I'm looking for some advice. My daughter has just turned 5 and from her being very young she has always known how she wants things and what she likes and dislikes. She's been repeating the same sentences in the same tone over and over, singing the same songs many times, putting certain toys in specific toy boxes or sitting in a certain chair to eat and having tantrums if things aren't done her way.
I used to think that behavior was normal but it's becoming progressively worse as she's getting older. For the last 3 months or so I've noticed she's become fixated on 2 certain numbers (89,000 & 189,000) and randomly puts the number into any sentence she can. An example would be if I said: "Do you want to wear this dress?" And she'd reply "Yes, it's been one hundred and eighty nine thousand days since I wore that dress!"; if she's coloring she will randomly say "what if I had eighty nine thousand crayons!"
She makes me say the same sentences over and over again. For example, if she says to me "do you know what animal I'm pretending to be?" Or "where have I put my shoes?" If I reply with anything other than a very animated "I don't know, what animal are you pretending to be/where have you put your shoes?" She says "no you have to say…" and tells me what I have to say and how I need to say it. If I repeat it, but not in the same tone or speed she used, she makes me say it again until she's satisfied. It's the same with other questions she asks, it's as though she's asking the question to answer herself but she needs me to say that in between her asking and answering.
I'm not going to lie - this is becoming really frustrating on top of other issues we've had to come to terms with in the past (behavioral problems, high energy levels, and an eating disorder). I'm concerned this might not just be a phase she's going through and would appreciate any advice from others who have experienced this kind of behavior.