14 Month Old Baby Slapping Mom

This is normal as far as I can tell but you do have to deal with it. I would just tell the babies "be gentle" and softly stroke their arm. Also try to anticipate when they may do this and hold on to their hand or arm gently so that they couldn't hit. Come up with some phrases to use with him like "we may not hit." If he is frustrated or angry try to verbalize what he may be feeling and acknowledge it. "I see that you are angry/sad/frustrated/upset."

Perhaps also, if you have to put him down just stay close by and tell him "when you are ready." and then ask him occasionally "Are you ready to calm down?" The calmer you are the faster he should calm down. Let him know that his temper tantrum is about him not about you. Sometimes they have to melt down a bit in order to regain control. Best wishes.

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Both of mine have been through this and you have to repeat yourself over and over but it will take effect. The best thing we did was put them down and walk away after they hit along with saying, "I don't like to be hit. It's not nice and it hurts." Yes, they cried, but that's okay! It sunk in!

I guess I feel that I would need to know more information. I remember how upset my daughter could get when she was too young to be able to tell me what was upsetting her. Was your son upset about the bath being over? Are transitions difficult for him? I learned to give my daughter a five minute warning about what was coming next, and then I would update it every minute until it was time to move on. ("What do you want to do for our last five minutes in the tub?")

Your child has the right to dislike things. Listen to what he is trying to tell you. Sometimes when I had no other idea about what was making my daughter upset, I would simply ask if she wanted a hug. Invariably, she fell into my arms and sobbed. I just held her until the moment passed. Calm your child first, and then figure the rest out later.

You don't have to 'discipline him' as in punish, just discipline as in teach. So you just take his hand when he hits, say gently - hands are for (helping, hugging, whatever you want to say) and then redirect to something he can do. And do it over and over and over and over. So what you were doing before today was just fine. And it does not work instantly. There is no point in trying to explain or reason this out at this age - he does not have the maturity for this yet.

Removing yourself from him when he is angry/sad/frustrated teaches him that he is unlovable when he is angry. Not the lesson he needs to learn - he needs to learn that parental love is unconditional.

Of course, none of us is perfect and sometimes we all need an occasional time out - it's perfectly ok to make sure he is somewhere safe and take a couple of minutes to do some deep breathing and calm down.

And if you are not 100% consistent it will still turn out ok. Not every teachable moment needs to be taken advantage of and there will always be another opportunity to teach him gentle hands (or whatever the next thing is).

I seem to recall my kids (mostly my son) going through a stage sort of like that, where he would hit at my head/face. I would just grab his wrist/hand and tell him "no", or "we don't hit" or "that hurts Mommy" and if he didn't stop, I would do what you seem to have done. Just put him down and walk away. Once you have explained NOT to do something like that and he continues, if you don't extricate yourself it will take him longer to understand it.

It's exactly what dogs do with little kids (at least the "good" dogs, lol).... the kid crawls over and starts pulling on the dog or crawling on it or whatever, and the dog may whine or growl to "warn" that they don't like it. Or they may go straight to getting up and leaving the area. (hopefully they don't go straight to biting!)... my dog just leaves. If we get too noisy and she wants quiet time instead, she gets up and goes to another room. If some young child wants to pay her way too much attention and she doesn't like it, she goes to another room to get away from it. Over time, the kids figure out "gee, she leaves when I do____" and they stop doing it.

Your son is young, yes, but if you just set him down and walk away (after telling him "no hitting" or something equally simple and to the point), then eventually he will figure it out. It's simple cause and effect. You made the right move already. Maybe you have put up with it a bit too much at this point, since you say it has been going on for a month, so it may take a lot of instances of you getting up and leaving before he realizes it will happen EVERY time.
Good luck.

As the soon as the behavior occurs move into another room and let him pull himself together. This is called self-regulation and if humans don't develop this then their lives can be pretty miserable and those around them. It will end as fast as it started when the child gets NO response. Do not offer food or drink because that sets up a comfort thing association. ALso don't overtalk, this is not necessary and it just prolongs the event. They get it. You don't have to explain.

All three of my children have done this to me as babies/toddlers. It is soooo frustrating, isn't it? My 2 yr old has been by far, the worst with it. Luckily he's the last baby, so I won't have to go through it again. When he starts in, I grab his hands and start rubbing them softly and telling him "gentle hands", "we love with our hands". Sometimes it works and he gives me a hug. Other times he's too worked up so I lay him gently on the carpet and leave the room. He soon sees that his fit is not getting an audience and stops. Good luck!

Kindred Spirit summed it all up perfectly....
Calm You Child First and then figure out the rest later.
ALL children go through a hitting stage...and most of them go through it more than once!!! My precious 21 month old grandson is in the midst his first hitting stage...he hits anything in sight...the dog...his toys...his parents...and they just constantly....CONSTANTLY tell him....'Rho...gentle touches...love the doggie" or "Rho touch softly, hands are for helping" And redirect...redirect...redirect.
You are not just teaching your child how to touch softly...you are teaching him how to make good choices....and you do not want to teach him that when he is struggling with emotions that he doesn't know how to process that Mom suddenly disappears and isnt' there to help. TALK to him...if he doesn't want to be picked up...leave him where he is...but communicate with him in a soft calm, clear voice....tell him that you understand that he is not happy, and that you want to help him to BE happy...offer him the bottle of milk and a lap to sit on...or a arm to cuddle with...don't just let him sit on the floor, all alone and cry. If the 15 minutes seemed like forever to you think of what it seemed like to him as he was crying.
As Kindred Spirit said...maybe he was upset because he wasn't ready to get out of the bath...or maybe he didn't want to get dried off and be all wrapped up in a towel...it could have been anything that he was upset about and he didn't have the words to tell you so he did the only thing he knew to do and that was to strike out at you. Help him find a better way to vent his frustration. Dont let HIS frustration fuel YOUR frustration...relax and help him...it will get better....I promise you!!

This is just 1 form of "Tantrams". I have 3 children and they all did things a little differently.We have the no hurting rule in our house too, my son used to try the slapping thing but I would just grab his hand and say no in a very serious voice. I really don't think they "mean" to hurt, they just don't realise what they are doing as their motor skills are still new.
M. F

I would sternly and loudly say "No hitting Mommy!", if he hits again I'd put him down and walk away AFTER saying what I said the first time. If he were to hit me a 3rd time within a close time frame, I'd say it again then slap his hand.