9 Month Old Son Suddenly TERRIFIED of Bathtime

It's a phase. I remember when my kids wouldn't sit down in the bathtub so I had to wash them standing up. It'll pass. Try filling the tub when he's not in the room or having him play in the tub with clothes on and no water.

My little one did the same thing! She was fine after about six weeks and now loves bath time! It will get better, just hang in there and be patient!

They have a swivel seat that you can suction to the tub. It holds him sitting up and no slippage. That doesn't address his fear - but yours! When mine were freaked about about bath I took a bath with them. I didn't take them in the room until the water was finished running. And I put lots of new colorful toys in the tub. I held them and we sat down together. I held the trembling little koalas until they either loosened thier grip or at least let me wash them. Eventually they let go and start playing again.

So Normal it doesn't stop at 9 months he will do it again when he is a yr. between 16 & 18 months the crying wanting to get out of the tub water being turned on washing the hair.Try to keep him occupied sing to him have a few play toys let him splash around it is short lived also keep it short for him get him wet washed rinsed done...

Unfortunately your son will only come around when he is ready. He may have had a bad dream or he may have had some tiny mishap that went unnoticed by you but has traumatized him. My youngest son was the same way. Here are some suggestions for the meantime. Keep your cool, if you have anxiety or stress over the bathing troubles he will sense it and it could cause things to just get worse or last longer. Purchase one of those bath seats for older babies or an inflatable tub to go in your bath tub. Let him see it and play with it with no water to begin with. Then if you can get him in the empty tub with no crying, wash him with a rag from the sink, just as if he were a new born. Once you guys have this routine down see if he would be okay with playing in the water without bathing. Such as cups or bowls of water outside or sitting in the tub. Eventually he should began to feel safe again and you can move back to regular baths. Just remember that it is more important for the two of you to have your peace and sanity than it is or him to have a full on immersion bath every day. He won't be afraid of baths forever and you can shorten this phase by helping him out.

I should add that he may have something medical going on that causes bath time to be painful or uncomfortable. If you think this could even remotely be the case he should see his doctor to be checked. Even if the doctor says he is healthy, you know it is better to be safe than sorry.

Have you tried showering with him. My son used to hate baths, but I showered with him once or twice and he leaned how much fun playing with running water is. After that I put him in the tub and let the faucet run. I of course would feel the water constantly so that I knew if it ever had a hot spot or something. He now LOVES baths!!!

This is a wonderful sign of your son's growing awareness of the world around him. You're not doing anything wrong! It's normal and very healthy. It's actually a milestone like getting his first tooth, or taking his first step. Put some bubble bath in the water under the spout and let him watch the bubbles foam up. That worked for my dd when she did this. She couldn't resist watching when I said all surprised, "OH! Look! Bubbles!" He'll associate the sound of the water with bubbles then, too. I still didn't rush to toss her back in the tub. We played with the bubbles with her toes and just took it easy. How dirty does a 9 month old get anyway? Good luck!

Its a phase! Everyone told me the same thing when my son was screaming through bath - which doesn't make it easier at all! But, know that this too will pass! When it was my son, I would get everything ready before hand, run his bath with him downstairs playing w/Daddy. Then we'd bring him up, put him in, and wash him quick - sing songs and try to play a little. Eventually, he quit screaming and LOVES his bath again! :)

Have you recently changed soaps? Baby's skin is much more sensitive than ours and they will scream if it does not feel soft to their skin. I had a lady come stay with me one time and her baby absolutely shrieked in pain every time she put her into the bath. I kept asking her if I could use my soap and she said "oh no it won't make a difference". So, after two days of this I couldn't take it any more and TOLD her I was going to fix the bathwater for her...the baby started out like normal before hitting the water - fussing because she knew what was coming...but...once into the water she opened her eyes and started cooing!! What a shock to the mother to all of a sudden realize that she was needlessly torturing her baby. What did I put into the tub...Shaklee Basic-H...three drops.

Munchkin has a blow up duck tub that is much smaller and easier to control than the large slippery tub. The duck might make it fun for him too - it quacks.

