My Son Headbutts

Give him an alternative to headbutting and give him words to express his dissatisfaction. "You are frustrated because the blocks keep falling down" and show him how to blow out hard or squeeze his hands together really hard as an alternative. This will take a long time, but keep talking using words like frustrated, angry, upset, tired, etc. to help him identify his feelings. it is really easy for him to express himself by headbutting, so it will take time for him to develop these new skills of using words and squeezing or blowing. Repetition is key. Good luck.

Hello R.,
My little girl used to do this at about 6 months to 10 months. She doesn't do it any longer. It seems to be fairly normal for small children. I really don't know what stopped her, she must have just outgrown it.

My now 5 year old did that from 8 months until about 3.5-almost 4. He still does it once in a while.. I tried EVERYTHING to stop it and nothing helped.. Even moving him to a pillow(he would move the pillow and hit the hard floor) or his bed(he'd move and hit the wooden rails instead). So far, no serious damage done though. And we're talking a kid hwo had continious bruises for 3 years.

As far as I can tell, it's just something they have to grow out of.. You can try putting him on your lap and reflecting his feelings(tell him 'you are angry/frustrated/whatever'). Distract him/use redirection when ever possible. I recomend this site for some great ideas: http://www.parentingweb.com/discipline/disc_index.htm

Dear R.,

Go on the internet to: Head Banging - Dr.Greene.com

I just did and it is a wonderful article that will tell you lots of intereresting things about head banging.

Yes, it is normal, says Dr. Greene. C. N.

My son headbutted too and I was also worried about him hurting himself. Barring some kind of issue where kids purposefully inflict pain on themselves , headbutting is a fairly normal way for kids to work out their frustrations/problems. I did a little of research on google :-)

I always left him alone during tantrums and let him work it out. During a tantrum on a new type of floor that was harder than he's used to, he banged his head and realized that he didn't like the way it felt. He almost never bangs his head anymore unless he knows it's a soft surface. The tantrums have subsided since it doesn't get him anywhere with me anyway and only surface if I've kept him out past his naptime/bedtime.

I wouldn't worry too much about him hurting himself as it only takes once (maybe twice) for them to get that it doesn't feel good anymore.

I have a two year old that does some of the same things. And the only thing I can say is he will grow out of it once he learns to talk.

They get so frustrated that they don't know any other way to communicate that frustration.