch my forehead when I would complain about having cold or my eyes would look reddish, but always thermometer under armpit. When I got adult and started living on my own I got rectal thermometer, so now I touch my forehead myself.

My Mom would feel my forehead if I looked sick, especially flushed. If I told her I felt bad she would automatically go to checking my temperature. She would say, "let's check you out" which ment taking my rectal temperature. If it was going to be oral she would use the word temperature. She would tell me to go into a bedroom and get on the bed. When she got into the room, carrying the big yellow jar of Vaseline and the yellow plastic cased BD baby thermometer, she would tell me to " roll over and pull down your pants."

I definitely do the forehead wave during any exam I give before taking a good accurate temperature the old fashioned way right in the tushy 😀