DC2, who is almost 2 (22 months for those who prefer ages that way), has started hitting us. Usually when thwarted from doing what he wants to do, occasionally almost as a game with a grin on his face (eg nappy changes when he starts kicking or when in the buggy and I’m trying to fasten him in).
How would you recommend handling this? My usual approach is to tell him “no, we don’t hit” and then to physically stop him if he continues (ie by holding his hand and repeating “no”) or walk away depending on where we are and which is safer/better. But neither seems to be very effective so far!
I have to be honest, it really bothers me because his older brother (who may not be neurotypical, we are currently considering pursuing a private assessment) started hitting around the same age and has never stopped - as in, he still hits now when angry and it’s not something he has grown out of. So I’m really worried DC2 might not grow out of it either.
We have tried more with DC1 as he got older (time outs, consequences, talking calmly when not angry about why we don’t hit) but none of that has worked either so I’m keen to make sure we take the right approach with DC2.