Believe it or not, head banging is very common in children. In fact, as many as one in five children do it at one time or another. We most commonly see head banging in kids between 6 months and 3 years of age; boys are three times more likely to head bang than girls.

Although this behavior is stressful and upsetting to parents, it is considered a normal childhood behavior. As in your case, the biggest concern that most parents have is that their child is going to injure himself and cause permanent brain damage. This is simply not true, and there is no scientific evidence to support such a claim. Children at this age are generally much too young to generate enough force to cause any real damage. In fact, the pain of head banging likely prevents them from hitting their head hard enough to cause real problems.

So why do children do it then? For some, it relieves tension. Others use this behavior as a way to seek attention or out of frustration and anger (that is, a temper tantrum). Head banging can last for several minutes or more than an hour.

Most children outgrow this behavior on their own. However, there are some things you can do to speed up the process for ending this behavior. First and foremost, try to ignore it as much as you can. I know it can be difficult, but this is most important. The more reaction you show your child, the more likely he is to continue with this behavior. When he starts head banging, you can try to distract him by engaging him in another activity, such as reading a book or throwing a ball. If this does not work, simply step out of the room and let him continue the behavior alone. If he is using this behavior as part of a temper tantrum over something he wanted, do not give in and do what he wanted, thinking this will stop the behavior. It doesn't work that way. There really is no reason to use the helmet. Although he may cause some superficial bruising of his forehead, he will not cause permanent brain damage.

By using these techniques, you will be gradually decreasing the amount of time he participates in this negative behavior. As he spends less time head banging, he will gradually be more involved in other things and head banging will become a thing of the past. But remember, this effort takes time, so do not expect it to stop overnight. It is likely to take several weeks to a few months to stop. If your child continues to display this behavior after his third birthday, discuss this again with your pediatrician to see if there might be an uncommon cause of it.