2 Year Old Stopped Letting Me Wash Her Hair

I always have Anna fold the wash cloth 4 times, keeping a long rectangle shape and then we place the wash cloth over her eyes. She holds it there while I shampoo and rinse her hair. Perhaps Adelaide could do the same?

A.

Have you tried taking a bath with her? My 2 year old freaked out a couple week ago and I had to physically take a bath with her. As for the shampooing I make a game out of it.

Try having her take a shower with you. My daughter usually loves the bath, but one time (we were running out of time) I had her take a shower with me. We put a little plastic stool in there for her to stand on and she loved it. I didn't think that she would really like the water running in her face, but I turned the shower head so that it would hit her body on the stool. It is a little tricky to wash her hair, but we just brought in a plastic cup one time and another time I just put her right under the water really fast. But it might work.

Hello J. my name is R. and I am a single mom to 2 year old McKenzi and she is doing the same thing so if you get any advice on what to do will you please share it with me?

Hi J.,

Have you tried getting in the tub with her? Maybe she would feel safe tilting/leaning against you to rinse? (Wear a bathing suit if you'd feel more comfortable that way.)

Other than that, I would try washing hair as infrequently as possible. Kids just don't have the icky adult sweat and hormones that we do and don't need the same level of being scrubbed, in my opinion. Especially in Colorado!

i can relate to this all to well. My daughter was bron with a full head of hair that went down her neck and never lost any of it, so we have been battling hair since the day she was born. My daughter went through several phases like this and finally I started having her take showers with me instead of baths because they were quicker and she didn't mind as much. Try playing games with her shampoo, get a mirror and see all the funny ways you can make the shampoo on the hair do. My daughter is four and we just did the locks for love(11.5 inches) and it has been so much easier with her short hair because like I said we batted everyday to wash and do her hair. Hope this helps!

Look around and see if you can find a bath visor. It should protect her face and ears. Have her try cupping her hands over her eyes or ears, whichever she hates more. Ask her to put a washcloth over her face, or at least her forehead, if you can't find the visor.

I've gone through this a few times, and there's always a different solution. Currently, my girls like to pretend they're Ariel and sing (ah-ah-ah.... ah-ah-ah...) while they lay down in the water. Once, it was the visor. Once, it was pouring.

Good luck!

J.,
Have you considered getting the rinseless shampoo? I believe they have it at Walmart or maybe one of the pharmacy stores. It may help to the point that you only have to struggle with the bath tub washing once a week or so at least it would reduce stress. Or maybe (okay this may sound strange) but if she is afraid of getting in her eyes or getting water on her face try a scuba mask like the ones that you wear in the pool, you could make that fun for her like she is swimming or something...

Hi J.,

Honey, I agree with just letting her cry. The wash cloth idea was a great one as well. You must not give in to your child, they are not in charge! My 4 y/o grandson did this for a while until he knew he had "no choice" but to just cry, and he got tired of that. Don't give in!

Blessings to you.
C.

My daughter had the same issue - she decided that it was o.k. as long as she has a washcloth (sometimes she gets it wet, sometimes it is dry) to cover her face while I rinse the soap out of her hair. She also asks for a dry towel when we are done so that she can dry off her face. Maybe this will work.

Hi J.!
I think it's amazing that you have tried so many things to help Adelaide enjoy her hair washing. One trick that you could try, would be to give her a choice. Ask her if she wants to hold the washcloth or rub in the shampoo. If she picks the shampoo, you hold the washcloth and let her do her thing. Then you can say it's your turn and she holds the washcloth and you rub the shampoo in all the way. I think giving choices lets kids feel in control even though you are giving her specific boundaries. The hair is getting washed- period. I hope this helps. P.S. Try to give choices leading up to it too. Do you want the water this temp or warmer? Do you want toys, or bubbles? Do you want to lean back or lay down? Do you want to wash your hair first, or your body first? You get the idea. Good Luck!

Both my kids went through this. After trying rinse cups, lying down, showers, "look at the ceiling", etc and the only way I could get them to wash their hair was just to wash and rinse with them crying. I tried to be as quick as possible. They both got over it within a few weeks. It probably sounds terrible, but after exhausting everything else, it was the only way they'd get clean hair.

Good luck!

Update: I had an idea last night while washing dishes...if you have a sprayer on your sink, you could have her lay down on the counter and wash it as if she was in a salon.

My girls went through this too. I taught them how to use the shower and got a new double shower head where one was detachable. They take showers more often than baths now and are very good at washing their own hair and rinsing it out without getting the shampoo in their eyes.

You might have already tried this, but it worked for us when my little girl decided she didn't want her hair washed out of the blue. We put Barbie and My Little Pony's in the tub. First we washed their hair and then it was my daughters turn. It worked almost instantly. By the third night there were no more problems. We also used the washcloth to cover the toys faces. Now before I rinse she grabs her washcloth and there are no problems. Good luck!

J... i feel your pain. I have a 3 year old that loved to get into the tub but when it was time to wash hair she would be in tears as well. There was nothing special that I did to over come the problem, she would cry and cry and I would keep doing it until she learned that it was no big deal. She doesn't mind it anymore. One thing that I noticed as I look back... I had her take a bath with her little brother quite a few times and I let her watch him get his hair washed. I believe it helped.
Good Luck..
S.

My daughter went through a phase where she didn't like the bath but was ok with getting in the shower with me. She still doesn't like washing her hair in the tub much, but is ok with it in the shower. I can pick her up and rinse her hair or use the detachable shower sprayer nozzle to rinse just her hair without getting it in her eyes/face.

I deeply sympathize with you, as I have the same problem with my two year old. I tried the visor, but she still cries. I also tried letting her wash mommy's hair, and encouraging her to pour water on my head, or pour the water on her head instead of me doing it ... but she keeps saying "No mommy!" despite my assurances that it won't hurt and refuses to do it. She seems to have an irrational fear of getting the water in her eyes, bordering on hysteria. Somebody suggested getting a doll with hair, so she can wash the doll's hair while she gets hers washed. I haven't tried that one yet, but it sounds plausible. Good luck, and if you find a solution please share it!

Maybe try one of those foam bath visors...I got a couple at Target I think. HTH!

What I did with my son was get him some swimmer's goggles or a swimmer's mask, those worked great until he got older and started washing his own hair.
Good luck!
R.