my son is scared of taking bath. help?

Question

my son nearly 2 but he is terrified of taking bath.this has just started. he used to love swimming and taking bath. he just now hates it. he is so scared of taking bath now and it is so hard for me to give him bath . 2 weeks ago he slipped in bath and since then he is terrified of bath. when he sees on tv people in water swimming he just screams and runs his bedroom. even hearing the bath water run, he starts to shake and cry and can literally climb out of the tub . tell me please what can i do?

Answer 1

HELLO ( ME AGAİN :)) )

WELL MY DAUGHTER USED TO LOVE BATHİNG BUT NOW SHE CRİES TOO MUCH ESPECİALLY WHEN I SHAMPOO HER HAİR.

BUT I GUESS IF YOU HAVE A BİG BALCONY OR A TERRACE OR A GARDEN YOU CAN PUT A POOL ( ŞU ŞİŞME HAVUZLAR VAR YA ) AND PUT VARİOUS TOYS THAT HE CAN PLAY AND SLOWLY TRY TO BATH HİM İN THAT POOL AS A GAME , GİVE HİM SOMETHİNG HE CAN BATH IN HİS HAND AND TELL HİM A STORY LİKE ABOUT A CHİLD WHO LOVES TO BATH WHİLE YOU ARE BATHİNG HİM.

JUST ACT CASUAL ( OLAĞAN BİR ŞEYMİŞ GİBİ )

Answer 2

When he slipped and fell in the tub, it obviously firghtened him badly and that would probably be due to the fact that he is still hurting from the fall because he may be injured or remembering the painful incident. Little kids don't always know how to say what the pain is they are feeling in ways we understand. He may have a broken/fractured bone. Did you check him out thoroughly after the slip and fall? Did you turn his little hands and feet and limbs this way and that to see if you got any reaction of pain out of him? I mean gently, not twisting hard or yanking. Gently feel all of his little bones and see if he winces. he may still be in pain.

Also, bathtubs don't look all that big to us adults, but to a little toddler? Whoooo! They are huge in their little eyes. Give him sponge baths and make sure to take him to the pediatrician and have him checked out to make sure he didn't break anything. Also, did he happen to get shampoo or soap in his eyes when it happened? Take him in to the doc and for now, sponge bathe him until he feels confident that he won't fall again and you can reassure him that he will be okay. Get those non slip things for the tub too. You should have already had them. You stay in with him, right? So, sit there and reassure him that it is okay and he will be alright. Whatever you do, don't leave him alone. Good luck

Answer 3

Firstly I suppose you must buy a non slip mat and explain to him how this will stop him slipping again! If that fails I suppose get him to join you in the bath til he is happy again! He really shouldn't have been able to slip! I have always sat beside the bath, holding my kids 100% until about 18 months after that when the are sat down i may let go of them, the min they start standing up my hand is on their upper arm supporting them! Even up and past the age of 2 yrs I would not let them stand alone! My daughter was very frightened of baths and never had any unfortunate accidents, she grew out of it eventually! I think taking her swiimming helped too!
I tried bath toys the lot with her and nothing helped! She loves the bath now! Good luck!

Answer 4

Try making bath time fun. Buy some new bath toys, get him some of the colored bath foam to draw on the walls or even some of the crayons. You might also want to get a new mat for the bottom of the tub and talk to him about all these things and ask him for suggestions on what help calm his fears. You have to understand why he is afraid and how he feels to address the problem. Good Luck.

Answer 5

my daughter #1 went through this after she fell in the bath. I bathed with her for awhile and also gave her showers. I also only put a tiny bit of water in the bath (about 2 inches deep) and got a handheld shower and left it running. I would hose her down with the hand shower (excuse for leaving it on) and it would gradually make the water deeper without the noise of coming from the tap. she got used to it and now loves the bath. Daughter number two discovered showers and liked them so much she now refuses to have a bath and makes #1 shower with her. It feels like the effort to get #1 bathing again was a waste of time *lol*.
and I am sorry but I have to say in response to the person saying you should of course be dressed when bathing with your son - he's your child and it is not sexual in anyway to bathe naked with him if you are comfortable with it. My 5 year old daughter still occasionally bathes with her dad while he's naked and I see nothing wrong with it. It's only sexual if you make it that way. And why add to the pile of washing that needs to be done if you don't need to!

