“Why does a child throw tantrums and hit himself?”
My 3-year-old son throws very worrisome tantrums. He will sometimes hit himself or do other harmful behaviors, and he has difficulty communicating frustration. Is that normal? Why does a child throw tantrums and hit himself?
6 Answers
Yes, it's normal to have more negative behaviors when your child has difficulty communicating. It may warrant a speech language consult to see if speech therapy is appropriate.
Thank you for your question. Your query would be better directed at a child behavior specialist. SLPs can help with the communication part however a full assessment by a behavior specialist would greatly help in targeted treatment.
There are various reasons for tantrums. Many times a child who has difficulty communicating uses behaviors to communicate. Other times when the communication demands on a child is too great they have a meltdown. I would recommend bringing your son to see a psychologist or a speech-language pathologist to help with his communication and behaviors.
There are many reasons for kids to engage in tantrums. Such as inability to express wants and needs, or defiant behaviors. If they are persistent and concerning let his pediatrician know about it, he might need a neurological evaluation and/or a speech and language evaluation.
It is very common for a child who has difficulty communicating to show BIG behaviors due to being frustrated. You can work on talking about feelings when he is calm, and show alternatives to harming himself (hitting a pillow, deep breaths, squeezing a stress ball, pushing hands together in the center of his body, etc.). Because he is three use very simple language and a lot of modeling. Also, try to use very little to no language when he is upset, chances are when he is upset he is not processing at that time anyways. If you feel you need to interfere, try short and simple commands and then wait before giving another. There could also be other factors, if this continues after trying some strategies you could seek out help from contacting your local school district, pediatrician, or local clinics for speech therapy.
I would go to your pediatrician and ask about a developmental pediatrician evaluation. What you are describing does not sound typical.
Ali Matisse, MS CCC-SLP
Ali Matisse, MS CCC-SLP
