Help!! My 3 Year Old Has BED HEAD!!

We had the same issue -- tears and everything. Here's what we did:
1) Washed with separate baby shampoo & conditioner -- NOT the 2-in-1 products, as these create build-up
2) Sprayed leave-in conditioner in her hair and also rubbed in one pump's worth of Frizz-Ease by John Frieda (HUGE difference!)
3) Blow dried it straight
4) Used a large-tooth comb instead of a brush
5) Braided hair every night before bed (though now her hair is doing so much better, we don't do it all the time and it's not that critical.

Good luck!

I make my own detangler by adding water to a spray bottle and then a squirt of conditioner. Works better than anything I have bought and it is a whole lot cheaper!

Use leave-in conditioner. After she gets out of the bath put it on her hair. And if it is still having problems in the morning add more as a detangler as you brush. it also helps to start brushing at the ends and move up a little at a time.

My daughter has the same problem. We've done the water/conditioner thing, and I also will put my conditioner in her hair after washing it with her shampoo/conditioner and rinse it out, that seems to help a lot.

I always tell my daughter that she looks like she slept with ducks in her bed when she wakes up (from one of her favorite books) - it's crazy hair! We use the inexpensive Aussie Hair Insurance leave-in conditioner and a wide tooth comb.

My DD is the same way. Thick hair that tangles easily. The only thing that has worked for us a is a product called "Silk" It's cheap and can be found at Costco, Target, etc. You put a tiny amount in your palm, run it around and run it through their hair when wet. Hair will comb like silk, and even the next morning after a good night's sleep it will be so silky there won't be any tangles. It's by far the best thing we've used. My DD *begged* to get all her hair cut off until we started using Silk. Now we can't imagine life without it. GL!!

I have a 3 year old as well and it is tough. I have found that if I use a detaingling solution at night and then braid it before she goes to bed it is much easier to comb in the morning.

Good luck!

My son gets really bad snarls when his hair is too long and the woman who cuts his hair recommended getting a silk pillow case (we haven't done that one yet) and putting leave in condition right before bed time - which seems to do the trick.

I sooooo feel you on this one, J.! My 2 daughters and I battle about this chronically...I've found that brushing their hair or letting them do it various times a day, especially at night and in the morning, even if it's not tangled, really helps. And you may have already tried this product, but the "cheapy" Suave kids detangler spray (it's a green bottle with an octopus on it, I think) actually works really well on the tangles for us.
Good luck!
K.

My SIL has a wonderful detangling brush. She used to battle with my niece's hair, who's 5 and has very thick, long hair. Since getting this brush (and using a bit of spray detangler along with it), she said the battle hasn't been so much of a battle anymore.

I think it's this one but I will try to follow up with her to be sure:

http://www.amazon.com/Goody-Ouchless-Tortoise-Cushion-Bru...

I have the same problem with my daughter. There are two things I do, First, I braid the back of her hair before she goes to bed. She is super little yet so her hair does not always stay in the braid so on the mornings that it gets all tangled up again. I use an adult detangler by Aquage. The bad part is, it is a salon product and not cheap but it will last for a year at least because you do not need much of it.

Good luck!

I had a daughter that did have ANY hair till she was 3 and by then she would not allow me to mess with it at all. I should have brushed her little head with out hair every day just to get her used to it. Yet some kids have more strong personalities than others. I would talk to your hair dresser about a cut that is easier to handle for her hair type. Long hair is not as pretty if it cant be tamed.

This might not be the most popular answer, but if she is really tender-headed it can hurt a lot to have her hair brushed daily. Depending on how bad it is, I would suggest cutting her hair real short while she is little. My good friend did this with her daughter.....she is still as cute as ever and a lot happier (not to mention mom is too!).

If you don't want to do this, I would also suggest braiding her hair at night and for naps....keeps the tangles out.

Some of my friends have made their own detanglers that they swear by. Mix a little bit of conditioner with water in a spray bottle. Squirt and comb. Good luck!

