Please help with this sibling dynamic. 2.5yo DS will chase 5yo DD, roaring, pretending to bite. He’s no angel, he has bit and hit her before and we are very firm on this (remove him, see to her, tell him clearly no hitting/biting). When he chases she runs away wailing and crying (honestly, it’s a little hammed up, I can tell). He obviously just chases more.
I’m handling in this way. Taught DD to say “No” firmly and not run away so much. Remove DS when this happens and sit with him while I tell him briefly “DD does not want to play this game. Play dinos with your toys”. I’ve also been teaching him “if you want to play with DD, say “play with me””. He’s 2, so he can only get so much.
It’s driving me insane. We have an open plan space and when I’m cooking it’s just this constantly. Ramped up since DD started school.
I’m mindful of boundaries and consent etc, but I just want to tell her “stop reacting and he’ll stop chasing!” … I know how that sounds in this to a girl in a patriarchal world.
How do you deal with this? It is constant. Im losing my mind