Headbanging 2yr old - any advice?

[StarlightWonderStarlightBright]

He's only 25months with very little language but his forehead is yellow and purple from the continuous headbanging.

I know he does it out of frustration and I don't react, or give in, but do say:

'Oh silly billy, rub it better!'

Am I handling it right? Is there something else I can do?

You'll have to go into some detail. Does he do this on purpose? Is it an attention thing because of his language? Are there specific times he does this? What does he bang his head on? Does he cry?

No specific times. Yes he does it on purpose.

It is usually on whatever it is I have said 'no' about. I.e. if I have said not to bang a door he'll headbang the door, or if I shut the stair gate and he wanted to go through it he'll headbang the gate.

He also throws things a lot, and I give him two throws with warnings and then whatever it is goes on a high shelf. He'll headbang the floor then.

If I give him something to eat, he'll eat his favourite item and then say 'more more', but when I don't give any more he'll headbang the table.

He usually cries and shrieks 'oh dear'!

It sounds like attention seeking because he's frustrated. What do you do at the moment when he does this?

I try not to wince and sometimes leave the room (but he does it sometimes in the morning in his bedroom when he wants to get up and I'm still in bed).

I often say 'well don't do it then silly billy' when he says 'oh dear' and tell him to rub it better which he usually does.

(he has to rub himself better because I'm often nursing and he won't come to me)

The HV said he won't ever do it hard enough to hurt himself, but the state of his forehead makes me unsure.

He can feel it or else he wouldn't do anything. Is there somewhere you can put him? A playpen?

I have a playpen that is currently opened out to cross the kitchen, but that has one of the gates that he hits his head on the most (he wants to play in the fridge).

He can climb out of his cot so we took the sides off. I'll keep thinking though.

Imy cousin used to do this all the time against the door! He knocked himself out at 2.6 and from that day, he never did it again.

Therefore I wouldnt be to sure when people say he wont hurt himself!