IT's a phase, it will pass! In the meantime, put him in the shower with your or your husband

I think it's a common stage a lot of them go through. I always sat on the edge of the tub with my feet in the water to hold my son before he could sit well by himself. He always LOVED baths. But a few times it was like he suddenly realized the tub seemed awfully big and he felt awfully small. Just a few times I took a bath with him. Then when he was about 1 1/2 yrs old, he got spooked about baths again. For a few days we did showers instead, but then he got over it and wanted baths again.

Oh, been there and got through that, twice! Take it slow, do sponge baths, go back to the kitchen sink, with lots of towels every where to catch the splashes. A bath tub with a squirming child is not safe for either of you, tubs are slippery when wet. Babies don't really get that dirty that they can't be clean in a sink with a washcloth and a small directed cup of water. Don't push the issue or you'll end up with a fear of water with can result in years of swim lessons to get over. If he freaks out, listen to whet he is communicating to you and find ways around what he is resisting, to get to your goal of a clean, healthy, well adjusted baby.

Good Luck!

I have never personally had this issue this my oldest who is now 5yrs, but when he outgrew his infant tub we bought this inflatable duck from Target that you put inside the regular bath tub and fill with water. It's beak would squeek when squeezed, it has a temp indicator on the bottom and if he lost his balance his head would simply hit the soft air-filled sides. He loved it so much that we bought a second one for our 4 month old and can't wait to use it! Hope this helps!

I agree that it is a phase. My son goes through this on a pretty regular basis. He has a love/hate relationship with bath time.

I did find out that he is super sensitive to warm water. Water that I think is totally fine, and water that his little brother sits in with no problem is just too hot for him. Maybe try making the water a little cooler than you normally do?

Bathtubs are so huge to little kids. Put a laundry basket in the filled tub. Put your son into the laundry basket...bathe as usual. Smaller space into which he is contained might make all the difference.

Try getting a toddler tub, Ikea sells nice ones for about $7, they are really great and you will not need to hold on to him constantly and he will not be afraid of falling or going down the drain!

We recently went through this with my daughter (6 months old). She got too big for the infant bathtub, so I was just holding her for a couple baths- she freaked. I found a bath seat that has an arm-thing that hooks on the side of the regular bathtub- only about $20, but wonderful!! She loves it, and can sit and feel secure without me having to hold her. We only put a couple inches of water in the tub and a bunch of toys to distract her and it has been great!

Baths can be sooo slippery! My advice is to get a bath mat that he will like (fish, cars, etc) - so it will stop him from slipping and he will feel more comfortable sitting in that huge tub. Hopefully it will get his mind off of his fears and help with safety, too....Also, I distract my daughter by giving her toys ahead of time when I know she is not going to like something. She has just started crying when I try to put her in the car seat - once she is in it, she is fine, but I figured out that if I give her a toy, she will be too busy playing with it to notice getting put in the seat....just a suggestion - hope something works for you!!

I used the Munchkin Bathtime Duck to bathe my children all the way up to about 18 months old when they got to big for it. They loved it.
http://www.target.com/Munchkin-32201-Duck-Bathtub/dp/B000...

Something else is that my daughter at about that age became afraid of bubble bath. We found it out it was the excessiveness of the bubbles all at once that she was afraid of. Some kids just all of a sudden do not like certain sounds. If you can get a shower head or something like that so that the sound is different when you start the water, it might help.

Try getting into the tub with him. Put in some bubble bath, blow bubbles for him, squirt some shaving cream in the water for him to play with. Anything to make it fun!

Maybe you could take him in the bathroom while the tub is running-and go back to using the baby tub for a little while longer?

It could be just the size of the bathtub scares him. It's slippery and probably a little loud. Try getting a bath seat or one of the inflatable tubs that fit in the regular bathtub. It may help him feel safer. Good luck.

We used a bigger sized infant tub inside of the bathtub until they were at least 18 months old. There is also a duckie one I think. It is normal for him to go through a phase where he hates the tub. Don't force it too much. Cut down on the baths to just a few a week and do a quick spray down. Eventually he will find a toy he loves that he can take into the tub or the fear will go away as quickly as it came on.