Maby I'm Overreacting

I remember when my kids did it. Ignore it. Don't react at all or acknowledge it at all and he will stop. If you show any reaction he will use it against you. LOL! It really freaked me out when my baby did it but I just ignored it completely and it didn't last long. I think it's one of those normal kid things.

My daughter is 5 and stills every once in awhile will hit herself in the head with something. I think they just do it to do it. She will hit herseld and then say ouch.

My son starting hitting his head on the floor, wall, or whatever was there. He started doing this a few days after my husband was deployed (USMC). It took a little while, however, after several doctor visits, we figured out it was his way to let us know he was upset and sad. We also started noticing it was when he was tired. When he would start his head banging, I would hug him and hold him tight. He did grow out of it, it took a few months, but it helped having him in a routine. There was a huge difference in his behavior when daddy came home. Good Luck!

I don't think you are overreacting. When you are there with the child allthe time you notice more things. With the latest statistics about Autism, I would watch closely also.
They say 1 in every 150 children are autistic and it occurs more in boys. My stepson is profoundly Autistic. His mother refused to beleive there was anything wrong with him. And Early detection is key. So He has never gotten the help he needed. He would hit himself in the head alot and then that progressed to biting himself when he was frustrated. He started out having language but then lost that shortly after 2. Now there is no communication. He even was hitting himself so much he had to wear a helmet for a while. As I said early Detection is key and then there are so many things such as retraining and behavior modification that can be helpful. If you think there is a problem, do not take the first opinion. Find someone who will listen to you. I know alot of doctors just tell you to wait and see. NBut with Autism you can not wait. Get online and check out the autism sites. They have alot of good info and will list signs to watch for. I don't mean to scare you because if treated right Autistic children can be mainstreamed into regular school. There are so many things that you can do and work on. Its a wide spectrum from aspergers(very mild) to severe.
The internet is your best bet though. Check it out.
Hope this helps.

My 4 year old just started this recently. I try to not make a big deal out of it. I know he is not hurting himself, he is just doing it to get a reaction. A friend of mine had a similar issue when her twins were little. They would sit in front of the wall and bang their heads on the wall. Her doctor told her that they would not do it hard enough to hurt themselves. I would just see if there is something that triggers this behavior. Kids don't know how to deal with stress. Good Luck.

It may be normal, but please check with your pediatrician. I don't want to alarm you, but my son did that also, and at 2 was diagnosed with autism. At your son's age, we were told that sometimes children, especially boys, just do it for fun. But we were also warned to watch him. Be aware of any unsual temper tantrums, rocking, or any other unusual habits and let your doctor know of that, also. I hope it is just a phase he is going through! Good luck!

I agree with Bonnie to have it checked out safe than sorry. I had a nephew who banged his head on the floor, I do not know since it was never checked into is the result of some adult issues now or not. He has a learning disability but is normal everywhere else. Good Luck.

I agree with Amber. As long as he is not doing it out of anger or frustration and isn't hurting himself it's probably nothing. He just may like the sensation. You can let him know you don't like it but don't make a big deal of it. You could tell him - you have a nice brain in your head! Take care of it so you grow up to be smart!

I think this is pretty normal. Try not to make a big deal out of it, he may be getting a kick out of your reaction. My daughter recently started banging her head then she looks at me and just laughs hysterically. They're just testing things out... kids do some pretty weird stuff.

C., I had this problem also. Does he do it when he is mad or upset? This is when my son did it. Children do things such as this when they can't tell you what is wrong. In our case, I couldn't get him to settle down, and help him tell me what it was, or understand why he felt that way. He would be so upset. Finally, I had to find a way to get him to stop hitting, before we could talk about it. I bought a water bottle, the spray kind, and we had them in the living room and the kitchen. When he started "banging his head" we would spray him with the water. The cool water got his attention, and then we were able to settle him down, and find out what was wrong.

My daughter went through that when she was a year old-ish. It was generally when she was mad or I said no. What I did was change how I told her no, and told her I won't let her hit people. Eventually she quit, and I don't know if it was because of me or if it was just a phase, but she definitely quit! It's hard to watch, I know, I always got very upset about it (to myself, is she going to turn out to be a kid who hurts herself???), but everything seems like a big deal with kids, I guess!

K.

