Mums and Bubs
While you are enjoying a beautiful evening with your children and suddenly you see that your toddler is biting his playmate. Unacceptable! You run towards them to discipline your little fellow, but what is the possible way to avoid such situations?
First of all, biting is a very normal thing during the age between one to three years. Still, biting is something unacceptable for most of the parents. Luckily, there are some ways to discourage your little vampire from biting their fellows.
Why Kids Like to Bite?
Before you go for the solutions, you need to realize why children like to bite.
- Pain: The very first and most common reason is the pain. During the period of teething, toddlers bite to relieve the pain because of their tender gums.
- Exploring New Things: Kids usually like to use their mouth to explore new things as compared to their hands. Commonly, they place everything in their mouth. At this age, kids are not able to prevent biting something of their interest.
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- What’s the Reaction: Toddlers love to see the reaction of their actions since they are exploring a whole new world. They bite down the next person to see the surprising face, not knowing the fact how painful it is.
- Attention Required: Sometimes, the purpose of biting is to get the attention of next person. When toddlers feel ignored or you are not listening to them for a while, they do bite to get the attention.
- Frustration: Biting is very much similar to hitting. When kids are too young to express their frustration through words, they bite. For toddlers, biting is a way to show that they are unhappy, they wants to be alone, or they might need something you took them.
How to Prevent Biting
A continuous practice of prevention is required to reduce the habit of biting. Biting is not something that could be stopped in a day or two. It requires continuous effort before you start experiencing the positive outcomes.
- During the teething period, you need to make sure that you keep a washcloth or a teether within their reach so they will less likely bite someone sitting next to them.
- Before going to the playground, make sure that you have completed your child’s requirements including nap time and eating requirements. Also, put a couple of snacks in the bag to give them if they feel hungry.
- When the kid is old enough, allow them to use the words like “that’s mine” or “I am angry.” Try to teach them to use words instead of teeth when they require something in a polite manner. You can also teach them other ways to express the anger like punching a pillow. Also, you might need to give them a break to reduce their frustration level.
- Make sure that you are spending enough time with your kids every day, so he doesn’t need to bite you to get the attention. At different times, you need to give them extra bit of attention as compared to regular routine such as when you have a new baby in the family or moving to a new place.
Biting incident will still appear even after using your best efforts. But, you need to keep practicing and make sure that you never get frustrated. Whenever a biting incident comes up, sit next to your child and tell them that it is not a good thing, but you need to remain polite during all the conversation.
Sometimes, other parents tell you that biting them back is a great solution, which is not a good advice. If you bite them back, they will learn that this thing is acceptable because you are doing the same. So, the key is to stay calm and keep practicing the prevention.
