Will the person who took my lovely happy baby please bring him back and take this screaming toddler away

[giddykipper]

He screamed in his pushchair being pushed around town this afternoon because I had the audacity to offer him a sausage roll.

He has screamed for the last hour because (1) he didn't want to sit at the table with us all and have sausage and mash (a firm favourite btw), (2) because I wouldn't let him have chocolate for tea (3) because he didn't want to go to bed. During that time I have had a wellie and a baby monitor thrown at me .

He's been a bloody nightmare for the last two days, throwing things, hitting the cat, hitting me.

I know everyone has difficult toddlers but pleeeeaaaase let me have my lovely happy go lucky baby back.

oh is he 2? We have the terrible 2's at the moment. I think its frustration. My sympathies anyway!
Remember the mantra-it's just a phase!

Giddykipper - I so feel your pain!! I am exactly where you are now and am also wondering who snatched my lovely happy baby and substituted him for a whinging tantrumming monster

We have had tantrums all day today because DS1 has been asking for TV programmes that weren't on (if I didn't know better I would say it was done deliberately but of course he couldn't possible know the TV schedules could he? ) and then having a complete tantrum when they weren't on.

His baby brother was born 2 weeks ago and tbh, his behaviour has deteriorated since then - which is probably to be expected but me and DH are at a loss of how to deal with it and we just want our happy boy back!!

If you get any insights from your books, do let me know

This is how desperate it got CEEBEE - I have Sky Plussed all his favourites so that when he asks for Daisy/Lola/Stephanie (he likes the ladies) we can put the appropriate programme. One tantrum avoided is best for everyone!

He's not even 2 yet bigspender! Only 19 months! Please don't let the phase go on too long, I have this idea that I have it for the next 16 years.

Hmm - sounds like mine Giddykipper...

Unfortunately we never had the happy baby phase (refluxer) so I feel bad but I am wishing away his babyhood and waiting til he turns all reasonable at 4 like DS1.

[hopeful]

So it will all be ok when he's 4 will it? Promise?

erm - well my 4yr old is pretty sensible but used to have major melt-downs too.

It gets better once they can talk iirc.

At least that way you avoid the endless "what do you want?" while they are screaming blue murder.

That's so true - the number of times today I have looked into his red teary eyes and asked "what do you want?". His language is pretty good, but he definitely gets frustrated.

Giddykipper - lol at you Sky plussing stuff - if only we had Sky plus

DS1 can speak quite well and is very good at letting us know what he wants - but once he is in full-on tantrum mode, it is impossible to get him to say anything other than 'I want my dummy and blankie' (which he only gets at bed/naptime!!) - what starts as a tantrum about something else always ends in him asking for these and us having to say no - resulting in a worse tantrum....

4 you say - only another 18 months to go then......

Oh oh oh thank goodness other people have my problem. My ds2 is 20months and a little angel up until this week. His 5 year old sister has been a little angel all her life. My Mum keeps telling me I don't know how lucky I am. But this week oh my word. Ds2 has become so angry with the smallest things that he has been what I can only call delibertely violent. He still does not talk. He stands in front of me and repeats the same phrases but I do not know what he is trying to say. I am sure he has simply become so frustrated with me making up responses to him that are not what he wants that he has simply snapped. I have been hit over and over and he bangs his head against anyhting in sight. He has always been a head banger but he is bruising himself. He is bruising me when I try to hold him safely. He has scratched my face and neck. He is normally loving and happy and (as his sister) has always followed a simple daytime routine in which he has been comfortable and settled. This monster just seems to come out in him when something is contrary to his desires. I am astonished and bewildered. How normal is this? Are there many of you that have had experience of anyhting similar? Sorry to hijack the thread. It just seemed exactly the thing that I was going through and the chance to vent my concerns is very welcome.

Mine was at her absolute worst at 19 months. Her biggest meltdown ever was because I plucked the last little bit of banana out of the skin for her when she wanted to bite it out. I couldn't put it back in, it kept falling out and she got more and more upset, shrieking and turning purple and all. Finally she ate it (she never wastes bananas) and then lay down on the floor and sobbed, while pointing at the tears on her cheeks and saying "Baby cry cry."

I have learned to never, ever mess with her food without her express consent. She did come out of it quite quickly as her communication skills got better and at 2.6 she's happy most of the time. Still has meltdowns when she's not able to make herself clear though.

We have meltdowns here (23m) about shoes, coat, eating, not eating, the non-availability of juice, etc. And though her speech is coming on well, all she will say is No sometimes for hours at a time. Aaaaargh!!!