How do we help our newborn enjoy bathtime and nappy changes?

[RebeccaP]

Our baby is nearly 2 weeks old and she screams every time we change her nappy or give her a bath. :-( Is this normal and will it always be this way? Does anyone have any tips on how to make bathtime and nappy changing more enjoyable for her (and us!) Thanks.

Have you tried bathing with her? My ds was like this but now enjoys bath time although still hates nappy changes!

Would also recommend bathing with your baby. Ds hated bath times so I got in with him and fed him at the same time. I also lit candles, had soft music playing (don't laugh), put a few drops of lavender in the water! I enjoyed it anyway. It does get better. Ds has never liked having his nappy changed.

There's not much you can do re bathing except only do it when necessary - don't over bathe a newborn. They don't need bathing every day. I agree with bathing with your DD - it is much safer feeling for them and it is lovely too.

WRT nappy changes - we had a music/light show that was supposed to go on DS cot but we played it next to him at nappy change time and it distracted him for a few minutes.

It's all perfectly normal though and it does get better.

Don't bath her, she's not getting dirty.

its okay to just top and tail a new baby. We didn't bathe ds very often in the first couple of months.

We had a musical duck that played tunes when you squeezed its beak - was invaluable for nappy and in particular changing clothes - you had to be quick and squeeze the beak before she kicked off! Worked well, though - I reckon TPL's music/light thing would be even better - ours was next to useless for bedtime!

Our ds also hated being bathed or changed for the first month or so. We found he preferred a bath up to his chin. Also, he started to love it at around 4 weeks.

I was told that if you swaddle your baby in a muslin and then put her in the bath it really helps (obviously keep hold of her in the usual way). Then once she is in gradually unswaddle.

We've never tried as DD has always been fine with bathing. But one of the Mum's that I know does this.

The screaming with the nappy change gradually gets better. Then you get to a stage where she'll be really annoyed that you're putting her clothes back on!

Don't bath her much?

Bath, story, bed thing is really for when they're a little older.

Or you could try one of these...

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Thanks for all your responses. It's good to know that she is normal and it will hopefully get better!

For nappy changes put a mobile over the changing area - works a treat, esp in another few weeks when she is more aware. Also keep your body close to her and lots of cuddles until she is happy with it. Plus cross over vests instead of the over the head ones if this is what she is objecting to.

definitely recommend a tummy tub-dd really loved hers

I also found it much easier to bath her in it than a normal baby bath

am not sure any baby likes having their nappy changed...

i remember telling my 4 week old ds to stop crying like a little baby when i was changing his nappy one day, then it clicked that he was a er little baby.

we just sing silly songs now at nappy time and that does the trick.

ds4 didn't get his 1st bath until he was almost a month old.

Don't worrry about bathing her...I doubt shes out playing in the mud when your back is turned so don't worry about it

Babies don't need to be washed. If you are really keen to get them in the bath, maybe try them once a week to see if they are any happier with the idea. They start to like it at some point and you can take it from there.

DS was the same about baths so didn't bother with evening bath every day until he was about 10 weeks. Then it got better. I made up a nonsense song which I used to sing to him every evening whilst I put him in the bath and he started to associate and laugh at the song so he started liking baths.

Never had any problems with nappy changing until recently, now he hates lying still. I just blow raspberries and try to make him laugh, and do it as quick as possible. You are probably quite slow at the nappy change (which is understandable as new parents), they get impatient and cold down there! You will speed up.

If you bathe together it also solves the problem of what do you do with the baby whilst you get clean. I loved it, and cobathed until DS was nearly 2 and our bath just wasn't big enough any more.

We sang silly songs at nappy time too

You wait!! My three were about 4 weeks when they started getting to 'ooo' bath water factor!

Sometimes I think it may just be personality. My dd did the same and I'm afraid to say did up until about a year, even with all the toys etc etc. Although we felt awful we believed that establishing a bedtime routine for her and us was important. She is now 2 and loves her bath, but for some reason is still nervous in the swimming pool. Anyway, Ds came along and we expected him to be exactly the same, because that's what babies do, but he giggled!! And, he absolutley loves the swimming pool!! The only thing I can put it down to is personality as he is much calmer than dd.

Neither of mine liked the bath in the early days. Someone recommended a plastic bath seat (got one from Blooming Marvellous) and once I tried it at about 10 weeks, it all got much much easier - that and singing Old MacDonald frantically. I think it was a combination of ds's age and my stress. The bath seat definitely eased the latter.

When dd came along, it was putting her in the bath at the same time as ds which finally did the trick.

As for nappy changing, I think it's something they grow out of, although I did find that putting a cloth down over the changing mat to make it less cold did help a lot (I used a washable nappy which was perfect size & easy to clean).

my ds is 17 weeks and still screams when its his bathtime, ive resorted to sponge bathing him on his changing mat and washing his hair with him fully swaddled over the sink(he still screams though)

My ds went through phases of hating his bath. All you can do is bath him less - they really don't get that dirty.

Bathing with them is lovely for both of you.

My ds was always ok with nappy changes until recently - he now regards the requirement to lie still for a minute as an outrageous demand and will roll over and zoom off at the slightest chance - many distraction technoques required.

Perhaps you could try a nice black and white mobile above your changing area? As I recall they had a really hypnotic effect on ds at a similar age.

Our baby didn't much like his bath either to start with but started to enjoy it at about 6 weeks; now he loves it (10 wks)

Is it the bath itself or the bit afterward (getting dressed etc)? My daughter loves baths but hates coming out and into the cold air - this might explain nappy change issues too? Our solution was making our bathroom like a sauna (radiator on, warm towel from airing cupboard)...

our dd also hated both at first. She was born at christmas though and january was chilly. We had the hairdrier on the changing table - not pointing at her skin obv. The sound and warmed air helped. Then from about 2 months she switched and loves changes.