What to do about self injuring behaviors

I agree with Foxeee. You need to know why he is doing it and when. If he is frustrated it will be easier to catch than if he is just doing it because it is fun for him. My son hasn't exhibited this behavior yet. He gets frustrated but not violent towards himself. I saw a child do this in my son's school. You could actually see him get upset. First came the withdraw and this look, then he started walking in circles. After he walked back and forth a couple of times he started smacking himself. Had the teacher been paying attention she should have been able to stop it. He just needed a quiet place for a moment. He was getting too much attention and didn't know how to respond. He was six. If you know he is hitting himself because he is frustrated or angry you are halfway there to solving the problem. Whatever causes it needs to be changed. The exact circumstance may not happen all the time but the effect of the circumstance will be the same. If you can see it you can remove whatever the problem is or talk him through it. My son's doctor says my son will have aggressive tendencies because he has a little more than moderate autism.

my daughter was on a med called Tenex and it actually made her worse and it was like my daughter was lost in herself. Since she has been off of it and she gets wraparound services(which I recommend if you are able to get it). We use visuals which we will eventually start to dwindle away but she has a visual of a smiley face holding a finger up to its voice and it says "Nice quiet Voice" and then on the other side there is an adult hand with a baby hand and says "Nice quiet hands", if we can catch my daughter before she explodes it works wonders. But if she is in full meltdown mode we just leave her be until she is calm and then ask her if she is ready to do for exp. participate as a group.

What medication would the doctors use anyway? And when your son hits himself, are you sure he just isn't stimming? Does he hit himself when he is angry or just out of the blue? I would log & note every time he does this so you can manage what sets it off. I do know an older child with Autism that hits his chest pretty hard & he leaves welts on his chest, but the reason he does it, is because he likes the feeling. Now, as for my little one, he is also Autistic & he hits himself on his legs, like a slap when he is told no, or when we have a communication problem. So I'm guessing in my case it isn't a self stimming thing, it's just frustration. Most Autistic children that hit are actually frustrated about something & that is their own way to communicate at that time.. Yes it's very heart breaking to watch, but your best bet is to step back & let him have his fit... unless he starts to really hurt himself & others. It takes time, but soon enough you should be able to read & actually catch what sets him off. Maybe even stop it before it happens... I guess read his q's as best as you can.. It's hard to give good advice because every Autistic is different & I don't know much about your son... is he non verbal? From what I see & hear.... melt downs are mainly caused do to frustration from communication failure. It's so hard for them to communicate. Anyway, find out if it's him hurting himself because he is upset or if he is stimming... go from there.

My grandson does the same thing. He punches himself, slaps his face, bangs his head on any surface he finds and makes bumps on his head from head banging. He pinches his arms and legs to the point that he makes little cuts and bruises on his head and body. He would only sleep 2-3 hours a night. We had to get arm restraints to stop some of the self injuries. The arm restraints does not stop the injuries completely but it helps a little. He has to wear the arm straps day and night even to sleep. My daughter did not want to put him on medication either but had no choice. She would cry all the time feeling helpless and seeing my grandson hurt himself all the time. He's on a medication where he can at least sleep some nights and calms him down a little not completely. Email me and I will give you my daughter's info for some moral support. God Bless you and your son. We love my grandson so much and try to treat him as an angel sent from above....He's so special in our hearts. Sincerely, Luz Chicago Email: luzbarrera@sbcglobal.net