My Daughter Won't Go near the Bath Tub

B.,

I know, I know..been there. My son is 2 1/2 also and he use to LOVE the bath, but like chicken nuggets, the pooh airplane and diapers, they are all on the dislike lists...:) (the diapers are another story COMPLETELY!)

One thing that he still likes are the bath crayons. I would draw on the walls of the tub and he would guess what they were. Then he would become Picasso and I could wash him really well. I did not know they had that pitcher that covered his head while I rinsed.. oops. He hated that part and still does.

Now, I have him shower with Daddy. He HATED it at first, second and third time, but now loves it and asks me to "shower me?" He does not like it as well with me, I do not have the technique down like Daddy.

Anyway, good luck and before you know it, she will be "singing in the shower"

AH

my son was the same way, so i started taking a shower with him at first he would scream and cry but i show him that my face gets wet and how to take the water away from my eyes with my hands. also i have 2 wash towles one to wash him with and a dry one to dry his face if water gets on him.. try it, it might work. there may be times where u have to carry her till she gets use to it... hope everything works out..

One out of four of my children did this. So, I go into the bathtub with my screaming child and played and just had fun. (did not wash their hair) The next time I got into the bathtub with her I brought in a toy boat and it sprayed water on top of my hair of head. And then, the screaming stopped. I washed my hair with my daughter and she saw how much fun it was and she wanted her hair washed.

My oldest did the same thing when she was 2. Her problem was she didn't like water in her eyes or face. It terrified her. I started by putting her in the bathtub and not washing her hair - I just let her play. After a couple days of that, I let her hold a rag over her eyes while we washed her hair.

My youngest played with a bar of soap then rubbed her eyes and decided she didn't want a bath at all. (She just turned 2 so I'm thinking this must be a phase that they go through around that age.) I started giving her a shower and putting the bar soap out of her reach. I also bought her a baby doll that she can give a bath too. Within two weeks, she was OK with taking a bath again just as long as she could take a bath with her baby. She occasionally gets fussy, but I tell her that if she doesn't give her baby a bath, she will stink. It is working so far.

I hope things get better for you! Perhaps the shower or talking to her about why she is scared will help! Good luck!

Have you tried to take a shower with her? and if it gets bad enough how about a spinkler or an outside little pool? Good Luck

Maybe try taking a shower with her. My son wernt through a stage where he didn't want to take a bath, so he got to take showers with daddy...and LOVED it!!! Now that he has a little sister (he's 2, she's 10 months) he likes to take baths again.
Hang in there, she won't always hate the tub.

Sounds like you are rewarding her unruly behavior by not making her take a bath as you tell her. Unless something traumatic occurred that has caused her to fear the tub, there is no reason why you should not make her take a bath. To me this sounds as if she has a little too much power over you. Developmentally, if you allow this behavior she will continue to refuse "normal activity" that you prefer to do what ever she "wants".

You know, I have had the same problem with my 5 year old since he was about 2 years old. He too, loved baths from birth until then. He would actually fluctuate between being afraid to take a bath, then a month or two later would love them again. There is no telling what has caused her to be afraid, it could be anything from just being afraid of the water to being afraid that she will go down the drain like everything else. My son would lose it when I let the water out before HE got out, and the toys would have to come out first also. As far as only washing her hair twice a week, I wouldn't think twice about it. There is nothing wrong with that or washing her down everday with a wash cloth and soapy water from the sink. I would definitely keep trying the bath though. One day she just might decide she likes it again.

Also, if you think she might be afraid of the water getting in her face or eyes, like the other post suggested. I have found a great invention that I bought at Wal-Mart. It is a water pitcher that you use to rinse their hair with. It has a little piece of plastic/rubber in the front. You put it against their forehead when you getting ready to rinse, and it forms a seal, so that the water doesn't get in their face, it just falls down the back and sides. I got it in the same section where you would find baby bathtubs and stuff. Hope that helps! Good luck, and I hope things work out for you guys!