I have a 2 1/2 year old and use just a tiny amount of Original Sprout Leave-In Conditioner (or have even used tiny bits of my own leave-in conditioner) right after rinsing her shampoo out (Aveeno). I then run a wide tooth comb through while she's still playing the bath. This seems to keep the knots from forming while she sleeps and it's so easy to brush through in the morning (when she is not trying to run away)!

I have one curly headed daughter and another with wirey hair and Biologe daily leave in tonic (it is a spray) works very well for both of them. I wet their hair a little with a spray bottle and then apply the spray in conditioner, massage a little and comb/brush carefully. It makes a HUGE difference. For the younger one I use Suave kids "smoothers" shampoo and a seperate suave kids conditioner. Normally I have not been a big fan of suave hair products, but the smoothers shampoo and the conditioner really do alot to untangle and smooth out the hair.
Good luck to you!

can you put it in a braid before she goes to bed to keep it from getting so tangled?

My son's hair is like that. I always use conditioner. I am using Original Sprout right now - you can get it at Sunflower market in the kids section. It's great. Also, Bliss makes a great conditioner that worked well too. Since using it, he doesn't get bed-head any more.

A wdie tooth comb along with detangling solutin that can be used on both dry and wet hair. My daughter is only 2 and she sometimes wakes up with a knotted mat on the back of her head. I spray on the solution and start small form the bottom and work up. Do nopt start at the top of the head at the scalp.

Johnson's Buddies: No More Tangles, No more Bedhead Easy-Comb Spray. It works great. I started using in on my daughter at 18 mos because she'd have the same problems. There is a little Comb with funny hair and glasses on the front. She thought it looked like a monster, so we called it Monster Spray. We still use it on occasion when she's got extra "snarly bugs." She's almost 5 and still calls it Monster Spray.

Another thing that helped is switching to a shampoo/conditioner combo. We used to use Paul Mitchell Baby Don't Cry shampoo when she was younger, but as her hair got thicker and longer, it wasn't as good on the tangles. A friend recommended Suave. It works great and it is really cheap too! They have lots of yummy smells and the cute bottles make it more fun for my daughter to pick out her own.

Good luck! And be grateful your daughter has enough hair for snarly bugs! I only had peach fuzz until I was 2!

-Shellie

Have you tried using a separate shampoo and conditioner? Also-something that might help if that doesn't work on it's own-try getting a spray-in detangler/conditioner. Spray it on before you brush her hair, or try styling her hair when it's still wet:)

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I swear by the conditioner/water mix....my son has crazy curly hair and it works better than anything!!!

They've got spray leave-in detangler. I wonder if she was able to help you spray her, then you read a book (to let it really soak in her hair), if she'd have an easier time of letting you brush it. I have very long hair & just went old-school with my hairbrush. I've always had the plastic ball on the end brushes (just regular round brushes) & I switched to a natural bristle brush (they're almost always brown/caramel w/black bristles) & my hair is much easier to brush-the tangles are still there but they don't get snagged on my brush like before. I'd switch to a natural bristle brush (brush gently against her head because there's no smooth end on the bristle) & get some fun detangler (I don't remember the brand but the kid haircare in fun summer colors w/crazy "flavor" combinations makes a detangler too.
Try setting a timer. You have X number of minutes to brush her hair & when that time is up you will be done, but she's got to let you brush during that time or you'll have to add time if she fusses too much.
Good luck!

My daughter had a very tender head. Her hair is very thick and she'd get bad tangles too. I told her that if she wouldn't brush it, we'd cut it short so it wouldn't hurt so much when she brushed it. She agreed with me on that and my daughter had hair above her shoulders until she was about 8 years old and wanted to grow it out. She brushes it fine by herself and has a gorgeous long head of hair now at 10. If it's too painful and too much of a struggle, just cut it shorter! I guarantee she'll still look cute.