Irritability and Sudden Behavior Change in Toddlers

During the toddler years, your child is rapidly changing -- physically, socially and emotionally. These changes can include sudden and surprising actions from your toddler, such as sudden irritability, aggression or frustration. While some drastic changes are normal for his development, others are abnormal and can be the result of an illness, adjustment difficulty or more serious problem.

  1. Normal Changes

    • It̵7;s normal to notice some sudden changes in your toddler̵7;s behavior. During this stage, she is becoming more aware of her surroundings and is trying to communicate her feelings and needs while lacking a wide vocabulary. For this reason, you may notice her suddenly acting on her feelings more often or becoming irritable. To help ease these sudden changes, the National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families recommends that you talk with her often about her behavior and her feelings, in order to help her become more verbal and develop a better understanding of appropriate responses.

    Causes

    • Any drastic change in your toddler̵7;s behavior, from sudden irritability to unusual laziness, could be caused by an illness that simply needs to run its course. Changes in behavior can also be caused by any recent changes, such as a new sibling, the loss of a pet, a move or switching rooms at daycare, and your toddler̵7;s behavior should return to normal as his health improves or he adjusts to the life change and receives some reassurance.

    Concerns

    • In some cases, a drastic change in behavior can be the sign of something serious, like abuse. Signs of physical or sexual abuse can include irritability, loss of appetite, sleep disturbance, excessive crying, nightmares or sudden fear of certain people or places. If you suspect that abuse is the reason behind your toddler̵7;s drastic behavior changes, report the suspected abuse and seek help from your child̵7;s doctor. Additionally, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry recommends talking with a professional if your toddler makes frequent physical complaints, has persistent nightmares, throws frequent temper tantrums out of nowhere, is persistently aggressive or threatens to harm himself.

    Monitoring Changes

    • When you are trying to determine the source of your toddler̵7;s drastic behavior change, it can be helpful to keep a notebook recording the instances to share with her doctor. Write down the type of behavior that is unusual, along with any factors surrounding it that could be helpful. You or her doctor might begin to notice a pattern pertaining to the setting of the behavior, the time of day, or the person that the behavior occurs around.

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