My son is 16 months old and hates getting his teeth brushed. We have tried letting him do it (when he does there is no brushing going on, just chewing where there are no teeth), we have yummy toddler toothpaste, have cute brushes, etc.
A friend recently told me that him chewing should be enough...but that makes me nervous. He just screams and screams when we brush! He is fairly strong and wiggles away, arches is back, closes his mouth, etc. I don't like how our usually peaceful nighttime routine has a brief moment of him being so upset. I don't like to end the day like that and I feel bad for him (am I just a softy?) but I know we have to brush his teeth.
Any advice would be great.
I had this same problem when my son was young and the dentist recommended getting him a spin brush. The ones that are battery operated they are about $5-6 at Wal-Mart. He said that way you know there is at least some movement going on in there. That worked for us. My son has finally over came it. It takes time. Good luck!
Whatever you do, do NOT make it a battle. That will only teach him to hate brushing and then when he is older and it is more important that he actually Brush, he won't do it. Right now it is not as important that you do any cleaning as it is that you establish the habit. I let my daughter walk around the house with her tooth brush when she was about that age and now, at 2 1/2, she asks to brush all the time. I also let her watch me brush and tell her to scrub like I do and she tries to mimic me. She is actually pretty good at it too! She also thinks it tickles when we do the top teeth so there might be some physical reason that he doesn't like it when you do it but he doesn't know how to communicate to you yet what it is that he doesn't like. Just be patient with him and let him get it on his own.
Try letting him wash his hands while you brush his teeth. I dont know its a thought, or give him something to play with while you do his teeth.
My youngest went through this about the same age. We got one of those automatic toothbrushes and he loved it! He would play with it several times a day. This way if he just gets it in his mouth, I figure it's doing something.
Oh, we make it a big deal! It's time, it's time to brush our teeth. We do it in the tub, he is already having a good time in there, and getting messy isn't an issue. Sometimes we brush our tub animal's teeth and sometimes ours too. But, mine thinks it's a treat beause he gets to pick out his toothbrush (we have a few he can choose from that night), and he choose his toothpaste at the store, (trains, vs cars etc...). It's tough. The hardest part is letting him let us double check his work. So, do things like count to 10, take a break then count again (top and bottom).
Good luck
While I brush my teeth I let my daughter "practice" with her toothbrush, then I take care of the spots she "missed." :) I think it helps that she sees me do it first. I also pretend to brush my teeth and my husband's teeth when I brush hers, she thinks it's funny, then let's me brush hers. Sometimes I also make up a tooth-brushing song while we brush. She used to hate it, sometimes it's still a battle, but she's doing much better and actually asks to bush her teeth!
Just keep trying, be consistent, and do it every day - twice a day, and try to make it fun. He'll get the hang of it!
I didn't read everyone else's responses so I apologize if this is repetitive.
We had the exact same issue with our son and here are the two things that we did that made it work. First we would open his mouth and say, "I think I see a shark in there! We better brush him out of there!" (You can insert your child's favorite animal name.) We would keep repeating with a different animal or fish and each time our son would open wide with giggles to allow us to "brush it out of there!"
Another thing that we did was to allow him to brush one of our teeth first. He really enjoyed doing that and it also brought on a lot of giggles. After a few times, then we would brush his teeth first with the promise that if he did a good job, he could then brush our teeth.
That in addition to allowing him to pick out his own toothbrush (we have four or five) has helped tremendously and he is now a very good little brusher!
Good luck and keep us posted on what works.
I understand all the battling...i have one who enjoys battling with me about everything...just do you best not to allow yourself to be engaged in the fight...easier said than done...i know. Set him up with all his materials while you brush your teeth...hopefully the idea will get in there a little bit...also set out a toothbrush and a cup so he can have a little playtime with it while he is in the bathtub (just keep an eye on him so he doesn't try to gag on it or anything)...keep it light and totally non-negative...right now what matters really is forming the habit of brushing...he'll learn better technique as he gets older...maybe if you take turns and let him brush your teeth for a second, then maybe he'll let you get at his real quick--then at least you know they are clean...don't sweat the small stuff--there are far bigger things yet to come!
I had a similar problem with my child. I overcame the issue with brushing teeth by trying to make it into a game and by keeping her amused. We also tried the flouride rinse for added protection against cavities.
