My son has started hitting himself in the head- HELP!

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My son has suddenly started hitting himself in the head with an open fist- hard. Does anyone else experience this phenomenon with their child and what can we do?

You would probably get more parental advice if you posted in the parents section of the forum. I hit my head when I am either under/over stimulated (it's complex) or sometimes it is when I am REALLY frustrated. In some cases Self Injurous behaviours (SIBs) are the result of epilepsy. Although I am not suggesting that it is epilepsy, if it hasn't already been ruled out, it is worth checking. I haven't got epilepsy but I still have SIBs. If he is REALLY hurting himself, it might be worth looking for something padded that he can either wear on his hands or head (whichever he tolerates better) to lessen the blows. I have padded gloves because I also have Tourette syndrome which mekes me hit myself.

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I have HFA, ADHD, OCD & Tourette syndrome. I love animals, especially my bunnies and hamster. I skate in a roller derby team (but I'll try not to bite )

Try the Parenting section. Lots of parents there. How old is he? Is this new? Is he sick or in pain? Did something change? Can he tell you? Is he doing it frequently? Or just for a fairly obvious reason? What else is going on when he does it? I'd check with your ped for sure just to rule out sickness or seizures.

My daughter hits herself if she's extremely frustrated. Mostly I don't see it because she does it at school. I've just held her hands until she calmed down. Then I tried to find ways to deal with the frustration.

My daughter will hit herself in the head if she is in a major meltdown. Best to try to avoid what is causing him to hit himself. With my daughter it appears to be when she is "mad" at herself or disappointed in herself like when she has a meltdown over something that she did not do perfectly or when she cannot do something she has previously done. She will also do it when a meltdown occurs due to too much sensory overload-like washing her hair and gets soap in her eyes-then she will hit herself. Restraining her will make it worse so you just need to give calm reassurance and avert your awareness then talk about it when they are more calm.

I've done that when I've had severe meltdowns and felt like everyone hated me or something horrible was my fault. I try not to do it now, and have learned to lessen my meltdowns to a great extent.

When I do it, it's not like I think I deserved to be punished but I lose my words completely and I'm trying to show how I feel. Even if I'm alone and do it, it's like I'm trying to get a feeling out. Not so much show how I feel, just get the feeling out of me, whether in words or in actions.

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I'm giving it another shot. We will see.
My forum is still there and everyone is welcome to come join as well. There is a private women only subforum there if anyone is interested. Also, there is no CAPTCHA.

The link to the forum is http://www.rightplanet.proboards.com

My son is now 10 and has been hitting himself on the head/ banging his head since he was a baby. As this seems to something new to your child, then you should seek professional advice.