Hour and a half meltdown tonight at bedtime. 🙁
Jonah wanted to drink his 4th straight bottle of milk… he is only supposed to average like 36 oz a day, and he did 36oz in one sitting.
He pulled the milk out again and I told him “no.”
I filled his cup with water instead and that was “it.”
Boom. meltdown.
He hurled his sippy cup across the room. I picked it back up and he wanted to throw it again. I hid it, picked him up and took him to his room, starting his bedtime routine.
He was fixated on his sippy cup but not being able to find it was driving him nuts.
But to his credit, there was not a lot of “violent” outbursts. There was occasional hitting, but nothing like I’ve seen before.
I laid on the floor in his room, waiting for him to calm.
He did tear apart his room, but he was mostly looking for his sippy cup. Normally I would give it to him, but during a meltdown, anything he gets a hold of is getting hurled into a wall or door or window.
So he screamed. And cried. And screamed.
He wanted to go outside his room, but I was laying in front of the door (as I usually do when it’s bedtime to keep him in there.)
Mama peeked in to check on us and Jojo slammed the door on her. Then, he fixated on slamming the door over and over but couldn’t get a good beat on it with me laying in front of it. So he tried to move me.
He got furious when I wouldn’t budge, but again, to his credit, he didn’t get (too) violent.
This went on for about half an hour. Then, between screams, I heard him whisper “up” to me, which is how he requests that I get out of bed, so I finally obliged.
The meltdown ended IMMEDIATELY.
He didn’t get up to try to slam the door. He laid down on the floor of the hallway, exhausted.
So I got into my bed and he followed right behind, not even so much as a whimper. He climbed up in bed and started cooing and babbling, playing with his hands.
Then, out of nowhere, he smacked himself in the face like 3 times in a row. Hard.
After that, he grabbed his hand and “made himself touch himself ‘SOFT’ “as we make him do when he hits us.
I don’t know what to make of that. Sure, it is self-harm, but he wasn’t melting down at the time… and he made himself “apologize” to himself for hitting… so… I let it go…
He was asleep less than a minute later.
He had such a good day until bedtime… it makes me wonder if Jojo might be teething or not feeling well craving all this milk for sustenance. Aside from a bit of a sniffle, he hasn’t exhibited anything to make us believe anything is off.
But he is hardly eating solid food. Even preferred foods.
Will ponder more tomorrow…
Now I get to decide whether to move him back to his bed so I can sleep in my bed or just sleep in the couch…
sigh
Good night.
Original Facebook Post.