Always Has to Have My Hair

I have two daughters, and one son. My oldest daughter would do that, and all I did was give her a doll that had my color hair, and when she would suck her thumb, I would hve her hold her doll, and she would fall asleep with her. I hope that is good advice for you. Good luck!

Buy a wig??? Just kidding. My ten month old has to hold my hair while I feed her a bottle. I'll be anxious to hear if there are any good suggestions out there.

It may get old to have her little hands in your hair right now, but she won't do this forever.
She won't be 17 years old and refuse to sleep without her mom's hair... most likely anyway :).

Our son does the same thing with my hair.
It seems to be comforting - something that immediately soothes him and is a cue for him to calm himself.
Anytime he's upset and i'm around, the hands go straight for the hair - even if we're dressed up or at church or whatever -wet hair, dry hair, fixed up or messy - he's an equal opportunity hair messer upper.
I have short hair that's easy to deal with... that helps.

The way I see it is this -
I should treasure every time those little hands reach for me.
It really won't be long and they'll not be there reaching anymore and I know I'll really miss them.

As long as she's not pulling or grabbing, it seems like a good way for her to use her sense of touch to soothe herself.
It sure beats a million other things kids have to have to go to sleep.
She'll grow out of it eventually.

Just before she falls asleep, you could try holding her hand in yours... still in your hair at first and then moving it- replacing the behavior with one more convenient for you, but still meets her need for tactile soothing. You could also get her a toy with hair she can touch - the goal being providing a replacement for the behavior that still provides the same soothing touch.

Whatever happens, remember that she'll only be little for a brief time - then she'll be all grown up and you'll miss her needing you quite so much.

My son is almost 11 months old and he too has to hold or play with my hair so he can fall asleep. So, if you find something that works, please share!

i totally agree with the first and last response, i have a daughter who will turn 3 on New Year's Day and has to do the exact same thing. and i figure she is not going to be 15years old and need to hold my hair to go to sleep. so just enjoy it and treasure your close time, cause soon, she'll be out of the house and doesn't think she needs you anymore...Good Luck!

That's interesting,my son did exactly the same thing. It came to the point every time I put him down to sleep I couldn't get my hair off his hand without waking him up. This might sound crazy to you, but my solution was; I had a hair braid for extensions, and I clipped it onto my hair. I let him play and snuggle with it, believing it was my hair, so when he fell asleep he had the loose braid in his hand. First time it freaked him out. But since then he snuggled with it every night. It did turn quite messy and tangled after awhile, but he had it until he was 4 years old. Admittedly, your daughter is a bit older than my son was when we started, You might be able to talk to her about it, she's old enough.

My daughter, now 13, did the same thing. Once I even cut my hair off and gave her the ponytail so she could twirl it. But that didn't work, because really what she wanted was me. Your daughter wants to be with you. She won't be 3 forever.
L.

Find her something else to soothe her. You are right in stopping this now as at 3 years old habits become a great deal harder to break. She needs to learn to fall asleep by herself at this age too. Just be firm, just explain she is too big now that you will hold her hand, love her and tuck her in but she is a big girl now and needs to not hold your hair. I cannot even imagine out difficult that has to be for you! :)
Maybe take her and get her a new small stuffed animal as her new big girl friend to help her sleep!!? Good luck. Just know that you have to be consistent and put an end to it pretty abruptly, it may lead to a few nights of fits but in the long run will be a positive for you both.

C.,
I don't have a brilliant suggestion for you, but I wanted you to know that you are not alone (and I'm glad I'm not either). I have a daughter who is 3 1/2 and a son who will be 2 in January, both of them developed using my hair as a soothing mechanism when they were babies. They would hold my hair while I nursed them. My daughter's hair is long enough so that she can use her own, but when she's really upset, only mom's hair will do. My son barely has hair, but there's a little tuft in the back that I've seen him play with. My situation isn't quite as extreme, but at night we cuddle and read stories before bed; while we read they both play with my hair (my son rubs it on his cheek). After the story is over, we get up and everyone goes to bed. I don't know what your bedtime routine is, but perhaps allowing her sometime before bed while you cuddle or read might help her relax and go to bed. Let her know what is expected; she can play with you hair while you read, cuddle, or whatever than it's into bed. On the nights when my daughter is having difficulty sleeping and I have to go into her room to remind her that it's bedtime, when I lean over to kiss her, she'll reach up for a quick feel of the hair. Yes, sometimes it's frustrating, mostly when I'm trying to talk to her seriously and she wants to touch my hair (again, a soothing mechanism). But it also makes me feel good to know that my children want to be near me and want me to help them to be comforted. I'm sure for me it will be a little heart breaking when they no longer do that; to know that they have "grown up" and moved past that need. Sorry to be so long. Good luck to you and your daughter.
D.

I think it's sweet that she wants to be close to you. Does she have a stuffed toy that she really likes and can snuggle/hold instead? Maybe you can explain to her that she needs to let go of mommies hair, but can have a special friend to cuddle with. You could even let her pick one out at the store so she is really excited... just a thought.

What about getting her a doll that has hair? You can still have your close time with here snuggling before bed and show her/let her hold the doll/doll's hair, and then leave her with the doll.... just a thought. ;)