3yearold hairbrushing tantrums

dosed

looking for some advice/ideas/experiences to help with the daily struggle of trying to drag a hairbrush though a 3yearolds hair!

she is usually well behaved and responds well to disipline (naughty step, warnings etc), but throws a massive tantrum every morning without fail about hair brushing. she literally screams herself horse and has to be physically restrained in order to brush it. which is obviosley not an ideal situation and causes alot of stress in the mornings.

have tried lots of different approaches, playing hairdressers, buying nice hair accessories, having tv on/a distraction, talking about it etc. with zero success.

any new advice would be appreciated!

Nevyn

How long is it ?
Have you tried brushing it before she goes to sleep so it is less likely to snarl up ?
Have you tired plaiting it or tying up up while she sleeps ?
Have you tied a conditioner spary to detangle before brushing combing ?
Have you tried getting her to sit on your lap with a book/toy to distract her ?

dosed

How long is it ? quite short, if she were to sit still i imagine it would take less than a minute to brush.

Have you tried brushing it before she goes to sleep so it is less likely to snarl up ? might try that. but it dosnt make a difference when the brushing takes place (ie: early on a weekday or later/afternoon on a sunday), the tantrums are the same.

Have you tired plaiting it or tying up up while she sleeps ? its not long enough to plait or to tie up properly

Have you tied a conditioner spary to detangle before brushing combing ? yes, we use that after swimming/washing hair. her hair is never too tnagely, but she looks an absolute mess if it isnt brushed every morning.

Have you tried getting her to sit on your lap with a book/toy to distract her ? yes, this works until the first pull of the brush and then she goes mad, even when there is another person doing the distracting.

Nevyn

Have you tried to get her to brush her own hair and your hair and a doll/teddy's hair ?
My little one use to be the same but thankfully we got around it, how is she when you touch her air ? Can you stroke it with your fingers or does that have her upset as well ?
Both of mine like getting thier hair brushed and dried by me, it's become part of comforting
and bonding touches.

dosed

Have you tried to get her to brush her own hair and your hair and a doll/teddy's hair ? she likes brushing my hair and dolls/teddys hair. she occasionally will agree to brush her fringe will one of the dolls hairbrushes but thats it.

how is she when you touch her air ? Can you stroke it with your fingers or does that have her upset as well ? she dosnt mind people touching her hair, and she does let me gentley comb it with my fingers but as soon as the brush appears its a different story. she also likes washing and drying her hair (as long as thers no brushing!)

i think at this point she has a really bad assosiation with hairbrushing. that it involves screaming and shouting and it hurts when she throws herself around etc. i really want to break the cycle, but cant seem to manage it. I stay calm and dont get angry with her, try to make it a game, sing songs she likes but she screams and fights regardless

is it just something to put up with until she grows out of it?

Nevyn

dosed wrote: »

is it just something to put up with until she grows out of it?

You sound like a great Mam who has really thought of and tried just about everything , does she have the same aversion to a comb ?

Have you tried buying her, her own brush, letting her pick one out and getting
her a few pretty hair clips and the rule is she can have one in her hair but
it had to be brushed/combed first ?

If all that fails then it could be something you have to unfortunately endure
until she grows out of it.

dosed

does she have the same aversion to a comb ? never tried a comb, might be worth a shot, although id imagine the sensation would be so similar to brushing that she wouldnt like it.

she has plenty of clips and bobbins, and her own brush. she isnt very interested in them tbh, they end up on th dolls more often than on her.

thanks so much for all th suggestions, really appreciate it.

she has two older brothers and has asked more than once for the same haircut as them. maybe thats the solution!

Ickle Magoo

My little girl was the same, screaming & gnashing even when there were no tugs - and when there were?! :eek:

My friend recommended one of these brushes & we haven't looked back. She brushes her own hair now, it's unbelievable! I don't know how it works but it seems to brush out the worst of the tugs almost before it actually brushes through so it doesn't pull.

http://www.hqhair.com/code/products.asp?PageID=1562&engine=&keyword=tangle_teezer_&gclid=CPSdrrf6jZkCFYFA3god0yubag

We got her the hot pink brush & she loves brushing now! May be worth a try if you're at the end of your tether.

hth

siobhan.murphy

the more you make an issue of it the worse its gonna get!put a hairband on her or tie it in a pony tail,stop stressing,she could be playing on you.
take out hair brush tomorrow to brush it,if she freaks just put a bloody clip in and save your sanity!she will hog the mirror befor you know it!

IsThatSo?

If you put some white vinegar in warm water and rinse her hair after washing/conditioning it will help get rid of the knots. It works, I use it all the time on my mop Leaves hair really shiny too

Moonbeam

I hated my mum brushing my hair as a child.
If she has long hair I recommend a paddlee brush or bristle brush,they hurt less:)

traceybere

split her hair in two sides (like you were about to do pig tails) - hold the hair in your hand and start brushing from the bottom - holding the hair allows you to be a bit firmer with tangles and takes the pressure of the scalp.

Johnson do a really good tangle spray - you can spray it on dry hair and it smells really nice

galwaygirleen

My lil one went through the same for a while, I bought her a winnie the pooh hairbrush in dunnes, worked a treat made it fun and let her brush my hair too until she was comfortable again. Found the best thing was to start at the ends and then brush from root so u held the hair so it wouldnt pull.

Maybe give her plenty of notice on when you are going to brush her hair with her very own brush so that she knows you are going to do it and it aint a surprise! hth

Banrion

My niece has this tangle teeezer thing and its amazing. She has very curly very tangly hair.

Zynks

It seems the original problem was that she finds it uncomfortable, but she may have found also that there is a big drama opportunity for her. Some suggestions up there about brushing techniques and alternatives to standard brushes sound good.

About the drama part, slightly unrelated, but my eldest boy had a big issue with getting dressed in the morning to go to the creche. It was a total nightmare until one day we took him in wearing his PJs.... never had a problem again

lostinnappies

It does sound like an adversion to the hair brush (or anything which might look like one) rather then having her hair brushed. The ideas of letting her buy a "special" hair brush her self, choosing it and paying for it, sounds like a good one.