Toddlers and brushing teeth

[jamesglewisf]

How do you deal with a toddler that doesn’t like having her teeth brushed? Are there any tricks you have used? What works and what doesn't?

[41mama]

We went through this big time with my son when he was two -- to the point that we spent $500 on dental work. Then I insisted on good toothbrushing and it was a screaming match every night. What worked for us was a suggestion I got from another mom. She had talked to her son's teeth when she brushed them. I started doing this, and then pretty soon we were telling tall tales about his teeth going to the park playing on the playground while he was asleep. It really distracted him. Others have suggested doing it a different time of the day when you're not so tired. I just read something about this on another forum so I could get some more of their ideas if you want. Christie

[jamesglewisf]

Thanks, I would appreciate any new ideas you might have. Right now we have something that is working, but nothing ever seems to work for very long.

[41mama]

Well the only idea I saw that was really different on the other site (they were having trouble with their 5 and 6 y/os) was to concentrate on one quadrant a night, brush them all but make sure you focus on the right upper teeth or whatever specifically. The other thing I remember reading was that Dr. William Sears (a Christian pediatrician who is attachment parenting in his approach) suggested that one parent gently restrain the child while the other parent brushes the teeth -- with the kid between you as you face each other if you can picture what I mean. The parent holding the child's arms could talk to her and distract her while the other parent brushes. This could be a sensitivity issue -- have you read Raising Your Spirited Child by Mary Sheedy Kurchinka? She has some good ideas about seeing the positive in children who are "more" -- sensitive, intense, (I always forget the others. My ds is intense). Christie

[jamesglewisf]

I haven't done that much reading on parenting. We took a couple of the GFI courses before our first baby was born. When our second came along, she was in the hospital for 12 weeks, and we saw a developmental specialist regularly. She had a nurse practitioner that we could call whenever we had questions; so for the first couple of months at home, we probably called weekly. Then we had a developmental specialist who came to our house for weekly sessions.

The most interesting thing to me was that everything taught in the GFI materials about feeding and sleeping schedules, putting your baby to bed awake, and general baby care was identical to the instructions given to us by the hospital NICU staff and the developmental specialists. We had heard that those things were considered controversial, and then all of those preemie experts said exactly the same stuff.

The nice thing about this was it took the pressure off us when people asked us questions. All we had to do is say that the hospital and doctor instructed us to do it that way, and people would stop arguing about it. It was ironic. If the Ezzos said it, it was controversial; if the hospital said it, it was wasn't.

I remember somebody telling me that the bad thing about the GFI feeding schedule was that many babies wouldn't thrive. I had a 2.5 pound baby and was told by the hospital that I had to feed her on a schedule, even when she went home. Otherwise, they explained, she wouldn't gain enough weight. LOL!

So, to make a long story longer, we haven't read any other books on parenting.

[Carrie Earls]

GFI materials worked great for our daughters, too, especially as far as feeding schedules were concerned. It will be interesting to see how this next one does . . . (I'm expecting).

Neither of my daughters ever lost any weight, not an ounce, when it would have been normal to lose a little right after birth, and then gain it back. They steadily gained, instead. That was a real blessing to me, especially with my first, because I had some real struggles getting the whole nursing thing going. Once established, I was able to nurse my first for nine months, and my second for fourteen months.

My kids are small (and so are we! Bryan's 5'6", and I am 5'2", barely). My four-year-old is now in the 5th percentile on height and weight, and my two-year-old is about the same. But when I was nursing each of them, they were always in the 50-75th percentiles or higher on weight! They were both chubby! They didn't drop in the scales until later.

Loosely scheduled feedings, like GFI advocates, didn't cause them any problems. And our hospital actually sent us home with materials about the importance of feeding on a schedule. Go figure!

Back on the subject . . . my two-year-old doesn't particularly enjoy having her teeth brushed, either. I really haven't figured out a solution, other than to stick with it. That's what I did with my four-year-old, and now she willingly brushes her own teeth. However, neither of my girls was premature. I think you may be on to something by asking people who have experience with preemies about this question. There could be a connection!

[jamesglewisf]

Carrie, you're kind of new to the forum crowd. Typing in ALL CAPS is considered shouting. You only do it when you are mad. You ought to edit your post and change it to bold for emphasis. They way you do bold is to use vB codes. Click on the link on the page about vB codes and it will tell you how to do them. For bold, you put a "b" inside brackets [] to start the bold. To stop it you put a "/b" inside brackets []. I can't do it here or it would just bold it. Don't use the quotes when you type it.

Just a newbie, tip. Don't take it the wrong way.

[Carrie Earls]

If I can ever stop laughing, I'll edit my post. No, I am not offended!

[jamesglewisf]

Actually, if you are talking about brushing teeth, I don't think I have to ask someone else who had a preemie.

[41mama]

Jim -- See my thread on premies. Was this the daughter that was early? Was she intubated? These can make a difference in oral sensitivity or even oral aversion, so you might speak to your developmental specialist if the issue is with your premie daughter. Christie

[Nise]

22 month old boy loves it now.....
I sing to his teeth...
"Brush.. Brush ..Brush..Your teeeeeth Brush...Brush
Brush Your teeth.
brush N brush N Brush N brush"
It's a "Blue's Clues" song and it works wonderfully!!
Dance around and make it a fun time not a stressful time.:)

[jamesglewisf]

It's odd looking back at this thread. Now my daughter loves brushing and flossing.

What a difference a few years can make.