My one year old bangs his head against walls?

Question

My son who is 14 months old has a habit of banging his head against the wall, hitting, biting, rocking himself, kicking, throwing things, screaming, etc. I brought this up to his dcotor but they just brushed it off as temper tantrums even though he does these things when he is not upset. i can't seem to accept this as just temper tantrums. Am I overreacting?

Answer 1

It's not abnormal for a babies of that age to hit their heads against the wall out of frustration. It often comes of the difficulty of communicating something without speech or other means. I don't believe it is normal behavior, however, if it happens when he isn't upset.

First of all, anything I say is simply conjecture and I don't want to frighten you, but if this kind of behavior occurs often you should take your son to get evaluated by a professional. Insist that his pediatrician refer you. In fact, you may want to switch pediatricians altogether because it's absolutely ridiculous someone would tell you it's just a 'temper tantrum'. 14 month-old babies do not have temper tantrums. They haven't developed the mind set to be manipulative. This is one of the greatest fallacies of people's beliefs regarding children. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise - I have been working with kids for years. Babies that age are either frustrated by the world around them or may have a medical condition. Your son has some signs of what could be autism and until you know whether or not he suffers from it you won't know how to help him and calm him down. Whatever the situation, know it is NOT your fault you can't get him to calm down and I know it must feel terrible for you. It's nothing to with your son not loving you or knowing you as his mommy. There is a reason he is behaving this way and the sooner you find out the sooner you can begin to teach him how to better handle his outbursts and how to handle them yourself. I think you should also take him to an ear doctor to get his hearing checked. Oftentimes children who cannot hear well or are deaf get extremely frustrated and act out in a severe manner. The chances of this are probably under 3% but it should be checked into.

I wish you and your son the best of luck. This may simply be a tough time for your little boy and he is acting out his emotions so I wouldn't worry too much. If you react to his frustration in a frustrated or angry manner yourself it will only make things worse. Make sure he doesn't hurt himself - pick him up or put him in his playpen - but NEVER as a punishment; it is important you stay with him and talk to him so he understands you're not going anywhere, you are just protecting him from hurting himself. Do not give him extra attention when he acts out, though, or he may feel it is a way to get attention from you. See if he finds it amusing if you 'pretend' bang your head too and act out. If not, don't continue on that path. Ask him "Do you want juice?" "Are you hungry?", etc. Give him choices and you may find he responds more quickly.

All of the above are possibilities. Have him tested, though, to give him and yourself peace of mind, especially since this is an oft-occurence. Always be kind and patient with him when he is in such a state - he is already upset with himself, I promise you.

Answer 2

overreacting, no. concerned, yes. My son was doing these things for a few months. He thought it was funny to bang his head against the wall, everytime he did it he was watching for the response he got. And he was only a few months older than your son when he was doing this. Now Gabe is 28 1/2 months old and just as intelligent as he was before the head banging and such. I have heard from a few other moms of their children doing the same thing between 12 and 24 months of age. Until I hear differently I am going to chalk it up to a phase they go through and that temper tantrums evolve and change in time. If however it does keep up, I would suggest taking him back in to the dr and demand whatever tests will put your mind at ease.

Answer 3

No, you're not overreacting. Go to another doctor and have him checked out totally including a brain scan. To define a temper tantrum: I the child doesn't get what it wants, he'll throw himself on the floor screaming for 5 minutes and maybe even 15m but when he sees that this behaviour isn't getting him satisfaction, he'll stop. That to me is a temper tantrum. He might have headache he can't yet tell you about. It's time to see a neurologist. Don't give up, doctors are not always right and you are living with him, they're not. Be assertive and good luck, it could be only a little thing that needs to be corrected.

