Baby Biting
Imagine that you are out with your child in the park or somewhere where your child interacts with others of the same age and then suddenly you see something strange in your child. Your child has turned into a little vampire! The first action that every responsible parent will think is to discipline their child. Which is normal but there is a better way of handling the situation.
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Biting is always a normal habit for any growing child. This should be a shock to any parent especially the first time parents. Your child will always bite for different reasons. Children are very curious and hence they bite to see what will happen next. The phase of biting is mainly between the ages of 1-3 years in children. They will always bite anything that is somehow attractive. Something encouraging is that after this age they will outgrow it.
Biting is something that you really want to discourage your child from practicing. Don’t be stressed, there are some of the ways that you can apply to stop your young vampire from biting.
Why Does A Baby Bite?
- Teething
Some babies just don’t bite for the sake. Your baby might be teething and hence he will go for biting so as to soothe the irritating gums. Don’t always mistake your baby but understand him first. To prevent him from doing it then provide him with an alternative like a frozen bagel or a teething ring to chew.
Sometimes you might find out that your child is not teething yet he is biting. He might also no be anxious about anything which is another cause of biting. When you notice this kind of behavior early, and then try to stop it at the early stages before it becomes your child’s habit because it may be dangerous.
Biting should not always be considered as a game of any sort. Your child’s relation with his siblings can be sometimes very dangerous because they might treat biting as a game ending up giving the baby a love bite at some point. Always make sure that when your child bites no is there laughing at him and this is mainly the older siblings. What you should take care of and never try to entertain is using your child’s biting as an excuse to give in to his demands. Always ensure that your child’s daycare understand your approach and are ready to follow them.
Other Reasons
There are many reasons why children bite and when they do so it is not always with a bad intension.
The first reason is that your child can be biting because he undergoes a lot of pain. Teething is part of your child’s growth process but it is somehow painful to them. Your child will try to relieve the pain by biting on any object that they see. This is because of their swollen gums that are kind of itchy.
Secondly, children are naturally explorers. Most children can do anything so as to explore their surrounding. The children mostly use their hands to explore their environment but similarly they use their teeth very well. Anything that they always touch will automatically end up in their mouth. At this age, the kids are not able to prevent themselves from doing that because they are still very innocent.
Most children always bite so as to see the reaction that will follow the action. They do it on their age mates or even their older siblings not knowing the amount of pain they are inflicting on them. This is the part of their exploration and curiosity. The sound of pain or exclamation will surprise the kids and they would want to do it more.
Attention seeking is also one of the major reasons for biting in kids. The kid can see that his parents are ignoring him in different ways and this will make him bite. This one is one of the bad behaviors but the kids will rather go for it even if the attention is negative.
Children also get frustrated like the grown ups. The only problem is that it is hard for them to show their frustrations through words. They will go for biting so as to alert you on something, for example if he is hungry or wants his toy back. The kinds can also use biting as a means of communications to the other kinds telling them that thy do not enjoy their presence.
Part 2: What to Do When Your Baby Bites?
If it’s about not having the language skills then always try to translate them into words, for example your child might be angry with you. This is important because you are helping your child express his feelings in the appropriate ways. Always try and reinforce your child hen he uses feelings in any way and then always ensure you give your child age appropriate choices because this will reduce their biting.
Your child can be disturbed by things such as the TV or lights or even certain activities. The moment you notice this turn off the source of his disturbance. Ensure you take your baby out at the most appropriate time like when he is full. Always inform other cares about the situation of your child and again provide your child with the most suitable environment. Don’t forget to comfort your child when you see the problem. For example give her a hug.
If your child is experimenting on biting then you can take a very firm action on your child, for example explain to him unemotionally that biting is bad and then turn to the victim and comfort him. Always try and explain to your baby the dangers of biting showing him what he has done has led to crying of another person.
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If your child needs more play then you should set aside some time every day for that, for example after meals. Ensure that you tell the other care takers about it so that it can be a continuous process. You can also go an extra step and include activities into the child’s daily routine for example some jumping before bed.
Sometimes your child can be over tied and will require some extra rest, take an action by increasing the amount of rest b some minutes for a few weeks.
Part 2: What to Do When Your Baby Bites?
If your baby is teething then make sure you have a cool teething ring to prevent him from biting others
Make sure you provide your child with things that can make them bite if they miss.
When your child grows old enough encourage him to use words instead of biting.
Give your child a lot of your time so that he does not bite so as to get attention
Always praise your child when you see that he is doing a lot of good things. For example if he is not biting his friends or his siblings. Be generous with your praise and make sure that you are specific like “good boy”
More tips on stopping a baby from biting
Ensure that you stick to the plan. For any good plan to work, you need attention, energy, consistency and support from the other family members.
Always give clear commands and they should be simple and positive. Children cannot understand if you tell the negatives and so always try to encourage them to leave the practice positively.
When you need any help, don’t rush to the extreme that is the doctors. Instead get advice from the friends and other parents.
For more information, watch this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ3My9EBC60
Part 4: When to See a Doctor
Biting is normal but sometimes it can to a worrying stage. At this worrying stage you need to see specialists who will advice you accordingly.
- Summary
Every child must bite in his stage of development and it is a normal action. It is now the responsibility of the parent to control the action and advice her child accordingly.
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