2 Y/o Yells and Screams for Hours Every Day

Hi M.,
My son was just like this. He was my first child so I didn’t know any better. He was a hard baby, he cried all the time. By the age of 2 his crying went to yelling/screaming to sometimes rage. I couldn’t believe that a child this little could get the best of me. He is now 8 yrs old. He was diagnosed with Aspergers it is on the autism spectrum. He is extremely smart. He still melts down and has a hard time with change, he has sensory issues. Things that I didn’t relies set him off were sound that florescent lights make (I still don’t hear them) He likes his socks inside out. At school things like the sound of pencils tapping or keyboard clicking. I can tell you that it has gotten better partly because he is easier to reason with at 8 yrs old. I would never go back to ages 2, 3 and 4 because it was so hard. But I also won’t trade what he has thought us or what I’ve learned in those years. Once they figure out what is going on it will start getting better. Be careful though we had our son evaluate at school at 3 and the told us he was fine. But a mother knows. So stick to it until you get the answers and help you both need. If you don’t like or agree with what they say look for someone else that could help. If you ever need help feel free to contact me. I know how hard the yelling can be but you have to try your best to stay calm and keep your voice calm. My son will get more worked up if we do. Trust me there are days were this advice is impossible. LOL My husband and I sometimes have to tag team. Check out all your options, I saw a lot of great advice from others that wrote to you. I hope for the best for you and your family.
K.

1 mom found this helpful

I would certainly have him evaluated by a specialist. You may also want to check for food allergies or reactions. My son acts that way if he eats something with red dye. I know it sounds crazy, but just a few jellybeans will set him off. It is possible that something your son is eating/drinking could be causing this behavior. I also recommend the melatonin for sleep. A friend of mine who has a son with autism also uses it, and it has been very effective.

What is your son drinking on this liquid diet? Is it sugary juice, or is he drinking something with more substance? Again, too much sugar can cause reactions in kids. (even natural sugar in juice - and something like koolaide with dyes could be especially bad.) I would cut out all high-fructose corn syrup and dyes for now until you find out what the problem is.

1 mom found this helpful

It sounds as if your 2 year old has some severe sensory issues. It is very hard to sleep if you don't eat well. Has he been evaluated for autism? That is where I would start, then I would work with the sleeping and eating issues.

I have an autistic child and I know how many parenting books I went through while trying to figure him out.

Good luck.

Have you had him evaluated for Autism? The Fraser Institute on University is really good. I have two children with the diagnosis and regular parenting techniques do not work with the either. I'm not sure if your son is delayed in his speech too but often times, these types of behavior are a means of communicating. Once I understood that things in the environment that I hardly noticed, actually hurt my kids because of their sensitivities to smells, tastes, and textures.

I learned what was making my kids act out and I have adapted their environment to avoid those things. They have also been in speech, occupational, and physical therapies. Helping them both learn how to communicate their needs also helped immensely. A lot of their negative behaviors were because of their own frustrations and pain.

The therapy will help, but look for parent support groups too. It helps to have other parents to talk to about your frustration and exhaustion.

As for the eating, my 3.5 year old gets the bulk of his nutrition from liquids too. I don't care. As long as he is growing and will still eat some foods, I'm not going to sweat it. I have a friend who's son has a feeding tube he's so adverse to eating.

I also give my children melatonin to help with the sleeping. 20 minutes before bed and they are going to sleep on their own. I still get up a couple of times a night with one of them, but at least it isn't every 2 hours.

Hang in there. It may not get better immediately, but it will.

i too had a yeller, his speach teacher said use a little water in the face , so we did and it worked, it look a few weeks but he got the idea that yelling was right, take a small glass of cold water and throw it in his face when he starts screaming. TdH mother of four

You said there is no medical reason for this. Just wanted to be sure you had his ears checked. I'm sure you did but my daughter used to stop eating solid food and get very irritable when she had ear problems.

I hope you find a solution so you and your son find some peace.

You could try the ideas from the book "Raising Your Spirited Child". Or see if that fits your son's description. It gives some brief descriptions too of the differences between spirited children and autitic and ADHD kids. My son is only "spunky" so my tricks for him aren't as good as what you might need.

Good luck in finding what works.

Is there a possibility that he is autistic? If that's what it is diagnosing it before the age of 3 is huge and he would get a lot of help leading him in the right direction. Do not give up in finding some answers. Good luck and God Bless your family.