Toddler tooth brushing

Helenahhandbasket

I have to be doing something wrong.

DD HATES hates having her teeth brushed.  HATES.  Like, I literally have to hold her down, to brush them.  I have tried everything-- letting her pick out a tooth brush, buying her "kiddie" toothpaste, modeled for her, given her a step stool so she can watch me/ her dad do it.

Any ideas?  I have let her just chew on the toothbrush sometimes, but she's not coordinated enough to really do a good job at brushing.

Help!

JackoftheBox

I have no ideas for you. I just let DS brush his own teeth. I model how to do it for him and he mimics me. His teeth are probably all going to fall out.... haha get it... because they are!! <-- lamest joke teller ever

TittsMcGee

I wish I had some advice. I tried everything with DS and he hates doing it.

Sometimes he'll brush it for a little bit but most of the time he doesn't want to do it.

I hate doing it but most of the time I hold him and brush it for him.

[Deleted User]

We have had our fair share of toothbrush struggles. The hardest part was letting go of my frustration about it so I could make it more fun for him.
I sort of followed The Happiest Toddler on the Block technique. Start with praise just for letting you touch the toothbrush to her mouth. That's it for that session, lots of praise then onto something else. Work your way up to inside the mouth, a little brushing, etc each day, keeping it positive and fun.
One thing that makes it fun for W is when I ask him to show me what he ate that day. I ask things like, "Did you eat worms?" Then "Ewwww!" He thinks that's hilarious and let's me brush.
Now that we've established that he has to brush every day I have to be more firm with him sometimes when he doesn't want to brush. I say, "It's time to brush teeth. Do you want mommy or daddy to do it?" He picks me or protests when I start to leave if he hasn't picked, then we go on with the fun routine.
HTH! GL!

eyenigh

I try and make it as easy as possible but some days he just hates it (especially in the morning). It's one of those things that you just have to bite the bullet on and suffer through. I do let him do a little chewing but our dentist was pretty imperative that we have to do it for him to get any real benefits. I've been trying to work with him on learning to spit, which he finds a bit more entertaining but so far all he does is make the spit noise and nothing really comes out.

Helenahhandbasket

rocknrollfriend said:

We have had our fair share of toothbrush struggles. The hardest part was letting go of my frustration about it so I could make it more fun for him. I sort of followed The Happiest Toddler on the Block technique. Start with praise just for letting you touch the toothbrush to her mouth. That's it for that session, lots of praise then onto something else. Work your way up to inside the mouth, a little brushing, etc each day, keeping it positive and fun. One thing that makes it fun for W is when I ask him to show me what he ate that day. I ask things like, "Did you eat worms?" Then "Ewwww!" He thinks that's hilarious and let's me brush. Now that we've established that he has to brush every day I have to be more firm with him sometimes when he doesn't want to brush. I say, "It's time to brush teeth. Do you want mommy or daddy to do it?" He picks me or protests when I start to leave if he hasn't picked, then we go on with the fun routine. HTH! GL!

Thanks-- that's really helpful.  I might have to get that book-- I assume it's the companion to the "Happiest Baby on the Block"?  I loved that book when DD was brand new BTW.

TiffanyBerry

We were in much the same boat, but I refused to hold her down.

Then I let her sit in front of the iPad while I brushed her teeth.  WINNER!  Seriously, I really don't like having screen time before bed, but for me, setting up the tooth brushing habit was more important.

Now, after a year and a half of that, she brushes in front of the screen for a while, then we both go to the bathroom where I brush her teeth in front of the mirror, then she finishes what she was watching.  Some day - in a few years - I will phase out screen time.  But not yet.

hopefulmom81

The berry flavored toothpaste helped us.

I had to lay DD down on her back, straddle her and pin her arms under my legs to brush her teeth.  I figure if she is screaming, at least her mouth is open so you can get to the teeth.  Sigh.

Helenahhandbasket

hopefulmom81 said:

The berry flavored toothpaste helped us.

