My 13mth old son has begun slapping myself and my husband in the face. We don't hit, but for some reason my son has learned this very bothersome behavior. When he slaps us we say "no hitting" in a stern voice. He then laughs and does it again. I've also tried holding his hands down and saying "NO". It hasn't worked and I am a bit embarrassed of this behavior that he has started. I'm not sure how to or if you can dicipline a 13mth. old. Has anyone else had this problem???
J.
I would put him in his crib or play pen every time he does it. If he cries I would wait until he stops and then get him...sort of a time out....but I wouldn't necc do it for 1 minute with a 13 month old...just enough for him to know it is not ok to hit and he will be separated from you every time he does it. Good Luck
Hi, J., you are not alone. My 17 month old has just starting doing this also. He finds it quite funny. I'm pretty much doing the same as you. I tell him "No hitting." "ouch. It hurts." Then I put him down and walk away. He usually cries and follows me. After about 30 seconds (which seems likes 30 hours when your baby is crying for you pick him up!!) I pick him up and repeat, "No hitting". Then I show him (for the hundredth time) how to touch gently. Which he very sweetly does.
Also, it seems he does it when he is being held and is excited. I can kind of tell now before he does it. So I'll hold his hand and say "No, hitting, touch gently" then put him down before he can hit.
It's hard isn't it? It is developmentally appropriate that they are doing this so we can't beat ourselves up over it. No pun intended!! LOL.
Good luck to you.
Kim
My son has done this as well. We started with a stern voiced "NOT nice!", and if he did it again, he would go to his room for a time out. (He started around 2 years or so.) He would have time out for 2 minutes, then one of us would get him, and he was expected to apologize and give a hug. If he didn't, he would be back in time out for another two minutes.
Now, if he does try hitting (mostly when he gets really tired), I'll ask if he wants a time out, and he'll start to shape up.
Hi J.,
My daughter now age 3 and a half used to do the same thing. I think it is the age. I think what your doing is accurate. I think it is very important for you to be consistent and constantly tell him no in that stern voice. Make sure you do not laugh. He knows he has your attention. He is looking for no and say hitting hurts. We don't hit. Eventually, he will realize, he is not getting as much reaction and eventually stop and move on to the next thing.
My daughter went through this phase as well. What worked for us was to put her down and leave her alone every time she did it. Obviously this method doesn't work well if you're out shopping or whatever but if you're at home and he hits you just put him down somewhere safe and walk away. That and saying no like you are already doing are really the only ways to 'punish' a baby that age. Good luck...and remember...this too shall pass. :)
time outs or take a favorite toy away
Oh I am right where you are right now. My 14th month old son is doing the same exact thing. We've tried the same things at you and nothing has worked. Sure hope someone can help. I've also tried distracting him but only works for a little while.
Hello.
I think your son likes the attention he gets when he hits. Try to discourage hitting in the face, but rather give a high five instead. Then with all the positive attention he gets from giving high five's, he will stop the bad hitting. I am a Mother of 3, a 6yr old boy, 17 month old girl, and 5 month old boy. My two oldest tried the hitting thing too. And this worked for me. I know they weren't trying to hurt, so I gave them a positive way to hit-the high five. Now they spend all day high fiving each other wich is really cute. Hope this works for you.
-J.
My son is 13 months old as well- and he started this too. Its not hard but its a habit that i dont want him to get into. So today when he did it, i pretended to cry, held my face where he hit me, and told him that hitting hurts. (he only seems to do it when he is being held and gets overly excited). After a little bit he put his head on my chest and started whimpering like he was about to cry too! Then i told him that hitting was a "No No" and that it hurts mommy. So we'll see if it worked- lol. Good luck!
Hi J.,
I'm going through the same thing! My 11 month old son seems to think it's funny when he slaps me or daddy in the face. I've also tried saying no and holding his hands but he usually just laughs. I notice that he only really does it when he's being held in our arms so now if he does it I say no hitting and face him away from me. Maybe that will help.
Good luck!
My daughter did the same thing and I did the same things to try to stop her, the Dr told us that she does not understand what no means. I say what you're doing is showing him that you're not happy when he does that and he'll learn.
Hi J..
I have a 3 year old boy, and he went through a hitting phase too. He also went through a biting phase. However, it seemed as though he only did these things to people he REALLY liked. The truth is, there is no great way to discipline a kid as young as 13 months. You're doing the right thing by saying "no". But you might find that ignoring the activity will get an even better result. If he gets a rise out of you each time he does it, he is more than likely going to do it again. Be patient. Good luck!
It's completely normal. You aren't doing anything wrong and you have nothing to be ashamed or embarassed about.
Take his hands and say, "Hands are not for hitting! Hitting hurts mama!" and then redirect, "Hands are for XYZ!" (bring out a book, a favorite toy, a lovey.
Do not punish; he is too young. Under no circumstances should you hit back. That will only teach him that hitting is ok and it's ok for a big person to hit a little person.
