2 Yr Old Hates Hair Washed; Need Tips

I had the SAME problem with my 2 year old daughter, with tons of hair! She's barely starting to 'get over it'. I started putting her in the bathroom while I took a shower, and showed her how I tilt my head back so the water doesn't go in my face. I also started using a wash cloth for her to hold over eyes "just in case" the water rolled down her face. I no longer use a cup to rinse her hair... I've been more successful using an extended shower hose (& my daughter has learned to 'trust' that more).
Brushing her out was also always a battle. I've tried several ways to distract her, and the best one so far is flavored chapstick. She will now sit still for a few minutes, while I spray condition & comb her hair. Good Luck!!

I don't know if it'll work for your daughter, but I found that my daughter, who has had issues with water on her face, likes to lay down face up in a shallow bath. It gets her hair wet and I can control the water around her hair to prevent water in the face. I also sing songs I made up about washing hair. The first is...

"There are bubbles in your hair, in your hair (2 times) / There are bubbles in your hair / There are bubbles everywhere / There are bubbles in your hair everywhere."

The second is...

"Wash, Wash, Wash those bubbles (3 times) / Wash those bubbles 1 2 3 / 1 2 3 we wash those bubbles (3 times) / Wash those bubbles away / Away we wash those bubbles (3 times) / Wash those bubbles away."

Sorry I can't add the tune. But, the song helps with timing expectations. We wash until the first song is done and we rinse until the second song is done.

If the problem is that your little one doesn't like water in her face, then I know exactly what you're going through. My daughter hated water in her face from birth. Washing her hair was a nightmare until I bought a bath visor. It's made of foam and goes under the hair so you can wash it without any water getting into the child's face.

Good luck!

I used to hold a dry wash cloth over my sons eyes when rinsing his hair....he did not like the way the water makes his eyes blink:) He is 5 now and still needs his wash cloth but he gets to hold it. You should really give her a bath more often....I used to give my son a bath every night till he was about 3yrs. old....Then I started slacking off (tired of the whole bath time
routine)....maybe 2 or 3 a week and I noticed he started fighting me more and more about taking a bath so I went back to no less than 4 a week. He get more if he sweats or rolls in the dirt alot:)
GOOD LUCK SISTER!!

Mine gets a bath every night and a hair wash almost every night and he still does not like getting his head and face wet. He gets a choice of covering his eyes with a washcloth when rinsing or just scream and cry, either way, he got washed, so he prefers the washcloth! If she likes to stand you could try giving her a shower. We have one of those detachable shower heads so you can control where the water goes. He still holds a washcloth over his eyes during the shower hairwash but it is SO much easier and quicker!

We bought a shower head that has an attachment, and we turn on the handheld showerhead to rinse hair. My 4 year old and 6 year old both take baths this way... and both had real issues with water in the face. Hope that helps!

Have you tried Dora? I had the same problem and Dora solved it. My trick was letting my daughter wash Dora's hair... and making a huge deal of how brave Dora was... Now Dora is a Must for every bath. I don't have to call my daughter anymore, I just fill the tub, announce I'm helping Dora to take a bath, and ask her if she wants to help too. In no time she is inside the bathtub... :) I hope it helps.

Hello Jackie,
I can totally relate. I have a 3 year old with very long hair, and for a LONG time, she hated having her hair washed; she would scream the entire time. I found these special visors (I think I got them at Babies R Us). They have a wide brim and go over the ears and attach at the back of the neck with velcro. It's taken a few times to get her used to it, but now there is no problem with hair washing. I got two and sat in the bathtub with her and showed her how I could pour a cup of water over my head and the water doesn't get in my eyes or ears. I even let her do the pouring for my hair and then for hers. Good luck.
A.

I tell my daughter it is time to swim like a fish and she lays on her back and I support her head with it a little under water then I tell her to tilt her chin up so the front top can dip back into the water. She always has a second washcloth that is dry to wipe any water out of her eyes. When it is all washed and time to rinse I have her stand up and look up to the shower head while I pour water down the back of the hair quite a few times. Then I give her the dry washcloth to cover her eyes while I do one over the front.The tall plastic cup of water works well. I fill it up each time with clean water from the sink. She also likes to put her fingers in it before I pour it to make sure she likes the temperature.
Also it is o.k. to cut their hair even though they look so adoreable and it is guareented to grow back longer when she can deal with it better. Good Luck. D.