How can I curb this behaviour?

Daniel is driving me absolutely nuts lately and I don't enjoy him at all because of it.. he has been sick BUT this started before he got sick so I can't blame it on being unwell.

Hes always been a good sleeper for the past couple of years but in the last 3 weeks its just getting worse and worse. Hes gone from 7-7 sleeping to being put to bed, mucking around and yawning his head off, playing with curtains, banging on the door and finally falling asleep at 830ish. He goes to bed at 7pm because he is very tired and loosing the plot. After daylight savings he was waking just before 7, thats fine by us but its been getting earlier and earlier and today it was 520am.

He won't eat his meals properly. Doesn't matter what it is he doesnt wanna eat it even though we eat the same stuff, its his fav foods and still wont eat it.

Every question or request gets met with no, no nooo, NO, NOOO, NOOOOO!!! followed through with throwing himself onto the floor in a tantrum. He use to tantrum once a week type thing. Now its more like once an hour.

If he says something like mummy cuddle and I haven't quite heard him properly and I ask him if he wants a cuddle again, throws a tanty over it.

It use to be if we said no to something, or we will do x soon then that was acceptable, but now its a major meltdown.

DH comes home and says anything to Daniel and he has a meltdown.

I don't get where this has come from. But I'm over it.

Oh actually I have found that smiling at him when I look at him or ask him to repeat himself really helps.
If hes stomped his foot and screamed and I haven't been looking then I turn to him and either smile and say not an inside voice buddy then immediately turn away or I turn to him and smile and say did you want me? I get a good reaction 99.9% of the time. If I've turned away and he does it again I give him another big smile and ask him if hes being a monster then start growling and stomping after him as a 'mummy monster' (yes geeky lol but he thinks I'm a cool mum ) which has him in fits of laughter and we manage to avoid a meltdown OR I give him a big smile and say you need a cuddle come here and he invariably comes running over for a hug and I divert his attention by asking him what he wants to play or if he wants to help me with whatever I have on my list. Its abit of an effort but makes our days alot happier.

Yeah Daniels room only has his bed and his drawers so there is nothing interesting in there, no books or toys or anything like that. Tomorrow if he tries to get up in the hour of 5 hes gonna be told its still night time, put back in bed and I'm shutting the door. I don't care how much noise he makes.

Even when we go out and do stuff, he had a tanty today when we went shopping(he loves shopping) and as soon as we get back the tantys start again.

I really feel like slapping him sometimes (I wouldn't)

....

I got so upset one day that I started hitting the couch next to him and just screaming at him to shut up it can get sooooo frustrating!! I have definitely found the fake happy/calm attitude works well at actually keeping me calm - and deep breathing ignoring him and not giving him a reaction also gets us relative peace most of the time.

Good luck with your appt two_boys!! Hope he holds it together for you!

I really do recommend the tying them to their beds thing. After about 7 months of doing it with Jake hes suddenly through that PITA stage and stays put by himself. It also really helped his sleeping coz there wasn't anything else he could actual do. I'd rather be a 'mean' mummy and have him well-rested than the other myself!

Babe wrote: I got so upset one day that I started hitting the couch next to him and just screaming at him to shut up

It's so reassuring to know there are other people out there like me.

Dan's in bed 1 1/2 hours earlier after the tantrum from hell. Nothing worked and I was soooooo close to losing it. And funny enough, he's quiet.

Anyway, back to the OT ....

Doesn't it just wana make you cry when you hear that Stace??!! Why can't they be like that 24/7?!

Fliss OMG congrats on baby #2 how'd I miss that??!!! Yep hear you on the tantrum - Jake screamed and cried and screamed for over an hour before we managed to get him into bed and calmed down

No advice here sorry, just sympathy. Sam is the same age and doing all the same things.

We're having meltdowns over nothing here and defiant behaviour.

Hopefully three is the magic number!

Well I've sorted some. My hard nose approach to what time we get up in the morning has worked. The first morning he got up at 5:50 wanting to get up. I put him back in bed and said it was still night time. Few major tantys. Soon realised he wasn't gonna get his way and gave up and stayed there until 645am. Which is what I've determined is an ok time to get up. He wants to be up at 630, I want 7, so its in between. This morning I told him once and that was it.

I've figured out that part of it is how DH talks to him. Whenever Dh comes home he gets worse. Tantys are lessening because I've told DH what I've noticed

Just want to say Jakes been a little like this lately too. Definitely "harder to handle" and more tantys. No issues with sleeping, thankfully, but hes always been a good sleeper. But the meltowns, NOOOOs, telling everyone off, yelling at Morgan etc is all happening. DH also seems to wind him up. And he gets really upset at some things people say when we're out (jokingly telling him off etc). Hes never been great with food (fussy), so things are actually improving there, and no problems with eating (hes a big eater and seems to be always hungry!).

No advice sorry ---- but sounds like they're all going through it ......