Why does he do that?!?

[MeghanPerez]

My parents recently gained custody of my cousin's 18-month-old son. By recently, I mean his mom signed over her rights on Friday and they took him home.

I went to my parents house last night to drop some stuff off for my mom and she and I started talking about his little quirks. My mom is concerned. He hasn't been to a doctor since he was 2 months old. Here are the two things he does that are kinda odd.

- When he is sitting, he will constantly move his feet around in circles. He's done that since he was a baby.

- He will bang his head into things on purpose. For instance, when sitting on the couch, he will lean completely forward and then slam his head back into the back of the couch. One time his mom watched him bang his head into the living room wall for 15 minutes. (Why the hell she let him do that for 15 minutes is beyond me)

The head banging thing causes the most concern. I've never seen a baby do that. It's just so bizarre. And he will do it for extended periods of time. When my grandparents had custody of him, my grandma said he would do it for hours. Again, why anyone let him continue to bash his head into shit is beyond me.

Have you ever seen a child do this? Is this "normal"?

[NDADanceMom]

I guess I would first see if he isnt stimulated enough and its just something to do.  Allowing him to do that for 15 minutes tells me grandma isnt any more stimulating than mom was.  I would make sure he had toys and plenty of one on one attention.  Dont let him watch tv.  Im guessing hes had his limit on that already. 

[notjstasocermom]

YEs I've seen babies do that.

[mommytoeandb]

DD banged her head on the wall. It was normal. Asking the doctor us a good first step.

[MeghanPerez]

His mom hasn't had him since he was about two weeks old. She would go to grandma's once a week to see her son, but only because she wanted money from grandma. Grandma is not in good health, so keeping up with him was a challenge, to say the least. Now that he's with my parents, things will be much different.

Quoting NDADanceMom:

I guess I would first see if he isnt stimulated enough and its just something to do.  Allowing him to do that for 15 minutes tells me grandma isnt any more stimulating than mom was.  I would make sure he had toys and plenty of one on one attention.  Dont let him watch tv.  Im guessing hes had his limit on that already. 

[Ktina11]

For some reason, banging their head is a normal thing for young children. I was under the impression it helps them create a sense of the boundary of their own body. Check with the dr. but I am confident the head banging thing is normal.

[Master_Debater]

My dd is almost 4. She still does that with her head cause she thinks it's funny. She's a goofball.

[JulyBabies]

I am sure that it is somewhat normal...until a child is allowed to do that for 15 min. at a time, regularly. I imagine that there could possibly be some damage. I am sure your parents will take him to the dr. but be sure they tell the dr. his history.

[jltplk25]

My son went through that phase but never did he bang his head that much. It could be a stimulation thing. Good luck!

[GagaNTattooS]

My son used to run into walls..

[Cognito]

Does he seem to be developmentally on track otherwise? Head banging is a common phase, but not typically to that extreme. It sounds like there has been a lack of interaction & stimulation. I'm sure your parents will be taking him to a ped, but they can also contact your state's early intervention program for an eval if they have concerns.