Hi everyone. I have an adorable little boy who will turn 9 months old next week. The problem is he recently discovered how to scream....really, really loud. It started out really cute and with a little fake cough, so everyone gave him attention when he would do it. Now he will do it a lot and for a long time...it's not cute anymore. A couple of times I have laid him down in his crib when he is just screaming in my face, but after about 10 min I will get him and he will do it some more. Any suggestions? Some people say he is just finding his voice...what do you think? Other than that he really is a very good baby.
we are going through the same thing with our 8 month old. He thinks it's a game and at first it was hilarious but now it's scaring us especially since we aren't loud people. Everyone we talked to said that distracting him and brushing it off is the best thing to do so we'll try that! Good luck :-)
If you ignore the screaming you will just portray that you are not meeting his needs or vocalizations. My son went through this phase and like most of the phases they go through, distraction works the best to get them over them the fastest. Ignore the screaming and distract him with something else. It's not fun anymore if he can't get your goat.
Unfortunately this screaming phase reoccurs at age 2! Haha
As soon as he starts, WALK AWAY. He's doing it for your reaction whether that's negative or positive. But walk away, show him you don't care. If he does it when you're out, look right over the top of him like you can't hear him. Pretty soon he'll get the point that mommy isn't listening to the scream anymore.
I have a chair in my home for just these instances (we also use it when she whines if she doesn't get what she wants). I put her in the chair (close where you can see him/her and what they're doing, but not right next to you). Unless he/she is doing something in the chair that is harmful to themselves, etc. I let her cry and ignore it. Sometimes she only cries for seconds and is done, others a little longer (especially if she is tired). But you have to stick to your guns. Also remember to praise the good behavior when he/she is done.
My cousin also went through this phase. It doesn’t take long for them to figure out, “Hey, I scream/cry and I get picked up, fed, my diaper changed etc”. They learn that their cries get answered with some form of attention. My cousin eventually grew out of it, but the waiting can be a huge headache. I agree with the other moms in their advice, try distracting him with a toy or something. Once he learns that he will get the attention without the crying and screaming, he will see that it’s not as much fun as he though it was. Like everything at that age, you just have to wait it out. In the meantime, keep a stock pile of Tylenol. LOL.
Good Luck!!
He found his voice...how errr...nice. :-)
Try distracting him. When he starts screaming...tickle him instead. Go grab a book and read. Play with him. Do ANYTHING to change his focus from "wow screaming is really fun" to something else is really fun too.
Kids pick up on how they can get attention from their parents very quickly. My daughter was doing a screaming thing for alittle while. I ignored her and it quite.
