Terrible 2's or adhd??

Asked by fau 4 months ago, 9 answers.

I have a 2 year old daughter who often throws fits and, get violant with me, her father, and her 3 month old brother. She bites herself, kicks people, and rarely listens to anything or what anyone has to say.

Answered by funadvice on Jul 03, 2008, 09:47AM
| 42400 answers.

OMG, my son is the same way sometimes I thought I was the only one! We had to take him to the Dr. because of a fever and I asked what to do. His Dr. told me to completly ignore him. If she hits you and you say ' Ohhh you don't hit mommy! ' She knows she is getting a reaction from you. If she bites herself (my son does it all the time) ignore it! If she is throwing a fit and won't come inside for instance just walk away. When you do ignore them when they are bad they don't get anything from it because you are not reacting to it. I know it is easier said then done but really, try it! I have been doing it for the past couple of weeks and I can really, honestly see a change!
Good luck to you!

| 1 of 1 thought this was helpful

Answered by babylove138 on Jul 03, 2008, 09:53AM
| 613 answers.

I worked for a pediatrician once and he said that every child goes through the "terrible 2's" and it is okay but NOT when the child is hurting others. Just because the child is going through the stage, doesn't make it okay to kick others and hurt them. I think you should just ignore her while she's having a fit, but make it very clear when she kicks someone, that it is NOT okay. Look her very sternly in the face and say NO. If she doesn't listen to you then tell her she won't be allowed to watch tv. or do/eat something that she likes.

Answered by sooitca on Jul 03, 2008, 09:53AM
| 1084 answers.
Advisor-small

mine is four and has been known to bite kick etc. I didn't have it at all with my first. I used the naughty step for both of mine, and it worked. lous calmed right down now - he hate sthe naughty step! and ben always has been, comparativly calmer!

some people don't agree with the naughty step. but it does work if you are consistant about it...

but please don't go down the adhd route - he's perfectly normal for him, some children do bite etc, some don't and they can come from the same gene pool!

watch some supernanny - and take her advise honest!

Answered by ty on Jul 03, 2008, 11:39AM
| 6741 answers.
Advisor-small

you cant diagnose a 2 year old with ADHD... they're 2! the youngest age you can really diagnose a kid is three, and even that I think is way too early, kids have short attention spans and they're hyperactive, it's just who they are! you might want to try somethings the other parents have suggested...

Answered by funadvice on Jul 03, 2008, 02:36PM
| 42400 answers.

I agree - no need to suspect ADHD. Constant and fair attention - lots of good attention for good behaviour, and getting taken away (e.g. 'time out' or 'naughty chair') for bad behaviour should see you all through this difficult but perfectly normal stage.

Answered by sue90 on Jul 05, 2008, 05:04AM
| 2572 answers.
Advisor-small

Dear fau,
They are right...you cannot diagnose a 2 year old with ADHD and in fact without many tests including a MRI they cannot be diagnosed properly. The terrible 2s is really a fallacy. At the age 2 or so they begin to express their frustration with acting out and typically bitting. Many times it stems from a lack of consitancy...adults tend to say no and then change their mind, or say no and keep bickering. When an adult says no it should not be discussed, debated but said with a simple and understandable explanation while you are at the child's level. Children learn what they live and when your behaviour changes theirs will.
Sue...good luck

Answered by xnoonexcaresx on Jul 07, 2008, 12:48PM

I think its just terrible 2's because from what I heard I did the same when I was little and I was tested for ADHD but I dont have it.

Answered by nl83 on Jul 10, 2008, 10:41PM
| 334 answers.
Advisor-small

everyone that said that you can not diagnose a child at two for adhd is completely RIGHT!! Usually kids are diagnosed at around age 5 when they enter a school setting because they have difficulty with structure.
If there have been any changes in a childs environment they can act out, like a new house or a new sibling.
At age 2, she is probably using kicking and biting as a way to show her frustrations since she isnt really able to verbalize them like an older child would.
I would say that anytime she hits or kicks you or anyone else put her in time out or call it the thinking chair. They say to apply the number of years that they are old into that many minutes for an appropriate time out. So 2 minutes would be how long she would stay in time out. Tell her that when she acts like that she needs to take time to think about what she did and calm down.
If she keeps getting out of the area you told her to sit in, keep putting her back.
The most important thing to do is be consistent. If you ignore it one day and then punish her another day she will get confused..so whatever you do, just be consistent.

Answered by melissav on Jul 11, 2008, 07:43PM

I have a 2 year old that is definately in his terrible 2 also! I hate to say it but he is awful! He screams so loud and throws fits and temper tantrums all the time! he bites and hits and is mean to other children at daycare! It seems like I spend more time getting on to him than I do playing with him! I am very consistant with my discipline but it dont seem to be working, so every day I keep thinking its going to get better!

Answer this Question: "Terrible 2's or ADHD??"

Your Answer: HTML is not allowed.


Back to top

Popular questions related to Terrible 2's or ADHD??