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I have a problem. Well in the grand scheme of things it’s really not a problem it’s more of a small snafu or behavioral issue if you will. Our problem is with bath time.I hate giving my daughter a bath. She loves her bath time; she will strip off her clothes and happily hop in the tub. She plays & splashes and allows me to wash her hair without a whimper. My problem lies when bath time is over. My daughter, the mermaid that she is will scream and rage as if I’m removing her from her life force. This happens every time. I have tried letting her sit until all the water runs out. I have tried a 5-minute warning.
I have taken baths & showers with her. I have allowed her to flip the drain and clean up her toys. Each time I remove her and for five to ten minutes following she throws a tantrum, as I wrestle to put a diaper on a slippery screaming toddler. I’m at a loss. She is of course just having a tantrum as she enjoys the water so much. I have tried to make post bath time special… massaging her with lotion. No matter what I do she is just so angry to be taken out of the tub. She would stay in the water forever. I have not tried a timer so maybe that will work. I’m willing to try anything at this point. Typically I tell her “ yes I know you like your bath” can you help Mama with the lotion please.
I try to distract her, redirect her and get her dressed as quickly as I can so she can go and play. I’m not sure what to do… any advice? Im thinking this has to do with her sensory issues.What would you do if post bath time was a huge struggle & provoked a full tantrum each time?
maybe wrap her up in the towel and rock her until she stops screaming? then proceed with the lotion, dressing, reading books routine. she’ll likely grow out of the tantrums before long, and then they’ll be a distant memory…..
I like the rocking idea, a lot. And keep in mind, by acknowledging her tantrum you are in a sense feeding it… you might do better just being matter-of-fact that bath time is over and we are moving on. Don’t act stressed, don’t act frustrated, don’t even act surprised that she’s pitching a fit. Just move forward like nothing is amiss, and rocking her very calmly is a great idea. She’s racking up a lot of attention over this… albeit negative attention.
I wrote a blog here
that kind of addresses what I mean… (but not exactly.)
Here’s the blog link, it didn’t print out like it was supposed to…
http://attachment-disorder.adoptionblogs.com/weblogs/i-m-the-parent-you-re-the-kid
Have you tried just leaving her in the empty tub? (the way you’ve written it, she’s not screaming at that point, if she is, I don’t think this would work).
If you give her the option of getting out, she may just do it on her own (or call to you for help). You could even turn on the favorite TV program so she hears that there are more interesting things to do than an empty tub.
Offer her choices wright off the bat.
Livi, do you want the pink towel or the bunny towel? Do you want pink lotion or white lotion? Do you want pink pajamas or purple pajamas?
Lori