Baby terrified of water! Help!

[bumblenbean]

Does anyone else have a baby who HATES the bath? Or a baby who has come to like it??

My DS absolutely loves bathtime and always has. My little girl however (aged 4 months) is the complete opposite. She seems to be terrified of the water and screams the house down as soon as she feels the water, despite being a very placid and smiley baby the rest of the time. It makes bathtime a real drama and it really stresses me out seeing her so traumatised (sounds dramatic but she really seems terrified).

We’ve tried singing, gentle sponging rather than splashing, bathing her with her brother And on her own, before/after food, distracting with toys, different temperatures ... but to no avail! We’ve also tried her in a stand-alone baby bath and holding her in the main bath, but it makes no difference.

As my son loves swimming I thought I would give it a try with her in the hope it would be different if I was actually in there with her- we went to a class in a small, really warm pool and it was a disaster - she got completely hysterical and was the only one crying! I gave it 10 mins and then beat a hasty, red-faced retreat!

I really don’t know what to do. I don’t want her to be scared of the water as she gets bigger and I don’t know whether to try bathing her more in the hope she’ll get used to it or just as often as necessary to keep her clean and keep the meltdowns to a minimum!

Does anyone have any tips or experience of the same?? Thanks in advance!

My son was like this. From birth, he absolutely hated it. We just bathed him every single night as part of a routine to get that establishes and it took him a few months before he liked it.
I also tried making the water slightly warmer as my son is my first, I was so stuck on making the bath water exactly the right degree (can’t remember what it is now) and I starting checking it by my elbow. It ensured the water was slightly warmer which worked as he found the ‘correct’ temp just that bit too cold.
Hope that helps even a little x

My DS was exactly the same - hated the bath from birth. The health visitor advised me to top and tail him for a few months. Can't remember when we tried the bath again; probably 4 - 5 months, by which time he was fine.

Forgot to say, he is grown up now and a confidant swimmer

I would try a few things like the flannel on the tummy trick or one of the bath supports you can get and if she still screams leave it for a month or so. She is tiny and her likes will change as she grows up. You will probably find by 6 months she will love it. Make sure the water is not too cold.

My DD was the exact same! For months and months I had to chase her around the house just to get her in the bathroom. I tried absolutely everything I could think of. You know what I think helped? A water table in her grandparents garden and a water table she played with when we went to mum and toddler group! I am 99% sure it helped her “phobia” of water. She loved playing with the water in a water table and after a few weeks she enjoyed baths again. Now I can’t get her out of the bloody thing!😂

Also forget people who say not to do it - people said that to me as well but DD had a tendency to smear yoghurts, gravy and anything she could get her hands on and wipe her hands in her hair! So I had to wash her hair a few times a week so she didn’t go out looking a rag-a-muffin!