My 17 month old son has been biting everyone. I think he is showing love and getting way too excited. He starts out by hugging and kissing and then BITES! HARD! He is biting everyone; me, my husband, cousins, other kids on the playground, EVERYONE. He doesn't seem mad at all, and it's not that he doesn't like them, or cornered in any way, just excitied. I have spanked him in the past, but spanking does not work for him at all so I've stopped that all together. It made me feel way too bad and brought up bad memories:( I have now started to use a time out chair which work great at home for minor things, but not for the biting. I really don't know what to do, especially when we are away from home and the time out chair. I feel so bad when he bites other people. I try to explain that he is just excitied to see and play with them, but I am always appologizing for him. I'm sure it's a phase, but he's going to start a Mother's day Out program soon and I don't want my son to be sent home for hurting another child!!! WHAT DO I DO? Anyone have any suggestions?
My son was a biter. I tried everything from time out to spanking. The only thing that worked for my son was for me to bite him back. I know it sounds horrible and I thought everyone who told me to do that was crazy but like I said it was the only thing that worked for him.
My son was biting at that age too. It was the kids he liked a lot and me. I tried it all. Spanking, biting him back, time-out, etc. (He has a VERY high pain tolerance, so pain based punishments do not phase him).
What did work was to tell him how "sad" I was AND soap!!!! I started out with ivory, now I grab the liquid stuff and he really does NOT like it. His teachers would tell him that "Mommy will be sad" and that he was about to get soad and that stopped it - FINALLY!
Other options are vinegar and hot sauce. Well vinegar is really not that easy to carry with you and he likes hot stuff but it may work for you.
I found that with both my boys, the biting was tied to communication and the lack of ability to communicate their positive and negative feelings. They will grow out of it but I know how it is to dread the preschool teachers and directors telling you - he did it again! GOOD LUCK!!
From a mom of two former biters, biting him back works wonders!
What has worked the best with my children is making them bite themselves he may not be understanding that it hurts. I have alos used mouth wash that you put in a little spray bottle and spray that in his mouth. You can have him sit still on the ground when you are out for a time out it doens't always have to be in a chair. best of luck,
M. S.
My children didn't bite but my neice had a little boy that she was bitten by everyday. They tried everything at home and at the sitters. They finally were told to make the little boy bite into a lemon each time he would bite. It only took a week or so till he stopped bitting. Good luck.
I am having the same problem with my little boy who is almost 16 months. My biggest fear is that I will pick him up from the sitters to find that he has really hurt someone.
Some of you may think i'm awful but this is the only thing that worked for me. My daughter went through a biting period where she bit absolutely everyone. I finally told everyone that when she bit them to bite her back. She figured out it hurts and she didn't want to get bit so she stopped.
Hey A., as an almost 47 year old Mother of 5 and grandmother of 4 1/2 and a one time babysitter for over 20 years before Hurricane Katrina put me in a fema trailer, the only way to really stop your child from biting is to first, make him bite himself and then when that doesn't work, you must bite him yourself!! start off not to hard but as he keeps biting then you need to bite harder and harder and I promise you he will get the message!!! It worked with all my biter's!!! Good Luck~
My daughter got bit by a little boy at daycare @ the same age whose mom thought the same thing at first. My daughter still has a scar on her arm from the biting. The mom was getting bit and thought he was just loving her too. She has had to really get tough. She had to use a combination. Biting him back and time out!! With a stern voice she sits him down and does not let him up for a little bit. When he asked to get up she replied, "No you have to stay there for biting." She sat him down for about 20 minutes. This took about 3 time being consistent. Good Luck
hi, I know what you are going through my son was the same way. It
was like a game to him. I worked at a family restraunt and all the old folks kept telling me to bite him back. i thought they were crazy and mean and kept blowing them off. then oneday he bit and drew blood. so i did it i bit him back not hard enough to draw blood but hard enough to leave teeth marks. i think i cried more then he did. i felt so awful at first. but in the long run the daycare and everyone that got around him thanked me. he did not bite again. when my little girl started i automatically did it to her it took 3 times with her but she stopped after the 3rd time. this really worked for me!!!!!!
A.,
My son too had a problem with biting at this age. I tried everything. Finally I asked his pediatrician, he is an older man with more credetnials than I can list. So, when he gave me his suggestion I stood dumbfounded. He said "Have you bitten him back?" Of course I said no. He said try it. Not hard enough to break the skin, just hard enough to make it smart. He said he probably has no idea that it causes pain. He also told me that when I did it, to ask him if he liked that, then when he responds no or whatever negative response. Just tell him that other people don't like it either when he does it. Believe it or not, I did it, and it worked, I only had to do it 1 more time after the initial time. He has never bitten since and he is 5 now. Good luck!
