My 5-year old son now has pink eye. Therefore we are doing eye drops 3 times a day. It literally takes my husband holding him down for me to get the drops in his eyes. Yes, he fights it that much. No amount of reasoning seems to make any difference. He HAS to get the eye drops. I am home from work today with him and will likely have to sit on him :) to get the drops in his eyes mid day. Is there a better way to do this?
Thanks for the great responses. Having him lie on his back with his eyes closed and then blinking worked much better! I still had crying, but it was much easier and I didn't have to sit on him.
sitting on is the only way I could get my daughter to do it, until I came up with the idea of bribing. My daughter will do anything for m&ms, even let me put drops in her eyes.
I feel your pain, One of the best ways i found was to have your child lie on his/her back with eyes closed (softly) not scrunched closed. Put eye drops on the closed eyes and then have your child open eyes and the drops will go in! you just have to make sure he doesn't lift his head and then open eyes. I also used to give a special treats for taking medicine like m & m's or piece of gum. And just to make you feel better before I learned this technique I literally sat on my child pinned arms down with my feet to get their eye drops in (it was horrible!)
I agree with Ashley, trying to get a child to keep there eyes open is impossible.
Just have them close their eyes while lying down then place the drops on the lids on the lashes, then tell them "Blink, blink".. All done..
Hi T.-
They used to make an ointment form of the pink eye med...you might want to give the doc a call. I found it easier!!
Best Luck!
Michele/cat
Yes, there is! I had the hardest time getting ANY of those drops into my 2 year old, so I called my ped and he presribed an ointment that you just simply rub on his eyelid/lashes. It worked great! Just call your doc and tell him about your situation. Good luck!!
I had the exact same problem with my daughter. I bribed her. I don't know if this was the wisest choice, but no reasoning would work as well. She loved chocolate, so I would put a chocolate bar in her hand and tell her she could eat it if she layed still. It was still difficult, but she tried really hard and we got through it. She also learned about herself that she was capable of getting through tough things she didn't want to do if she was motivated enough. Since she has learned to do it without the bribe. Babysteps!!!
Unless you wanna tie his hands and feet together, sitting on him is about your only option ... My son had two eye surgeries and he had to do the drops too ... it was a battle, let me tell you. Maybe a close friend could come over and help? Good luck!
First, make getting the drops in his eye easier. All he has to do is close his eyes, you put the drops in the corner of his eye, then tell him to blink a few times to get the drops in. He's old enough to understand so explain that this method is easy for you both and doesn't hurt at all. I have to put drops in my eye every night before bed and that's how I get them in because it is so much easier, and no sudden shock of something dripping into my eye!
Second, tell him if he'll do it the easy way he gets a reward. Give him a treat (candy, gum, cookies, etc), or let him do something that he really wants (play a video game, extra tv time, etc).
The other thing to know is that those drops burn if they get on the iris, but don't really feel like much if you can get it right into the corner of his eye above his tear duct. I would do a heavy duty bribe the first time just to get him to sit still enough for him to realize that it doesn't hurt a lot if you can get it in the right spot in his eye, and then a more minor reward after that.
Good luck.
We had to bribe our daughter, She could get this barbie doll she wanted if she stopped fussing. We also put in some little rewards in between like candy. We would take things away if she didnt behave.
Good luck i have been there too
When my kid used to fight gtts, here is what works for me...
Arms to the side, I snuggly wrap my kid in a blanket papoose style. I then position myself so her head is secured between my thighs. Pop her lid open ...done!
Yes, bribing after the deed is done! But what might also help is have him lay down and close his eyes. Put several drops in the corners next to his nose and then have him open his eyes. The drops will get in and it's usually less traumatic than seeing the scary dropper come at your face.
