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Original poster

Tips for administering eye drops ...

19 replies

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 09:41

My dd (3.75) has conjunctivitis, and I'm having a terrible job getting her drops in. She fights me, screws her eyes up, pulls her head away, pulls my hand away - it took me 20 minutes to get one eye done this morning, and I ended up getting most of the bottle down her front! Does anyone have any tips for administering eye drops easily?

OP posts:

blossom2 · 01/02/2005 09:43

we told DD that she could have chocolate afterwards if she sat still and let me put them in. she wasn't happy but the thought of chocolate kept her going ...

onlyjoking9329 · 01/02/2005 09:46

have you tried putting them in with her eyes closed cos then she will blink and the drops go in, much easier that way

Original poster

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 09:50

I tried that last night, oj, but she just kept her eyes screwed up and the drops ended up down her front.

I also tried bribing her, blossom, but she just kept saying "No thanks!" to what I was trying to bribe her with!

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MistressMary · 01/02/2005 09:56

Wait til she sleeps?

Original poster

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 09:58

I have to give them three times a day, mm!

OP posts:

Kittypickle · 01/02/2005 10:00

Put her head back, might be easier to lie her down. Put the bottle flat in the dip at the bridge of her nose so the spout is just over the corner of her eye. Gently squeeze a drop, should land in her eye. This works for adults, I haven't tried it on children but hopefully it will work.

MistressMary · 01/02/2005 10:00

Not so practical then for all three times anyhow.

Original poster

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 10:02

Worth a shot for bedtime though, mm!

Thanks, kittypickle, sounds worth a try. And thanks everyone else for your suggestions.

OP posts:

Gwenick · 01/02/2005 10:02

my BIL was talking to me about this the other night - he runs a pharmacy and as such often has to dispense eye drops and advise parents how to administer them. He always thought it sounded SOOO easy - until his DD had conjunctivitis (sp) last week and he discovered that even while sleeping she would close her eyes really tightly so that the drops wouldn't go in - he reckons the person who develops a foolproof way of giving eye drops to little kids will be a millionaire in a very short space of time

BearintheBigBlueHouse · 01/02/2005 10:17

What worked for us (and I've mentioned it on here before) is me getting conj too so I needed eye drops as well. DD (then just 3) agreed to the trade off of putting Daddy's drops in before I put hers in. You could try it just using Optrex if you didn't want to go the whole hog and get infected.

Original poster

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 10:19

Sneaky!

OP posts:

whymummy · 01/02/2005 10:32

hi WGB i had the same problem with dd,she had conj. lots of times and it was imposible to get the drops in so the doctor gave me cream instead of drops,little tube,much,much easier to use
HTH

IlanaK · 01/02/2005 13:13

The method that was taught to me was to lay the child down on the floor with their head between your knees - so that you are at their head end if you see what I mean. This stops them from turning their head to the side. With one hand/arm hold their arms down on their chest. Then put the drops into the corner of both eyes. They will be tightly screwed up of course. They will b e fighting you, but you can tell them that when they open their eyes, you will let them up. If you have managed not to let their head turn, then the drops will go in when their eyes open. It is not esepcially nice to hold them down, but needs must.

iota · 01/02/2005 13:16

Been there done that I've also tried putting some drops onto cotton wool and pressing that/wiping it over their lashes - I'm sure some goes in eventually when they blink

tararyanleah · 01/02/2005 13:24

haven't read everyone's answers to this so might be repeating.However,I was told to lie little one on my knee and,if they battle when u try to open their lids,just put some in the inside corner.When they open their eyes,the drops-most of them anyway-fall into their eyes.

Original poster

WigWamBam · 01/02/2005 14:08

All-in wrestling would probably be easier than giving a child eye-drops! I tried putting them into the inside corner of her eyes at lunchtime but I think I must be doing it wrong, as I still ended up with more drops on the sofa than in her eye! Thank you for all your ideas ... I think I shall be working my way through all of them over the next couple of days.

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MistressMary · 02/02/2005 08:54

Any progress WWB?

daisy1999 · 02/02/2005 09:05

sorry if this has already been suggested - best way I found was to wait until dd asleep, lay her on her back, put a drop in the inside corner of her eye and gently move the eyelid so it goes in.

Original poster

WigWamBam · 02/02/2005 09:39

She's doing a bit better actually, mistressmary - she tells me that she needs the drops in, fetches them for me and lies down to have them put in. It's still a bit of a fight for me to keep her eyes open, because she still struggles a bit (can't blame her, actually, I hate eyedrops), but she's being really good about it, which makes things a bit easier. I tried putting it in the corner of her eyes but it just ended up running down her face, so I'm back to holding her eye open, but at least she's being more co-operative about it now. Thanks for asking!

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