As an older woman, who has worked with special needs children most of her life, I would very much like for you to speak with your pediatrician. If your child is normal in every other way, it most likely is not anything serious, but there is something at the root cause of this. Whether something physical, like a sinus infection, or hearing problems, etc., or something emotional, like frustration, children don't just hit themselves for the fun of it. There is a reason.
Definitely don't panic, but do talk with the pediatrician. OK ?

Hi C.,

Our son did the same thing. I think it's a little boy thing. He discovered hitting his head on accident and thought it was funny, so he kept on doing it. One time he was running through our entry way playing chase w/ daddy, and he looked back to make sure daddy was still chasing him, and he ran right into the wall. He cried a little bit, but when he was done crying, he turned right around and hit his head again on purpose and giggled! As long as he did'nt hit it hard we would let him do it, because he's just exploring. When he would do it several times in a row, we would tell him he's being silly and tickle him and pull him away from the wall. He eventually stopped hitting his head and has now moved on to explore other things! Kids are going to do all sorts of strange things, especially boys, so be prepared, this is just the beginning!
Thank your husband for his service, and we'll keep him in our prayers.

Hi, C.. My nephew used to bonk his head against the back of the couch as a way to soothe himself when he was tired. He doesn't do this now, and is a very normal 8 year old boy. I would mention it to his doctor, but I am sure it is just a phase he will grow out of.

My daughter did something similiar at that age. Our dr. told us it was common and to ignore it and it would go away. We did and yes, she stopped in under 2 months altogether. It's hard to watch though! She's 7 now!

Hi C., I am a mother of four and it is just a stage. Good luck and God Bless!

C.,
I have the same thing right now with my 13-month-old. She does it lightly enough that I know it probably doesn't hurt, but I don't want to foster that behavior. She does it when we tell her "no" and in general when she's frustrated. I think it is just her instinctive response to high-stress situations. I have been redirecting her hand when it happens (sometimes) to a gentle pat. I "catch" her hand mid-motion, slip my own hand in between hers and her head, and give her a light "pat" glide on the head and tell her "gentle with Kaya". The whole time this is going on, I'm looking into her eyes, not sternly, but after I've cued her that it's gentle, I smile at her. This seems to have been staving off the behavior sometimes. You might mention it to your doctor also (as a precaution), but you might try something to curb the behavior and turn the situation into a positive one of learning the term gentle for him. I hope any of this helps. Take care and good luck,
K.

When my son was small he would throw himself down on the floor and bang his head on the floor. I was horrified of course and thought that it would never end. He never hurt himself and eventually outgrew the tantrums. The less attention I payed to it the less he did it. I actually forgot about it until my friends son did the same thing a couple of years later. If he doesn't stop by around age 3 I would be more concerned but at this age I would just do my best to ignore it. He will stop on his own.

Hey C.,
First I want to tell you to hang in there with your hubby being gone. My husband was deployed when our first son was born and was gone from us for 2 years. Let me know if you need to vent about army stuff. I know what you are going through. Now with the head slapping... It's totally normal. My son did it at that age and I sort of freaked out too. That was until I talked to a bunch of my friends who have boys and they said that theirs did it too. Boys are just weird. My son is now 3 1/2 and is totally normal for a silly boy. If you haven't seen it go rent the movie Parenthood with Steve Martin. His youngest in the movie was goofy like that. He would go around with a bucket on his head and then bang it against things. It's a super funny movie. Anyway, best of luck to you and remember that if you need anything please let me know. I'm sure you know by now that the army never has a straight forward answer for anything. My husband and I have about a billion resources because he was in for 20 years so please don't hesitate to ask. Once again good luck and your boy is perfectly normal!!! You are a great mom for worrying...

-K.

It is not just a boy thing. We have two girls and "bonks" bring more giggles then just about anything. As long as he isn't hurting himself, don't worry about and maybe even make a game out of it. As someone else said, it is just another one of the fun ways that they explore their envirnment.

this is definitely a boy thing. My son would get mad and bang his head on the floor, the door, whatever. Even now, at 4yo, he'll get mad and hit something on his head. I don't know if it has anything to do with communications skills, or lack of, but it never hurts him. And, once we talk to him about what is ailing him, he will stop. I do make him stop though, because he may hurt himself.

My son did the same thing. I would hit his head on the wall or the floor as well. He didn't do it out of anger, just while he was playing. I would just try to distract him and redirect his attention. My son only did it for a couple of months. He hasn't done it in a while. I guess if it lasts for a long time or he seems to be hurting himself you could talk to his doctor. Otherwise I just figured it was a boy being a boy.