Hitting Phasehelp
My lvl 3 nonverbal toddler has entered a hitting phase. He mainly hits me and mainly around nap or bed time but it’s starting to increase to whenever he wants something and I don’t immediately figure out what it is he wants. If I’m holding his infant brother he will even try to hit him. Any advice on how to handle the hitting? I know some of it is frustration from the communication barriers but I really want to try and find a way to get past this. I really really don’t want to be dealing with this level of aggression when he gets older and I can’t physically handle it. I’ve read some of the stories here about some of the aggressive behaviors with teen boys with autism and y’all have genuinely got me worried (not that it takes much 😂).
I’ve tried telling him to stop, grabbing his hands and pinning them down at his side to stop him, asking him to show me what he needs instead of hitting, tried to come at it from and empathy approach and showing that it makes mom sad when he hits, things like that. Open to any and all suggestions