head banging

[claire33]

Hi All

 

Just wondered if anyone else has had this k came home from school today very upset with a bruise on his eye when i asked him what it was off he said he banged it off the table because the lady didnt give him his tablet (when expected i think) he has never done this before so i dont know why its happened now but wondered if anyone else has come across it?

[smiley]

Sounds like he was very frustrated <'> do you have a home - school book? I would have a quick chat with school, and ask them to be vigilant with keeping to the expected timed for things - or if not, tell him why not. My son would find that an incredibly difficult thing to ask about, which would unsettle him. (I've always like the 'iceberg effect' - think you can find it on NAS site - it explains how our children often have a lot more going on that appears...I'll have a look for the link if you can't find it).

 

My son head bangs - i'm hoping it's something he will/is growing out of as it's definitely slowed down recently. Sometimes it's due to pure frustration (he also scratches his face), sometimes it's something he really has no conscious control over - usually mid-meltdown.

 

<'> <'>

[claire33]

Thanx smiley

that link would be great if you can

[smiley]

Here you are hun <'>

 

http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=458&a=5494

 

This one's about Bullying - but not what i'm suggesting - just gives a good example of the iceberg!

Edited February 27, 2007 by smiley

[Kathryn]

Hi claire,

 

Yes, L was doing it a lot when she was really stressed at school and even at home when her anxiety levels were high, or she was frustrated. She would repeatedly bang her head on her chest of drawers - it used to upset and scare me to hear it, but she found it physically comforting. That was a couple of years ago now.

 

We've had one occasion fairly recently where she was stressed at college because there was a lot of building work going on, there were a lot of changes to the normal routine and she didn't know where she was supposed to be. She gave herself a headache and was taken to minor injuries as a precaution. It's not something she has any control over at the time and she finds it difficult to stop. Nowadays it's rare, as she is a lot more able to control her stress levels, or indicate what the problem is before she gets to that stage.

 

K x

Edited March 4, 2007 by Kathryn

[phoebe]

My DS does this also, it started when he was very young. Before he could communicate at all and when he was stilll crawling. He would repeatedly bang his head on the floor even in the kitchen and would graze/bruise himself in the process. We asked around about it at the time (it was way before diagnosis) but were not given much help or advice and assumed it was frustration and that it would stop when he could communicate his feelings.

 

He is 8 now and hasn't actually headbanged for about 5 years. Now though, he will punch himself in the head at times of high stress/frustration/emotional strain.

 

It is upsetting to see and I hate it when he does it. Unfortunately it is a behaviour my dd can be seen copying sometimes - to my horror.

 

I dont think there is anything we can do about it except what we do now and that is to be supportive and loving. To keep learning about DS and what makes him the way he is. To try to teach him strategies for when he is stressed and to reinforce the fact that he could really hurt himself and he is too precious to us for us to want that to happen.

 

<'> <'>

Take care of you

X

[Deedee]

My son does this too when stressed..When he was little he used to run at ME and use me as his 'wall' resulting in my pubic bone being fractured when he was just 3 This continued til he was around 4 or so then he changed to 'headpunching' literally punching himself full pelt with his knuckles on his forehead..Since he became more verbal he doesn't tend to do it as much it normally happens when he says something and we cant understand it or if he doesn't understand something being said to him.He has auditory processing probs and a significant speech and lang disorder and he has sometimes said he does it 'cos my brain don't work..' We find he does it against things i.e walls and doorframes when stressed too.I normally just use a distraction method til he calms down (also known as bribery lol!!)

[Brook]

My son used to do this ALOT, but it has faded a little, if he gets upset and frustrated he will run straight

for the door and repeatedly bang his head on it....it goes right through me and I jump up and stop him,

he has often had a mark on his forehead!!

 

When he was at his old school the TA said he banged his head on the table, she said it in a way that made

me think it was an accident, but when I asked him he said he did it because he didn't understand what to

do with his work.....

I'm quite lucky that he is not physically aggressive to people, but if he is angry with anyone he will not

lash out at them but hurt himself ie...headbanging the door or he will get down on his knees and

headbang the floor.........

 

When I used to do the homework with him he would really get anxious and upset, he would then end

up gritting his teeth and smacking his head on the table.....

 

But like I say, this isn't as bad as it used to be, he has learnt to shout alot instead now..

but he does do it if he is going through a particular difficult phase.... infact it's one of the signs to me

now that he is not coping with something.....

 

Brook

[Karen A]

Hi just to say as others have said that you are not alone.Ben has also head banged on a few occasions when he has been very stressed and frustrated.I know it is very stressful to watch a child you care about headbanging-especially the first time it occurs. <'> <'> Karen.

[donnar]

OMG i have found somewhere im not alone i have kept quiet about this so long because i did not know why he did it. he still punches his self now if he gets fustrated and use to often bang his head on the walls and floor when d was little. i never reolised so many other people have this. thankyou yall

[David Matthew Baker]

I saw this a lot at the special school that I worked at. Mainly from the none aural students or the ones who had major problems with communication. Having read a few books since they seem to suggest it is partially a way to get attention and as it generates a known reaction (and of course ASD kids like things that are routine). Most people when they see a child doing this have the same natural reaction. Try to stop them. At the special school they had special helmets for some of the children who did it reguarly. Others they would take to the soft play area where they couldn't hurt themselves.

[Alexandra]

M does this especially when frustrated or upset,

 

its awful to watch, really scares me that he'll hurt

 

himself or knock him self out, he does it so hard.

 

His Pead says he won't do any damage to himself

 

its more distressing to us as parents... MMmmm not so sure

 

if i can get to him in timeor read the signals

 

i hold him until the moment has passed, i hate it...

 

but so glad reading this that i'm not alone xxxx

[TuX]

have always done this as well,still do it very often as an adult,staff put padding in my room and restrain me to stop me KOing myself,for me it is always uncontrollable,happens when around bad noises-and anything else that overloads the system,also go non verbal for a while.

 

Find out what things the child does not like,and if possible remove them to lessen the chances of headbanging and meltdowns,it could be a sound,a smell,clothing,something that has happened,bullying,or even losing at a computer game.

 

His Pead says he won't do any damage to himself

It is possible to harm from head banging,as the skull is very rough inside and a bang to the front can cause brain injury.

Have had a small fracture on my skull from banging,but no lasting damage.

[krystaltps]

C does it too, though less frequent now that he is older. It only happens when he is very upset or frustrated. He started it at 4 years. He stands facing a wall and bangs the front of his head repeatedly against it - it's almost as if he uses it to try to "tune out", as he seems very calm and controlled when he's doing it. Like Tux, he is also non-verbal at this time. It's usually followed by crouching in a ball and rocking - non-verbal for several hours at least.

Mid-meltdown he will bang the side of his head with his fist, this is usually due to sensory overload.

Because he is usually very verbal, when he is calm afterwards, we talk to him about it - encourage him to use alternatives.

[phoebe]

have always done this as well,still do it very often as an adult,staff put padding in my room and restrain me to stop me KOing myself,for me it is always uncontrollable,happens when around bad noises-and anything else that overloads the system,also go non verbal for a while.

 

Have had a small fracture on my skull from banging,but no lasting damage.

 

Can you remember how you felt as a child or can you tell me how it makes you feel now, if someone were to hold you and try to stop you from doing this to prevent you hurting yourself?