Has anyone popped their child?

Unfortunately it's normal at this age and they are looking for a reaction. I have also done it though so please don't feel bad. A great alternative is to give no reaction, no talking, no facial expressions and set her down in a different area with a toy or an activity. Giving it no attention will mean it's boring and not a fun thing to do. They are learning that actions have reactions and if you don't react they will eventually stop. Hang in there momma!

How old is she? Her age matters a lot with this scenario, if she’s still a toddler the aggression is usually normal and using aggression as disciple back can actually make them more aggressive. I would suggest setting stricter boundaries when she hits/bites tell her in a strong tone “hitting/bitting hurts and we don’t do that to others” and physically separate yourself from her to where she can’t reach you, ik it’s hard and so frustrating but just the fact that you came on here and acknowledged what you did shows how strong you are! Also try speaking with her pediatrician they can give tips on behavior too

@Miranda Thank you so much for responding it makes me feel terrible every time. I don’t want to traumatize her but it can be really rough after a full day of constantly saying “no, stop” or trying to redirect her to something else. I am also 7 months pregnant and I feel bad that I don’t have as much patience as I feel I should. Being pregnant back to back hasn’t been easy. Any tips?

My little one has tried to scratch our face when she’s overly tired/frustrated and we just say a firm no scratch. And put her in her playpen for 1-2minutes and then bring her back out to play. My thoughts are if you do physical punishment they see it as something that is acceptable 🤷🏼‍♀️ I usually try to redirect to “gentle hands” and show her what is okay to do when she does to

I also come from a Hispanic house hold that grew up with physical disciplinary action. My son is 16 months, in a phase where he’ll smack at me when he’s frustrated. I tried popping his hands and it usually makes him hit me more. I’ve decided to wait a little longer on the physical disciplinary action and for now, I’ll grab and firmly hold his arms down to his sides and tell him “no, you don’t hit momma” and I hold his arms down for a few seconds (enough to make him more mad lol) and when I let go, if he tries to hit me again, I do it again. I usually do it twice before he walks away and tries to pitch a fit (one I ignore) when he sees I’ve ignored it, he gets up and goes plays. Hopefully it’ll work for you too! I know how extremely frustrating this phase is! Just know that you’re not alone

I have been there! My boys are only 14 months apart, and being pregnant while having a not quite toddler but not really baby is so so hard. I ended up having prenatal anxiety and depression. I remember I made a lot of sensory bins one day and when we were having tough days I would set a bed sheet on the floor and get one of his bins out and sit to play with him. It helped a ton with the exhaustion and just really getting through the day. Plus, the sheet made clean up much easier for me. We read a TON of books and went out for walks as much as possible too. Two kids close in age is hard, but it is so worth the bond they end up forming.

It's completely normal for babies to hit and bite! It's how they push their boundaries and learn. Unfortunately every time you use physical punishment you are actually reinforcing that behavior. Babies learn by what we do, not what we say. If you're hitting her and telling her not to hit that is incredibly confusing for a baby. Your best bet is to ignore the behavior and direct her attention elsewhere. I'm not saying just let her smack you in the face, that would drive anyone nuts! You can remove yourself from the situation, leave baby in a safe space and "say we don't hit or bite". And give them a second to calm down or distract her with something else. It will pass just like any other phase.

It may be helpful for you to read about child psychology and development. Unfortunately meeting their physical action with a physical action will not address the behavior. Fighting fire with fire doesn’t teach your child to regulate their emotions and model good behavior because you are not modeling good behavior. They will eventually question why an adult is allowed to strike them but they are not allowed to strike others. Respect is taught by respecting your child. Their physical/emotional wellbeing is important to respect. Telling a toddler no- hitting, bitting, scratching. Then ending play/cuddle time to show them their actions have natural consequences, i.e, no one will play with someone that hurts them. You can walk away briefly but always return quickly. Under 1 minute. Leaving them for too long after an unwanted action can imply your love is conditional based on their mood and actions. Which it is not. This is something my mother practiced with my sister who had ODD.

I understand why some parents chose not to pop. For me, it depends on the scenario. If my son tries to scratch or bite, I will pop his hand and say no firmly. He will typically either walk away pouting and whining or just stop the behavior altogether and move on to something else. However, popping is a last resort after a few stern no's. I popped my other 2 children at this age, and they have never shown aggression or those behaviors towards other children.