Bathtime Problems

My Son did this too. He loves bath time but for a few days he did not want to get in the tub. I ending up taking a shower with him and he loves that. But I did get him back in the tub, I bought him some of those tablets that color the water. I let him throw them in the water, and he loved it and wanted to get in the colored water. Try something new in the tub to get him in. And now he is just fine, he does not need to be convinced to get in the tub. Also, let her sit on the side of the tub and make the decision to get in on her own.

Maybe something has happened that has scared her or maybe she is just wanting to try to control the situation "throwing a tantrum", she needs to know whom is in charge so to speak. Have you taken her to the dr., maybe she has some discomfort sitting in the tub?

I've never had this challenge, luckily, but i have heard that some kids can become (temporarily) afraid of the tub because of the water going down the drain. Their little brains make them think they might go down the drain with the water. Could be one reason for the bath time resistance. Have you tried taking a bath with her for reassurance?
Just remember--"This too shall pass!"
Good luck,
K.

Try getting into the bath with her. I know some people are weirded out by this, but it's worth a try right? Good luck!

We went through the same thing... it lasted a couple of months. I don't think it's anything to worry about I really chalked it up to asserting ehr independence. I got one of those hand held shower heads that you can attache to the spout.. actually made it fun again and she liked having more control in helping wash herself. We are back to liking baths... but she still takes some 'showers' and then loves telling everyone what a big girl she is.
I wouldn't worry to much -- try the 'shower' thing, worked like a charm for me.
Good Luck!!
C.

I have read that children around that age can start to be afraid of things they were previously fine with. One thing I read regarding sudden fear of the tub is they will go down the drain like the water does. Perhaps you could try reassuring your daughter this will not happen to her. Good luck.

I had the same problem with my daughter not too long ago. It's a phase that they go through I think, especially if she's afraid of peeing in the tub or has a rash. I've taken to letting my daughter take her little plastic stool into the tub to sit on while I bathe her. Sometimes she doesn't ask for the stool but when she does I don't see anything wrong with it because I'm always supervising her. Best of luck to you!

Hi B.,
I would recommend checking to see if she has private areas are red-my daughter was sensitive in the tub once when she had a small rash (I could barely see) it cleared up in 1 day with a little Vaseline. You might want to run this by your doctor in case there is an infection. Bath products can cause these. Best to rule out a discomfort or infection first.

The answer to your problem is simple, but not encouraging. Your daughter is almost two! I have a 4 year old boy and a two year old little girl and I can tell you that it is common for little ones to decide something is all of the sudden not ok, fun or exciting. The best thing to do is give her a choice of when to take the bath: now or 5 minutes? Give her a choice about which toys to use. Which washcloth, do you want bubbles or not? Should you get out now or in 2 minutes? Do you want to let the water out or should mom? Give her every choice possible and maybe some special bubble bath or shampoo to entice her into the tub (my daughter loves soap that has the disney princesses on it) and hopefully she'll turn back into the child you used to know. My guess is that you will find a lot more cooperation with EVERYTHING if she feels she has control over a lot of stuff. Hope that helps :)

My son did this at about the same age. He did not want to take a bath - he was a big boy. We actually let him take a shower. We turned the shower on pointed straight down so only him back got wet (not face) and used a cup to rinse him. After a few times we decided the tub was more fun with toys and there he stayed until he was 4 and started taking showers daily.

Hope it helps, Nicole

A little about me: Married, high school teacher, 3 children: Son 5 years old, Son 4 years old, Daughter 3 years old.

all three of my kids went through a stage when they hated their baths--I think it was all around the age of two, I'm not sure what brought it on but I kinda figured it was a control thing, my youngest son is three and likes his baths now, but hates getting his hair washed. she'll grow out of it.

Maybe if you took a bath with her...... I know that was always a great inticement for my children when they were small.

Hi B.,

My 2.5 year old son was 18 months old when he started to go through the exact same thing. I looked it up online and was surprised to find that it happens to many, many toddlers! It happens out of the blue, leaving parents completely baffled! I think this may have lasted for about a month, probably a little less than that. The real problem was trying to wash his hair--he screamed like I was pouring hot oil over his head or something. I don't remember exactly how he got over it, but I do remember just trying to make bathtime seem like such a fun thing to do; oh, and I'm pretty sure there were plenty of bribes too (hey, you gotta do what you gotta do.) I also switched from giving him baths from evening to earlier daytime hours; it kind of threw him off a bit, but it seemed to work. I also would let him take showers like "mommy and daddy"; he STILL thinks showers are a fun alternative every now and then (we pretend it's raining on him.) To this day, for some reason he enjoys the water pouring on his head from the shower when he stands under it himself, as opposed to him crying when I try to rinse the shampoo out myself with cups of water. It doesn't matter if the water is constantly running in his eyes; it's almost as if it's okay because HE is the one in control.

If you haven't already, you can also try buying some of those bathtub crayons or other crazy products out there that are supposed to make bathtime more fun. Or maybe you can let her wear her bathing suit and tell her she's going swimming; kids seem to enjoy the simplest "adventures."

Good luck, and remember, this is just a phase and it will pass!!

Is she irritated down there from maybe some bubble bath or something? I know girls can be very sensitive from things like that. Good luck!

Try giving her a bath maybe a 1\2 hour to an hour before the time you usually give her a bath. She might be telling you in a toddler way that she doesn't want anything to do with a bath at that particular time anymore. Their like that! Not that I'm an expert by any means its just that I notile my 14 month old with things that she was a customed to since 3 -5 months, she doesn't want anything to do with it now. It's crazy how quickly they change their mind. Very frustrating. Good Luck

completely normal. I have three kids all of them did it. My 25 month old is on and off again with it lately. one minute you would swear she is scared to death and then fine. But most kids do this and it lasts a few months. its annoying, this i know, but bare with her. It will pass soon enough.

We have gone through the same thing and now my 2 1/2 yr old takes more showers than baths. He loves to stand under the warm water and I just reach in and wash his hair and body. Good luck.

T.

We didn't have the problem at bathtime but at story time. It could be a power struggle with the order of events ---- that leads up to bedtime. Perhaps it might be better if you mix up the routine. Like do bath right after dinner and do something else inbetween bath and bed. We were doing bath books then bed but he started to want more books and then want to be rocked (at 2 years old - he was never rocked to sleep before) he was using stall tactics not wanting to go to bed. Now we do bath have a small snack then bed - we do books right after dinner or we read during lunch time. Now he goes to bed with no hassels. I realize you are dealing with bath not bed but like I said try mixing up the routine a little see if that helps.

You may want to check that she doesn't have a rash in her private area. If there is is will burn terribley to sit in the bath which may be causing this. I had the same problem when my daughter was little. Hope you discover the problem and things get better!

Hi B.,

My son went through that exact same stage when he was around that age (he's now 3). Nothing unusual happened with him before that would cause him to act like that. It freaked me out the first night, but then I thought he was maybe just tired or something. It lasted for maybe a week and then he was fine. Now he loves to "swim" in the tub. It must just be a stage that these "babies" go through. I'm sure your daughter will outgrow it soon.

Best of luck!
~E.

Sounds like it could be normal toddler behavior, but it could be a urinary tract infection. I'd get it checked at the doctor because it often doesn't have any symptoms until it goes to the kidneys and causes high fevers. My daughter has had 2-3 UTIs and it's always been hard to tell, esp when she couldn't talk and tell us what was going on. The only way we could tell was that she didn't want to get in the bath. In hindsight it was clear, but we just thought she was being stubborn until the high fever came.