Answer 4

Stop, and do not freak out like half of these pple are telling you to. Those are not necesarrily signs of autism. Yes they are few symptoms, but that behavior is completly normal. I have a 17 month old, who is very smart does all the other normal things for her age, and she does the same thing, or did. It is simply a learned behavior that he has noticed probably gets a reaction out of you. They are very aware of the way pple react when certain things are done, and they learn to repeat what gets a bigger reaction. Try ignoring him when he is doing these things (with in safety reasons) and see if he does not stop sooner. Try and get his attention onto something else. And ask yourself a few questions before you freak about the autistic thing... does he do other behaviors that are normal for his age. is he walking, talking, and does he socialize with other children, pple. If your doc did not seem too concerned then i would not be. It does not hurt to seek a second opinion just to be on the safe side for your childs sake.... but take a deep breathe and realize all kids are different and do weird stuff sometimes.

Answer 5

Why does my toddler purposely bang his head?
Head banging is surprisingly common. Up to 20 percent of babies and toddlers bang their head on purpose, although boys are three times more likely to do it than girls. Head banging often starts in the second half of the first year and peaks between 18 and 24 months of age. Your child's head banging habit may last for several months, or even years, though most children outgrow it by age 3.

Possible reasons your toddler may bang his head:
• Self-comfort. As strange as it may sound, most toddlers who indulge in this behavior do it to relax. They bang their head rhythmically as they're falling asleep, when they wake up in the middle of the night, or even while they're sleeping. Some rock on all fours as well. Developmental experts believe that the rhythmic motion, like rocking in a chair, may help your toddler soothe himself.

• Pain relief. Your toddler may also bang his head if he's in pain — from teething or an ear infection, for example. Head banging seems to help kids feel better, perhaps by distracting them from the discomfort in their mouth or ear.

• Frustration. If your toddler bangs his head during temper tantrums, he's probably trying to vent some strong emotions. He hasn't yet learned to express his feelings adequately through words, so he's using physical actions. And again, he may be comforting himself during this very stressful event.

• A need for attention. Ongoing head banging may also be a way for your toddler to get attention. Understandably, you may tend to become solicitous when you see your child doing something that appears self-destructive. And since he likes it when you fuss over his behavior, he may continue the head banging in order to get the attention he wants.

• A developmental problem. Head banging can be associated with autism and other developmental disorders — but in most of these cases, it's just one of many behavioral red flags. Rarely does head banging alone signal a serious problem.

Answer 6

Yes, my daughter who is now 2 yrs. is still banging her head. She has been doing this ever since she could move her head. She used to do it when she was throwing a tantrum but that has stopped after she hurt her head twice very badly. But she still does it before bed, it's her way of falling asleep. When she was one I also asked my ped's and she said the same thing, don't make a big deal out of it or he will keep it up. But don't worry it will lesson. I have 3 kids and all is fine.............thank god for that. Good luck.

Answer 7

You are not overreacting. This can be a sign of many things. Talk to someone in mental health or another pediatrician. Although it may be nothing or could be something very minor the sooner you catch something and began to work with a child the better off they are. You are mom follow your gut instincts they are usually right!

Answer 8

When my kid behaved like that I would smile at him and he would return the smile. If showed any frustration at his acts he would act out even more. When I fed him and he wouldn't eat I would tell him I was going to eat it. I would say you can't have any. He would eat every meal. If he didn't want to get dressed I would tell him that I didn't want him to get dressed anyway. He would demand his clothes. When he banged his head I would ask if a boo was there yet. He would look at me confused. I would say go ahead keep doing that and a REAL big bump will grow on your head. He would always stop. He's a great kid now. Reverse phycology always works. If you give it to him he won't take it but tell him he can't have it and he'll want it.

Answer 9

You might be. It's true, it might be temper tantrums, because this is pretty normal for a kid his age.

Just for precaution, maybe take him to a child psychologist or check for signs of autism if present...I hope that's not the case though

Good luck!

Answer 10

Wow. I am sorry, but this sounds like very classic autism signs. Change doctors and get him seen tomorrow. Autism needs to be addressed asap so that you can progress your child as far as possible to be functional in the world. I am sorry to be so blunt, but every day counts when you are dealing with autism or another neuropsychological / neurophisiological disorder. I hope I am wrong.