Biting...at my wits end

[Annie456]

Hi folks...DS is 14 months old and has been biting for as long as I can remember. I stopped bf when he was 9mo because of the biting. Its usually when he is tired or teething (which he always seems to be) I've lost count of the number of times he has biten me and broken the skin. My arms are covered in purple/yellow/pink bruises and just look awful and tonight he's biten just below the collar bone and taken a chunk out of me. I CANT TAKE IT ANYMORE. I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING. I've tried the following (and before anyone says I need to be consistent I've tried all these things in isolation for several weeks / months until it is clear that it doesn't work):
-"no biting"
-"we don't bite"
-"biting hurts

• I've tried pretend and real crying (which gets a hug but doesn't stop it happening 5 mins later)

-putting him down and walking away without saying anything and then denying him attention for a set time
-getting cross and pointing my finger and raising my voice
-biting back

What have I missed. What can I do? I am desperate and this is really getting to me.

[kimcarl1988]

hi i think you should tell your hv or your doctor about whats happening. My child is 18mnths and is going through the smacking stage when she smacks me i tell her its naughty and tap her hand back then she says sorry. if hes teething you can get some stuff from the chemist its anisteic stuff that numbs their gums its brilliant and i think its £5 pound for a little bottle but its brilliant i have forgot whats its called but ask at your chemist they should know good luck with everything x

[katieelh]

My twins were terrible biters, so I feel your pain. I had tried everything apart from biting back, it was really horrible. Then a doctor recommended that I put a tiny tiny drop of vinegar in their mouth every time they did it. I think I only did it three times and it completely stopped, just the shock of having an unpleasant taste in their mouths when they did it seemed to do the job.

[Posterofapombear]

Vinegar sounds like a genius solution!

[Vickyogle]

Hi, might be worth taking him to see a osteopath as they can get tension in their jaw from birth or a bump to the head which can lead to biting behaviour. Good luck. I understand how frustrating this can be as my little one went through a stage of this when she was teething, it made me see red like nothing else could. I'm normally so relaxed but my word it hurts.

[Annie456]

Thanks for all the advice. He did actually see an osteopath after he was born for a tight jaw...he had about 6 sessions which I assume would have been enough??
I think he's too young for vinegar and id have no chance getting it in his mouth quick enough for him to realise what it was for!
Interested to hear other experiences of people who have come through this and at what age?

[Molehillmountain]

One thing that gave me comfort when ds was biting was that I knew it wasn't learnt behaviour. After all, no one bit him. Ds did it from about sixteen months until he could talk well enough to express frustrations. I had to be hoveringly vigilant at toddler groups and ready to intervene with sharing issues before he bit. And when I couldn't I was profusely and sincerely apologetic to the other parent for what was a horrible thing to happen to their child. Took him through the apologising process too.
Now ds is four and he is sweet natured and has lots of lovely friends at preschool. I know your experience is with your dc biting you rather than other children but thought I'd share anyway.