How do I handle this with my 2 year old? I am despairing

[Klor]

Ds 2y 3 months won’t get dressed. I have tried everything, tv, food, playing first, getting cross, leaving him to do it and leaving the room… nothing works for around 30 minutes. When he eventually relents, half the time he will undress himself a couple of minutes later. I am on my own all week with him so nobody to take over and I am getting late for work often as a result of this. I can’t cope with it anymore. I am quite robust and I have clear boundaries with things but this is one thing I can’t seem to crack and to be blunt about it… it’s fucking up my day. This morning I got cross and then he cried and I felt like the worst mother ever and cried on the way back from nursery. I just don’t know what to do

Oh PP, I remember feeling exactly like you quite recently. My DD is 2.5 and went through the same thing in Oct/Nov time. She also did it at bedtime and I can remember vividly that it took 25 mins to get her pj bottoms on and within 60 seconds they were off again. I gave up and put her in her duvet in her top and nappy and left the trousers within reach and within 5 mins she’d put them on herself 🤣🤣🤣. The good news is it did not last for long and she grew out of it very quickly. Luckily, everything at this age seems to be a “phase”.Fingers crossed for you.

My son is a bit younger, not quite two yet and he occasionally does this. In his case it’s definitely just a case of pushing boundaries he thinks it’s funny and runs away, very frustrating when in a rush. The one guaranteed way to get him to put the clothes on is when I pretend to put his clothes on myself. “Oh well DS mummy will just have to wear your trousers today…” as I pretend to start putting my leg in his trousers. his toddler posessiveness kicks in and he runs over shouting noooo mine!!!

Put him in things that are harder to get out of he dungarees with tight clips

I feel your pain though. My just turned 4yo still has mornings like this

The 7yo requires loads of encouragement and checking to get dressed by herself - so annoying

Agree with leaving it until you're just about to leave. Get your shoes and coat and bag ready, bundle into clothes and shoes and then straight outside and off you go.

I wouldn't encourage a child to think that it's clean to get up our of bed and go out in those bed clothes. This is why people start having hygiene issues with their older children. Teach them to be clean and hygienic from the offset. Then people wonder why their husband won't wash his balls.

That's all well and good but the OP has been clear that part of the issue is that when she looks away for 2 seconds or maybe goes for a wee, all the clothes are coming off again.

Obviously in theory you are right. In practice sometimes "just do it" is quite literally impossible if you also want to arrive to your own workplace on time.

I have huge sympathy OP - but it is a stage, you'll get there

Classic. My twins were like this. Making it into a game really helped. Silly voices, pretend to be a robot, put socks on their hands etc. I appreciate we’re not always in the mood to play games at times like this, but it beats the alternative.

Sorry OP - it’s frustrating but so normal.

New rule - getting dressed is the first thing we do when we wake up.
Lay out joggers with pants on top and hoodie/ jumper with t shirt on top in his room at bedtime so everything is ready to go.
Socks next to shoes by the door.

Go in and help him get dressed when he wakes up, then you move on to teeth/breakfast etc.

Once he is dressed he gets to choose a sticker to put on his jumper or some other small reward.

NEVER deviate from the expectation that getting dressed is the first thing to be done when you get up, including at weekends, until it is completely embedded (and he is old enough to manage the dressing part alone!)

good luck

Yes the 'make it a game' worked a treat with my nightmare toddler. On days when I'd really had it I just wrapped her in a blanket in her nappy, shoved her in the car [appropriately seated in car seat with blanket atop straps] and then got her changed in the car park at nursery. She was usually jolted out of routine enough on those days to be compliant, but if she hadn't been I would happily have taken her into nursery half dressed and told them she was having one of her silly days.

My now 20m old is just getting into this phase, his favourite thing is to rip off his clothes just as I've turned round to pick up the car keys 😪

Have you tried dressing him on a windowsill? I was about 7 months pregnant when my twins were that age so it's was tough doing it on my own. I lifted them on the windowsill as they couldn't escape and I didn't have to bend over. Also you can distract with what's out the window, a bird, a car, a dog etc

One of my mum friends just gave up and took her toddler to nursery with no clothes on. He never did it again.

My son used to protest and make a lot of noise but he physically would actually let me go through the motions of getting him changed. So if there's no physical resistance you could try powering through and just doing it.