DS has always had a tendency to anger but has on the whole deals with it very well. Recently though, he's become physically violent towards me and I just don't know what to do about it.
Today he punched me several times, kicked me several more, tried to bite me and also attacked the buggy his younger siblings were in. I tried as many kid calming/dealing tactics as my shocked brain could muster - talking, understanding, ignoring, restraining... In the end I gave him the front door keys and told him to walk alone in front of us.
This is the second time this week he's hit me. I can't remember what sparked it off on Monday, but it was something really small.
He has a lot to deal with at the mo and in the past... His dad and I are separated, have been for years, but there's a lot of animosity from ex and various issues that I can imagine DS feels stuck in the middle of. Ex has done things like kick holes in walls in front of DS and is a very angry person so I'm sure that doesn't help DS work out how to behave.
Oh yeah, DS has also started swearing just like his father does and has called me some very choice names recently. (Maybe I'm tending to look to connect his violence to his dad because of this similar behavior/language and maybe I shouldn't... I dunno)
Am, I think, somewhat shocked by this so apologies if hazy ramble of a post!
Any insights or tips on how to deal with violence would be great.