Answer 6

I've raised four boys and had two of then go through this. Where they were almost terrified of the bathtub. Don't know why, don't really care because I found ways to get them to take a bath that worked for me.

I started with running the bathwater more lightly, and making a game out of it. I used bubbles, humming, singing, bringing in Tupperware, soap markers and climbing in having a grand old time.

The time that broke my oldest sons fear. I ran the water slowly. (Test the water with the back of your elbow or wrist, children are more sensitive to heat/cold). I put in bubble bath, his favorite toys and had a bubble wand. I started playing with his toys and created enough bubbles that they started to go into the hallway. When all is said and done, he ended up in the bathtub to join in the fun of bubble making. We painted the walls with soap markers and foam, and I didn't have a problem after that about getting him into the tub.

Until he turned 8, then he wasn't afraid. He just didn't want to bother.

Answer 7

My one daughter refused to take a bath until she was nearly four. I had a shallow plastic storage unit, about 2' X 1' and about 6" deep. I'd put the thing in the bathroom, add warm water, have her stand inside it and hold her. Sometimes, I'd put her little plastic chair in it. Another thing I'd do is have her sit in the kitchen sink bathroom sponge bath and give her a sponge bath. Telling little kids not too be afraid just doesn't work when they are 1 year to three and a half.

Answer 8

You can't stop a child from being afraid by frightening him even more, so give up trying to get him into the bathtub and just wash him instead.

I don't know what scared him away from the baths he used to love (it's common for babies and toddlers to be scared that they might be swept down the drain with the water because their sense of scale isn't developed enough for them to realize that's impossible), but whenever a child develops a fear, it's crucial to accept it. It may not seem reasonable to you, but what does reason have to do with fear? You may not share his fear, but you're not the one who's feeling it.

If you're tempted to scoff at his aversion to baths, think about your own fears and ask yourself whether they're all "reasonable" and how you'd feel if you were forced to confront the things that scare you. Do you, for example, like large spiders? If not, how would you feel if someone made you hold one?

It's helpful to tell your toddler when there's (truthfully) nothing to fear, but it isn't helpful to tell him not to be afraid. Saying "The tub is perfectly safe, but I can see it frightens you, so let's just use the sink for the moment," shows your child that you're on his side. Saying "There's nothing to be frightened of, you silly boy," on the other hand, offers him neither reassurance nor support.

Most toddler fears pass as quickly as they arrive, especially if they're handled tactfully. You may be able to speed this one on its way with lots of water fun that has nothing to do with baths and bathrooms. If your son still loves his Mommy swim class or enjoys splashing around in a wading pool, he'll soon come back to bathing, especially if the first few times you put only a few inches of water in the tub and get in with him. If he can't face the wading pool, either, offer him a plastic dishpan and lots of cups to fill and empty.

Answer 9

Poor lad!

Maybe you can play some games with him-a small bowl or water with pots and pans, bits of pasta etc to play together. Then progress to the bath tub such as bathing dolls, playing with water wheels and jugs...so he can see water is fun!

Also in tescos you can buy dora colour changer-it changes the colour of the bath water! Which could be fun for him L:) Give him something else to think about when he's in there! If something has spocked him it may take a while to get him feeling safe again. Maybe for now you can wash him with a cloth rather than put him through his fear everyday. (Although hair may be a problem)!!!

If it gets to worrying then you could always speak to your GP or health visitor for advice.

Answer 10

MY daughter was the same way.Once she loved the bath and one day she didnt like it anymore, its like she got scared of the water.Since then it took a few months but she wouldn't even sit in the tub.I tried everything, ran just a little water, put my feet in it.I just let her stand up and washed her real quick and then in due time she came around .Now she is back to loving baths especially with bubbles.Give it time!!!Its a phase he is going thur ,all will be good again.

Answer 11

Ask the daddy immediately up. If he says no longer some thing occurred, take his be conscious for now, yet to boot ask your son why he would not opt to take a bath. each and every each and every now and then (no longer in each and every case) one of those habit ought to correctly be as hence of a few type of sexual abuse. Like I suggested, no longer in each and every case, yet merely a number of the behaviors presented up a pink flag for me. Ask some extreme questions of the daddy and son earlier coming to any end. with any luck, it turned right into a minor situation with the way his dad bathed him (too warmth, incorrect toys, etc) that dissatisfied him. good success.