ASD child biting all of a sudden

[Redwineandcheeseplease01]

My ASD diagnosed 4yr old has recently started biting. He has just bitten his kindle and cracked the screen. I know biting is very common with ASD children but this hasn’t been a feature for him before - is this a stage? Or do sensory issues often appear when they weren’t obvious before?

Sensory issues do change over time, as do frustrations which can also come it as biting. But my first thought would be teething, or pain elsewhere. Wobbly teeth is another thing to rule out, though I imagine he is a bit young for that yet. It still needs dealing with whether it's a stage or not. We found watching him like a hawk and stepping in with a big sensory thing like a hug or tickle was much more effective than other distractions.

Hard to say whether that's frustration (did he lose a game? was the Kindle slow to respond?) or a sensory issue.

Might be worthwhile getting a chewy necklace to redirect. You can explain the reasoning "we only bite the necklace, because biting can crack screens and hurt people"

My eldest started biting in primary school, it was a reaction to becoming overwhelmed by situations. Obviously there was less understanding because he was older but it was a case of recognising when he was becoming overwhelmed with his environment and calming before he snapped with a physical reaction. He has stopped biting others now but will self harm (bite himself) when frustrated.

Thanks for your replies, yes I’ve considered whether chew necklaces etc might help but wasn’t sure whether this was a bit premature of me so just wondered if others with autistic children have noticed this sudden need for biting and whether it’s a stage or a new behaviour that’s here to stay. There’s no obvious trigger for the biting.

I have a 4 year old who’s on the pathway of being diagnosed with autism. He goes through stages of biting. For my son, it’s an emotion thing - when he cannot control his emotions and doesn’t know how to deal with them - he tends to lash out and sometimes it involves biting objects, others or himself. It’s so frustrating because it’s hard to navigate, and when they get something in their head there’s no stopping them - for my son at least. I’ve been on the other end of him biting me and he feels so guilty after he’s calmed down after his meltdown - but in the moment he doesn’t know what to do with himself and goes straight to hitting, biting etc.

@orangeleopard this does sound like my son. He’s tearful and full of remorse afterwards usually (unless he’s majorly high and then he’s hysterically laughing). Have you found anything that’s helped?

My asd DD also started biting at about 3 and half through both frustration and anxiety. I found the best thing was to get her chewelery which she has constant access to on lanyards. Sometimes she gets my hand, opens it up and pushes her face really firmly against my palm. Not sure why that helps but it does ( I only ever do this when she initiates it though).

My daughter (on the pathway) went through a sudden stage aged 6 of biting my stomach. She'd come in for a cuddle and then bite me hard. It was definitely sensory, she wasn't angry or anything. A couple of years on and she bites her bed frame, the insides of her cheeks and has chewellery. She hasn't bitten anyone or anything inappropriate (apart from her bed but we let that go) in ages.