My 20-month-old wakes from a nap in a very bad mood. He is inconsolable even if you give him everything he wants. The moment he gets it, he doesn't want it; then he throws it or pushes it away. As his anger progresses he wants to hurt whoever is holding him. He does this by pulling hair or grabbing and twisting clothing or jewelry. We have resorted to time-outs when trying to console does not work and he tries to hurt us. For the time-out, he is put in a child-safe bedroom alone with the door shut. Of course we are right outside the door waiting. As soon as there is a break in the screaming, we open the door and ask if he is all done. He usually screams "no" and tries to re-shut the door himself. This happens three or four times until he can be coaxed to come out and have fun with us. Sometimes, but not always, if he is fed immediately upon waking his mood changes and we avoid all the upset. But we can never tell if that will work or we will be wearing the food. Are we handling this in the right manner or is there a better way? How long can we expect this behavior to continue?
Read What's the best way to handle our 20-month-old's tantrums when he wakes up from a nap?
