Toddler head banging -help!!

[ventone]

Hullo
Im a newbie so apolog this topic covered before. My two year old bangs his head when angry and frustrated - we have tried ignoring it, and also giving him time out when he does it but he still persists. It appears quite violent - he even has two bruises. I really want him to stop but cant seem to crack it - anyone got any advice?

hi my 1 year old son does the same thing i had a word with my health visitor who said that they do this because they are frustrated at this age they understand a lot but cant commuicate ie tell you or talk about stuff!
and the best thing to do is ignore it i know its hard but he will grow out of it.

sorry spelt communicate wrong think that right lol

my 15 mo does this too - when he cant have something he headbutts the wall / floor / sideboard / me.
I am ignoring it. Its not having any affect, but I think if I acknowledge it at all it will get worse.
Its reassuring to know others lo's do it too..

my youngest brother was the same. he would fly into tantrums and bang his head for ages on the floor. i remember being horrified as a child watching him do this.

the paediatrician told my mum same as lins1uk that it was frustration at not being able to communicate and was essentially attention seeking. she was advised to stand over him to acknowledge the action and then step over him and walk out! tough. - to show that you don't condone the action. this was in the late 70s.

i asked mum if it helped and she said it made her feel as though she was doing something - but didn't really help ds.

apparently he stopped around 18 months when we stayed with grandparents with a very hard concrete tiled floor - he got a cut from the tiles and was bleeding and in real pain. never did it again.

really feel for you all - as its distressing to witness. hang in there.

My son was exactly the same at that age. I followed the health visitor's advice and walked out of the room when he did it. He then used to follow me from room to room doing it. Absolutely hilarious now, but not at the time. One day, he just stopped. However, even as an older child he's now 6 he still has the odd rage and flashes of real temper, he's not at all a placid child, so it may be just the way he's hard-wired !! Sorry!! Even he laughs about it now when I tell him.

My dd2 used to do this. Horrible

I tried to ignore it as much as possible, but sometimes she looked ready to knock herself out so i would try to put a cushion between her head and what she was butting (usually the kitchen cupboards) to stop it doing her too much damage.

Like confusedmamma's ds, my dd is still a fiery little beggar (she is 5 now) but i wouldn't have her any other way

DS1 would head bang when he became frustrated and angry.It was when he was about 18 months old. He would run out of the living room, down the hall and repeatedly head butt the front door - he had learned that it made a better sound and didn't hurt as much as the wall.

Although the usual advice is to ignor it, I couldn't, and would hold him rather than let him continue. He grew out of it after a few months, but still flies in to a rage when angry.

Good luck!

Thanks everyone - am relieved to hear that we are not alone. I suspect that a long term temper will be evident! (cant imagine where he gets that from !)

My DS2 used to do this everywhere. he would head bang the floor, wall, cupboard doors, stairs - I mean everywhere!! really worry and very upsetting. It got so bad that i even considered buying one of those soft head guards they buy for kids karate!!!!!!
all the advice was ignore it, distract him, start to play with something , keep calm... it was really really hard to do, BUT, he's now 3 and 1/2 and doesn't do it now. It is pure frustration on their part. Good luck it will get better.

Hi, it's nice to know I am not alone.My 17 months littleboy has just stared headbutting me, scratching and generally beating me up - when I pick him up, in the middle of cuddles or jst coming up to me. It breaks my heart and dont want this to progress. Are people getting result from just ignoring it? Should I introduce a naughty chair?

An update from me - generally we have ignored it, but if we felt it was wilful we told him to stop and why. he has not completely stopped but it is few and far between - I think it helps that his language is developing well now