9 Month Old Hitting?

You've gotten a lot of really good advice so far. My Brayden just went through this phase a couple months ago. First he hit out of fun, but then he would hit me hard when he got mad. For the hitting out of fun, I would hold his hand and rub my cheek softly saying "gentle" while I did it. This helped him to be gentle with everyone's dogs too. And it didn't take to long for him to catch on. When he hit me out of anger I would hold his hand, look him in the eye and FIRMLY say no. Then I would put him down and walk away. Of course this broke his heart, and he would cry miserably for a while. It's really hard to let him cry, but you have to do it. When you do pick him up DON'T soothe him. Just hold him. We got rid of the hitting situation pretty quickly this way. But a couple weeks ago he started biting out of anger. He has a bit of a temper, and isn't afraid to show it. I hope your Brayden doesn't go through this too :)

I know! We (and probably every family) went through this with my son at around that age. It is hard because they are so young and it is very difficult for them to understand when you slap his hand and say, "no slapping!".
What worked BEST for my son was for me just to grab his hand and hold it firmly long enough - until he was really bothered by it. (He hated any form of physical restraint) Once he was upset and trying to pull away, I would say "No hitting." And he got the message surprisingly quickly.
I think you just have to find something that really bothers him. It sounds mean spirited, but if he loves to cuddle and while your cuddling he slaps you, then I would say, "no hitting." and put him down and walk away.
It can be so hard! ~ Good Luck!

The most important thing I can say is whatever you choose to do, be consistent. My 16 month old slaps me occasionally, she only slaps me (not anyone else EVER) and it really seems to be a "testing me" issue. The phrase I use with her is "we use our hands to show love" it may sound cheesy, but it works. Usually after I say that, she will stroke my face and say "ahhh". Usually when she does slap I will take her hands in my hands while I am explaining the whole no slapping thing. Your little guy is figuring out his world. If he knows he can get a reaction from something, chances are he'll keep it up for a while, just be consistent and it should die down and hopefully disappear. Best of luck!

This started with our daughter around that age. I had no idea what to do myself so I asked her pediatrician. FYI, when you have a question- be it health or behavior related, a good pediatrician can be really helpful.

Anyway, he said just to ignore it- give no reaction except a firm (not mean, just firm) NO while looking him in the eye, and if you are holding him, put him down and walk away. Let everyone know this is what you want them to do should he hit them. As long as everyone is on the same page, it will work. It worked for us within a week or so if I remember correctly. The reason it works so well is due to the reasoning behind him hitting. He's not doing it to be "bad" or defiant or to hurt anyone- he just wants to get a reaction. If you don't give him the reaction, he will stop.

My 22 month old has begun patting at my face like he's hitting me. I simply take his hand away from my face, tell him "no hitting, that hurts mommy."

he has never hurt me, I think for Sam it's a matter of testing boundaries and may be the same with your Brayden. It took 2-3 times in a row, but he hasn't done it again and he hasn't tried it with my husband.

Just be firm in your voice. you want him to understand you mean business, but not scare him. (my husband still struggles with finding that particular voice)

K., Our daughter (now about 4 ) used to do the same thing as your son. I don't quite remember the exact age but close. What I did was to express to her that it hurt me very much that she hit me and it made me feel sad that she did that to me, and then I would take her hand and rub it up and down my arm (or where ever she had been hitting)and say HAPPY! A long soft sounding HAPPY. And before long she stopped. Now I find her rubbing my arm so sweetly and gentely and will look up at me for acceptence for what she's doing and for me to tell her how nice it feels and makes me feel loved. It worked for us - I wish you luck !! P. k.

I am a mother of 4. I wouldn't be too concerned they are learning and realizing new things everyday. He will outgrow it, it is a stage he is going through. Just say no and be consistent every time he does it. I have a 2 year old and there was a period of time where he would bite his sister and cousins, and we would put him in time out and say no very strongly and that didn't work, until the little cousin started biting him now and now he stopped. So try to figure that out. I wouldn't worry too much.

Oh yes, the hitting! Something that is cute at 9 months but can get very painful and embarassing as they get older!
Nip it in the bud! I think using "gentle" is very good and showing him with your hand on him or his hand on you (if he'll let you). It will also give you something to say when he does hit. We used that when dealing with out dogs-and whenever he seems too rough with them (heck he's two so it still happens) we say "gentle!" and he immediately starts patting them softly.
We also used to act hurt and say "ow, that hurt mommy!" when he hit us. This eventually led to him hitting us and saying "ow!" Yes, funny but not the reaction we were hoping for! It did finally slow down and when he did do it or bite on occasion (this will come too) it was usually when we were playing, so I still acted hurt but also immediately stopped whatever fun thing we were doing.
The most important thing is to not give any positive reinforcement (not matter how cute or funny it is) because that kind of reaction will only encourage him to continue the behavior.
Our son did eventually get it (and it didn't take very long), and does not hit at all now and is quite gentle with the dogs.
Just remain consistent and he should be fine!