I had to lay DD down on her back, straddle her and pin her arms under my legs to brush her teeth.  I figure if she is screaming, at least her mouth is open so you can get to the teeth.  Sigh.

This is us every night.  It's serioulsy like an MMA fight.  DD is strong.

meo34

There was no iPAD when DH was a toddler but I think thats a great idea. Also agree in take small steps and gradually build up to full brushing. With DS I had a holder that played a song that he enjoyed. Also used to sing Fred Penner you brush your teeth song and make up funny verses, not only got him to go along but easier to brush as he would laugh and open his mouth :P

eyenigh

2013mommy said:

This has been discussed a lot on my BMB lately. We also hold DS down so I have no advice. I hate to do it but I'd hate for him to get cavities. I am super cavity prone so that makes me nervous. Hopefully DS has DH's teeth. DH didn't go to the dentist for 2 years and brushes once a day and didn't have ANY cavities when I finally got him to go back ... I brush twice a day and floss daily and have had more cavities filled than I can count  

I'm like your husband. I take terrible care of my teeth and they're fantastic-- I've never had a cavity and they're crazy white even after years of coffee, tea and smoking (quit awhile ago). I really have to make special efforts to push good dental hygiene with A because it's so unimportant to me. So far, he's been my carbon copy so I'm going to hope he got my teeth, too.

[Deleted User]

Helenahhandbasket said:

rocknrollfriend said:

We have had our fair share of toothbrush struggles. The hardest part was letting go of my frustration about it so I could make it more fun for him. I sort of followed The Happiest Toddler on the Block technique. Start with praise just for letting you touch the toothbrush to her mouth. That's it for that session, lots of praise then onto something else. Work your way up to inside the mouth, a little brushing, etc each day, keeping it positive and fun. One thing that makes it fun for W is when I ask him to show me what he ate that day. I ask things like, "Did you eat worms?" Then "Ewwww!" He thinks that's hilarious and let's me brush. Now that we've established that he has to brush every day I have to be more firm with him sometimes when he doesn't want to brush. I say, "It's time to brush teeth. Do you want mommy or daddy to do it?" He picks me or protests when I start to leave if he hasn't picked, then we go on with the fun routine. HTH! GL!

Thanks-- that's really helpful.  I might have to get that book-- I assume it's the companion to the "Happiest Baby on the Block"?  I loved that book when DD was brand new BTW.

Yep, that's the one! Some of the techniques sound a little weird at first, and not everything has worked with DS, but we have got a lot out of it.

Tink112011

DS hated getting his teeth brushed for the longest time, but I always told him "Sorry bud, non-negotiable" and we suffered through it together.

Then we were in Target one day and he spotted a pink Hello Kitty electric toothbrush.  He wanted it.  It was about $6, so I said OK.  It changed our toothbrushing lives forever!  The novelty of the electric toothbrush made him happy, and the deal was that he got to use that toothbrush and afterwards it was "Mumma's turn."  Then I'd follow up with a regular toothbrush. 

We also have our routine of songs that we sing while brushing teeth, and somehow it got started that we're looking for a random animal in his mouth.  Every night its something different... alligators, dinosaurs, monkeys, reindeer, etc.  He thinks its funny.

Helenahhandbasket

Thanks for all of the advice!

An electric toothbrush might be something to consider.

Last night and this AM, I let her watch me while I "brushed" my teeth-- I even used her toothpaste and she was a little more receptive, so maybe this will be the beginning of some progress!

Helenahhandbasket

BostonKisses2 said:

At that age, we had a lot of struggles as well.  One of us would pin her down while the other would brush.  We tried to make a big deal out of it when she cooperated, and that helped.  As she got closer to 3, the battles started to minimize, and now she likes to do it on her own first and then let us go over things again to make sure things are really clean.

So I guess I don't have any real advice, just sympathy/commiseration.

I will take your sympathy!