We understand this phase, you are confused and sometimes angry as well, why my toddler hits me? You are having a peaceful evening and suddenly kids start hitting on each other and you don’t understand how to handle this. You are also scared about your reaction toward your toddler’s behavior. Don’t worry we have tried to bullet a few points on How to stop your toddler hitting you which you can refer to and do some steps and let us know if this help.
Why do they hit you?
The first thing is to understand why exactly they are hitting. Is It common among all children of this age or are you doing something wrong? For which the answer is you are not alone in this, this is quite common among toddlers and this can be because of multiple reasons which we have mentioned below
- Limits – this can be one of the reasons they are testing their strengths and in this process, they are hitting you or other kids. Also, there is a high chance they actually don’t understand what is correct and what is not and they are testing you to see if this is acceptable or not.
- Express – They don’t know how to express themselves. Whenever they feel frustrated or angry they don’t know how to express it apart from hitting.
- Bad- They don’t know yet that this is a bad thing. There is still developing their vision to good and bad and for them, it’s just a reaction to what they feel.
- Feelings – They haven’t developed the art of communication like adults yet, they don’t know how to express their big emotions with you or with their friends so the easy way out is to just hit.
Must read: 10 Essentials To Teach Your Kid Before kindergarten
How to handle your toddler hitting you?
Now that we understand why they do what they do, it’s important to understand how to handle toddlers hitting you or fellow toddlers.
- Restrain them with a hug – This is the most harmless solution to this problem, whenever you feel your toddler is getting out of control do a restraining hug. Try to calm them down. This way they will feel a lack of energy for some time and hence will help you with the solution but be gentle in the process, this is not a competition.
- Distraction – Distraction can be another way to handle a situation. Try showing his/her favorite toy or pointing to something else to divert the mind. Sometimes changing the environment can also help with the problem.
- Emotional Support – This needs to be taken care of at this age only otherwise this can be harmful in the adult age. Be there for the kid with all the emotional support and try to teach them to redirect their emotions or how to express them so that they don’t get the wrong way.
- Observe- Do observe your kid for this behavior. Try to prevent it before it happens.
Read More : Learn Baby Signs and Timings – Baby Wave, Clap, and Points
What should you not do when your toddler hits you?
Now there are some major things that you need to take care of while handling a toddler hitting you.
- Spank or hitting back- This is very common or the first reaction of most parents to hit back and teach them a lesson. Parents usually think this is how they will teach them. But this is the most wrong way we have to understand we are indirectly showing how to express frustration and we are teaching them the same just it becomes a matter of strength for them.
- Yelling – Try to understand the emotions of your toddler, and try to avoid yelling at them. Instead, show them yourself as a good listener and show them as a calm person. This is a good way to teach them how to remain calm in frustrating situations.
- Don’t copy other parents – Don’t copy other parents if they are doing the above two points and it’s working for them. Every child has a different personality and we should find a solution accordingly. Also even if they are getting success right now, you don’t know how it’s gonna come in the future.
We hope this reference article will help you with your toddler and you will be able to go through this phase. In case anything mentioned here works do let us know in the comments for other parents as well. Also if you have tried something else and it worked well do share it and we will evaluate and will add it here as your recommendation. Thanks.
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