Baby Loves to Bite Mommy

My son is 16 months old, and we have gone through the same thing. I think it started at about 9-10 months. He only bites me when he is teething, but he still does it to get my attention. I tell him "No Bite," and walk away for a minute. I will then come back with something for him to chew on other than Mommy. It upsets him that I walk away since he was trying to get my attention by biting me. I want my kids to learn that they can get my attention by positive behaviors, and praise them (a lot!) for doing so.

oooh I remember this...when my son did this I found it was a times when he was really excited and it did not seem like he knew what else to do so he bit and man did it hurt!! Yikes...he also did it when we hugged he would bite my shoulder and so I thought he was trying to kiss me too. So I worked on showing him how to give kisses and it went away pretty quick. I am not sure if it the phase was over or if he understood my re-direction. Good luck either way....I have a lot of friends whose kids did this too...hang in there and God Bless!

At that age I would say she is either mimicing something (like kissing) or just trying out a new thing to see what kind of a reaction it gets...definitely not trying to hurt you. When she does it I would just set her down and walk away temporarily...not make a big deal of it or give it any attention, and I'll bet it will go away.

Hi L.,

My son did this too. I can't remember how we got him to stop. I think he just outgrew it to be honest. He mostly only bit me, not my hubby, so I would pass him to someone else as soon as he did it. I think it worked a little bit because he hated to be away from me.

It drives me crazy when people say to bite back. I got that from a lot of people. They are babies for goodness sake! Maybe it works for some people but it was definitely not something I wanted to try.

yeah scream real loud. Actually when my sons teeth were coming in he bit while breastfeeding and my gut resonse was to jerk and scream, that poor itty itty bitty baby was so freaked out. But honest he never bit again, until his friends sat and pinned him at about four years old.

I know not much help, but hoped it might amuses some who have been there. It took me almost all day to calm down from scaring the baby, but man it hurt, like bad.

There are a few ways you can let her know. When my son does it then I will say no no, that hurts mommy and shake my head at him. They have to learn that it hurts you and they shouldnt do it. I just tell him its unacceptable.
Not too long back I was carrying my son and he got mad and bit my neck really hard, it left marks for a bit, and out of instinct I popped his little butt. I felt so bad after that, because I didnt intend to do it. But I have to say after that ,he doesnt bite anymore. He has learned.

Hope you find something that works. My mom always had to bite us back when we were children and she said it worked the best for her.

Just have to find a balance.

Best wishes!

ohh.. my 12 mo old is doing this right now too! infact right before i put him down for bed about 2 hours ago, he bit me really hard on my shoulder!
I have given him something cold to mash with his teeth... like a slice of a pare. it seemed to help a lot!... with the exception of tonights happenings.

I am glad you posted this! My 7 month old bites me all the time. Several times so hard he broke through the skin. He actually laughs after he does it. I say ow that hurts mommy and shake my head and say no bite. Then he sticks out his bottom lip and looks so sad, so guess he understands somewhat. Hopefully this is a short phase! Take care! :)

Mmmm, I know they experience their world through the mouth but I know a mommie who doesn't say much when her baby bites her or her daughter. I'd rather teach them faster by saying "Ow! That hurt. No biting!" (While I gently tap their mouths and frown) I didn't have to do that too many times and it helped teach the child what pain is.