In the last week my 14 month old has taken to screaming during his bath time. Last night he started clinging and crying when the water was running. He has LOVED his baths for the last year and it is out nightly routine of bath, bottle, bed. He has toys, water is not too hot, we sing songs, no tear shampoo, but he sounds like I am absolutely killing him!!! And then we get out and he stops. There has been a lot of change and transition in his life (and ours) in the last 3 weeks but we try to keep most of his basic routines for his security. HELP!!! He still needs a bath at some point!
Hi, I read an article in Parents magazine once about a boy who thought he was going to go down the drain with the water. Maybe that's occured to your little one, as well. If that, or something similar, is the case, and you can't get him over the fear, you might try taking a shower with him. But, be warned, babies are extremely slippery with soap all over them! :0) So hold on extra well. Hope this helps!
Maybe you've tried this already... but introduce some fun new bath toys ... or bath bubbles with his favorite cartoon character on it (they have so many different kinds of bubbles - Dora, Superman, Thomas, etc.)... and they have bath paints - non-toxic, completely washable - it's basically colored, thick liquid soap. So I let my son paint on the bathtub/tile walls with those. And he absolutely LOVES to do that! Maybe that would help him take him mind off whatever is scaring him and help him get past this phase.
I also give my son squirt waterguns or squirt toys and let him squirt me with bathwater and I shout with a laugh, and that makes him laugh hysterically. All this shows them how fun bathtime can be.
Both of my daughters did the exact same thing. It came out of nowhere, but after a couple of baths it passed and they are now back to loving them! With my oldest daughter, I would run the water while she was in another room. That was what seemed to scare her. You might also try taking him in the shower with you? My youngest ones hates the shower, but my oldest loves it...she thinks its raining on her! I hope this passes soon for you! Good luck!
It's totally normal to suddenly develop fears at this age. Just keep to your routine. You might try running the bath water before you take him to the bathroom, in case it's the noise of the faucet running that's getting to him. This happened to a friend of mine's baby and she just kept up with the routine. Bath time might have been a 15-second splash with him standing in the tub of water, screaming, but they kept at it and he's totally over it now.
I totally agree with all the other Mom's comments that this is a normal stage to go through. I just wanted to add that with my daughter( who was my first child) I made the mistake of actually going into the tub with her. Instead of helping things she ended up being very shy of the water for her first 3-4yrs of her life. Now, looking back I sure wish I hadn't responded that way. I've found that children can overcome their fears alot sooner if we reassure them, give them love and support then make them face them. If we coddle too much it feeds the fear.
My son went through very distinct "stages" at that age. No doubt, it is just a phase. I think you should continue your routine and stick to the regular schedule. I am sure that this will pass. Hang in there!
