Help my 3 year old needs a haircut and it's impossible!

[danandwillsmum]

Any suggestions as to how I can get my 3yr old to have a haircut. He has had them before but they are always stressful with screaming, struggling and much wrangling !! Now it is too difficult to keep him still enough for anyone to go near him - he seems almost phobic about it. No amount of bribery seems to help at all and his hair is getting long !!!!!!Any ideas would be extremely welcome.

[ppeatfruit]

Does he sleep soundly?? if so trim it while he's asleep!! I did it with my ds's fringe it looked a bit shaggy but at least he could see!!The anti hair cut stage does pass!

[katechristie]

can you find a hairdresser that has a car for them to sit in? - DS hates his beign cut too, I'm still doing it myself. I just hack away every few weeks, and hope for the best, I figure if I miss a bit this time I'll get it next time - it never looks that tidy, but it'll do!

[rookiemater]

I feel your pain We actually ended up leaving a barbers the other week. DS is in chair, squirming a bit but not too bad, barber says " I can't cut him like this you know" I give DS a chupa lolly ( bribery is the only course of action in circumstances like this) and whilst unhappy he is reasonably still. Barber still refuses to cut hair. I flounce out.

Just down the road we found a fab hairdresser with a panda seat for DS to sit on, some well thumbed books for me to read to him, that days paper for DH to read and ignore us totally although haircutting was meant to be his responsibility and a lovely hairdresser with infinite patience, and it only cost a fiver , although we did leave a big tip as goodness knows she earned it.

Get a recommendation for a really good hairdresser for kids, or would a home hairdresser be better do you think as at least he would be in home environment ?

[lucieerin]

Bribery every time here!

[llareggub]

My DS is the same.

The only way I can get him into the barber's chair is to make into a big treat. I leave DS2 with his grandmother and we take the bus into town. We never take the bus anywhere and DS1 loves it more than anything. We then have the haircut at the barber and I bribe reward him with a hot chocolate in the cafe next door. He loves going to the library so we do that next and then bus home.

The haircut (almost) becomes a fun day out. It worked for us last time and I am hoping it will work this week too!

[danandwillsmum]

I certainly think a trip out on the bus might add a bit of inncentive, all I have to do now is find a barbers/hairdressers that we haven't had to slope out of due to the volume of screaming .

[JimmyMcNulty]

How about a mobile hairdresser who'll come to your home? Ds1 (3.6) was awful about haircuts till I found a lovely hairdresser who came to our house and was really good with him. It just needed someone to take a bit of time to get his trust and be confident with him. He still won't let me near his hair with a pair of scissors but is good as gold with her.

[lexcat]

Second the mobile hair dresser. I have a friend that I met at baby group who cut dd hair. DD was about 11 month when I first cut it, tried tying it back but soon gave up. I wasn't brave enough to do it a second time as dd wouldn't let me near her with the scissors.

Spoke to the other mums and they told me talk to X, so I did. We went to house to play and dd had her hair cut. I think having some she knew and been a friends house really helped, plus my friend had two ds and was use to young children.

She is now 8 and likes to go to a salon, she becoming very choose on where we go as she likes her hair short but girly.

[zonedout]

have been in exactly the same situation here. tried everything, from special childrens' hairdressers complete with television and toys to taking him to his older and much adored cousins house to have his hair cut with them by their mobile hairdresser. nothing worked. he would become absolutely inconsolably hysterical. so we went through long periods of him having crazy hair (he has a double crown and a cowslick so his hair really does crazy things when it grows). eventually i bought a pair of haircutting scissors and now use serious bribery of sweeties (which he absolutely never normally gets at home) and movies. he has recently turned 4 and is getting a little better and not needing quite so much bribery... still battling for the hairwash though

[MumNWLondon]

My nephew aged 2 isn't keen at all so my SIL waited for halfterm so his 2 big cousins (ie my DD and DS) could have theirs done first - then she made a fuss of him being so big like his cousins. It worked a treat!