Could toddler biting be signs of autism?

Question

My 2 year old bites his older brother who is 4 out of anger when they fight or when he wants something from his sibling. He bites pretty hard where he leaves bruises, I have taken them apart when this happens tried everything but he still does it. The other day he bit my 12 year old nephew he left a bite mark it was red. Also when he gets angry he screams so loud it’s like he has anger issues. I have 4 other kids and none of them ever showed these type of problems. I’m a stay at home I’m always home with my kids I never go out or leave them with anyone else that would make me think he’s getting this behavior somewhere else since he’s always  biting his siblings when he gets angry. My sister thinks he might have autism but he’s a pretty normal kid, hits all his milestones, it’s the anger issues he has where he gets very angry he bites and hits, he screams so loud as well.. could this be autism?   He’s the youngest from all his siblings sometimes his other siblings do pick on him but it’s usually the other way around. Idk I’m just a stressed out momma and trying to figure out how to deal with the biting 😕

Answer

I would consider Occupational Thearpy, Behavioral Thearpy, and a developmental pediatrician. Look up big little feelings on instagram. Imo it sounds like he dosen't know how to express his feelings and that is his way of releasing that feeling. He needs to be taught tools to deal with his aggression. First he needs to understand what his feelings are age appropriate of course. He is angry then stop and breathe, then communicate with words ect. The other children in the home need to be on board as well.

Answer

That’s really normal. Not all kids do it, but it’s also very common behavior. My sister and have a similar age gap and she used to bite me (the older sibling) all the time at that age. She also didn’t have great expressive language until after 3.5, so that was probably part of why she bit: big feelings and didn’t know how to get them out (and she is a neurotypical person). 
You’ll have to keep redirecting and try to anticipate situations that might cause the screams and the biting and cut them off before they happen. Eventually, with guidance,  they’ll outgrow the behavior. Some of it is temperament though. My sister is still quicker to anger than me, but that’s just part of who she is. Obviously, now in her 30s, she doesn’t bite people she’s mad at anymore :).

Answer

On its own no and unless low functioning its too early to test for autism anyway. Biting is completely normal though and sooooo many kids go through a stage. As a nursery nurse some tips we use to manage biting is to remove the child from that situation. If they're playing in one place and they bite just quietly and calmly move them somewhere else. If they have a meltdown leave them to it for a minute (so long as they are safe). Put LOADS of attention onto the child who has been bit, but not like oh did so and so bite you. Just 'are you ok', 'did it hurt'. Etc. This bit is age and ability dependant but.after a few minutes talk to the biter, explain how its made the other child feel, you feel etc. But if he wont understand it then keep it simple. Another one we use is to play with them and use lots of praise and positivty and if they fall out (want the same toy.or something) we get in with another coping strategy before they bite. So you see things are getting a bit tense and 'oh look heres another similar toy, we could do this instead' etc

Answer

I will try to share a video that I watched recently.. very informative. Recommend following him great teacher.

Could toddler biting be signs of autism?

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