Biting!!! - Glendale,AZ

After reading some responces I have to say this. DON'T bite him back. He is 15 MONTHS old. This is a normal thing that children at this age do. Not all children, but many. Right now he is leanring from everything he sees, smells, hears and touches and tastes. If you bite him back, what will he learn from that? Keep being firm and saying NO. I know it is very frustrating, my son did it too. He is 18 months now and we haven't been bit for a couple of months. He would make the same noise when he bit as he did when he would kiss.(he kisses with a wide open mouth as many babies do) When he would bite me I would quickly jump back and say "NO biting". I think it would startle him and just stopped doing it after a while. I have worked with children for years and I have heard some parents say that biting back worked for them, but more have said it made the problem worse. Don't give up and remember when it comes to dicipline always keep in mind the childs age and what he/she will get from each lesson. Good luck.

Have you tried biting him back. Not to hard but hard enough to feel the pain. My son uses to bite his brother mainly. So I would bit him back. It hurt me I think more than it hurt him. It only took a few times till he learned how much it hurt. When they are biting other people they do not feel the pain and sometime do not under stand how much they are hurting the other person.

Hi V.- Well, from a child development standpoint, it could be lots of things. Yes, it is a normal occurance for kids his age, but it can also be a sensory thing. I was a developmental specialist for kids birth to three for years before I had my daugher and am now a SAHM. Almost every kid is under-reactive or over-reactive to some sort of sensory stimulus, and maybe your little guy needs to bite. Maybe he has something going in is his little body that biting is meeting the need of. It could be something as simple as he is getting his molars, or maybe he needs the imput on his teeth. I have suggested chewy tubes (see link)http://www.beyondplay.com/ITEMS/T290.HTM
or any teething type toy that you can buy at the store. The chewy tube is good becasue it can get way back in the molar region where the traditional teethers can't. Some mom's have pinned the chewy tube to their toddlers clothing, other's just have it handy, but in 98% of the cases I have seen, the child had reduced or eliminated biting. If he needs the biting imput to his mouth, and you are telling him no, this is going to give him the okay way to meet that need. Please reply if you have any more questions.
I hope this helps.

You should take him to the doctor. He may have a hidden ear infection and biting is relieving the pressure. Sometimes children who bite have something going on in the ears without any other symptoms.

Barb

I don't have any help, I'm going through the same thing! I have a 15mo ds that bites constantly, but mostly just me. I've tried everything: flicking, tapping, bit him back once, telling him no, time-out (off my lap or put him down), redirecting, etc. I've noticed that it's worst when he is tired or hungry or teething, so I'm trying to take care of those needs quickly to try to avoid being bit. I constantly tell him teeth are for eating, not for kisses and give him a kiss. When he bites I tell him no firmly and if he is sitting in my lap, immediately put him on the floor. It seems to help, I don't have as many marks on me!

Hi V.!

One of my friends sons did the same thing. She tried everything. She asked me what I would do if it were my child. I told her she might not like what I am going to recommend. She said just tell me. I told her when he bites you or your husband, as soon as he does it grab his little arm and bite him back. Hard enough to where it is not pleasant but not too hard where it breaks skin. She was so shocked that I recommended that. Two days later she called me and said your not going to believe this but your method worked. I told her I know. In a small child, they do not know that their biting hurts. They dont understand when you say things like stop that your hurting me. They only understand what they know. Which is now he knows what biting feels like. So now he knows that it hurts when he does it. And he does not want to be bitten back. So now it has processed in his mind that if he bites someone they might bite him back. And he doesn't like that. I know this sounds cruel but its really not. Good Luck V.!

Just a thought, but have you tried putting something bitter or mildly hot on what or who he is biting?

My husband's little brother used to always chew up stuff-turned out he was anemic.-(not sure I spelled that right:)