Toddler who hates toothbrushing

[Gingerninja01]

Having problems getting 2yr old DD to brush her teeth thoroughly. Have got a massive collection of different toothbrushes and she clamps her mouth shut for every single one. Literally can’t get in her mouth sometimes. Have tried being gentle (letting her explore toothbrushes, chewing them etc, showing her videos of the Tombliboos etc all merrily brushing their teeth), have tried being much firmer, the only thing she tolerates is me having one of those finger toothbrushes on my finger and I pretend to tickle her teeth while making silly noises, but this is literally a very brief brush of her front teeth and I’m not getting anywhere near the back etc
I’m so worried she’s going to have cavities! She has been to the dentist twice and wouldn’t open her mouth there either. The only advice the dentist gave was to keep trying to brush her teeth.
Has anyone else’s toddler had a similar dislike of teeth brushing and what did you do?
Thanks!

Hi, we went through a stage like this. I asked my dentist what I should do and he said he had the same issue with his dd. I had to literally wrap my ds up in a towel and get in and scrub when his mouth opened to scream. Horrible.
Luckily he’s chilled out a bit now, we brush our teeth for 2 minutes together whilst watching YouTube videos on my phone, then after we are finished he sits on my lap and holds the phone and lets me brush his teeth for him without much struggle.
I also found he prefers the taste of the oral b baby toothpaste, I think it’s a bubblegum flavour.
Good luck.

I'm afraid this is something that has always been non-negotiable in my house. I offer a two min video and will brush DDs teeth while she watches or if she refuses I do the headlock and brush them while she screams, she worked out quite quickly that it was more pleasant to go with the first option. I go for gentle parenting in other aspects but teeth brushing and medicine I use force if needed.
We used the finger brushes before her teeth came through but the dentist told me we needed to brush as soon as teeth appeared

They all hate it, it’s tough! Hold her down and get in there.

When DS was small and a tooth brushing refusenik, I gave him a toothbrush and asked him to brush my teeth while I had his toothbrush primed in my hand. I opened my mouth really wide and let him poke away at my teeth and I did the same to him because it seemed he was automatically mirroring what I was doing with my mouth. Not much fun getting jabbed in the mouth by a two-year-old but it seemed to do the trick!

Yep, towel bundle, tip back and scrub while they scream. If they cooperate then loads of praise, let them have a go, big cuddles, tell everyone later how grown up they were etc.
My 3 yr old had a step at the sink and starts off himself and then I finish. About once every few months he gets mulish and one episode of the towel procedure sets us straight again.
I also explain about bugs loving to eat the food in his teeth and making them sore if we don’t brush.

The video thing is a good idea. Dd1 went through this phase. It's easy to clean them when they open their mouth to cry. Horrible but it works. She's 5 now and is very good at brushing.
Dd2 does this now. She doesn't cry or scream cos she thinks everything is funny! So frustrating. We just hold her down and push the brush in.

Non negotiable here too. Wrap her in a big bath towel, arms trapped and do it. Not pleasant but to me it’s like a car seat....not something she gets a choice about. After a week or two she’ll do it willingly. I wouldn’t give her too much of a choice about toothbrushes/ toothpaste either. Pick one and get it done.

No negotiation here. The bickiepeg finger toothbrush helps.

We used to have to battle my 2 year old son and bundle him in a towel but we changed tact recently with good success. Don't get me wrong, there are some days he still doesn't want to brush but we haven't had to wrap him in a towel again. He's learnt the new way is more pleasant than the towel!

I ask him to pick a toy to take to the bathroom to watch him brush his teeth and show them how to do it. He plonks the toy next to the sink so he can occassionaly brush the toys teeth too. I close the door and say it won't open now until his teeth are clean. I tell him he will brush his teeth first and then I will have a turn. I give him lots of praise while he brushes and tell him to give me the brush when it's my turn. If he won't let me brush and tries to leave I remind him the door won't open and keep it closed. After a random amount of time he gives me his toothbrush for my turn. When I've finished brushing I get him to shout "teeth!" at me so I can see them and tell him how clean they are and what a good job he's done! He then shouts teeth at his toy and runs to do the same to his dad because he wants to show eveyone his clean teeth. More praise from dad!

It took a couple of weeks to establish this routine and he fought it initially but he knows what's coming now and seldom rebels. I think giving him the choice to pick a toy, control over when it's my turn to brush his teeth and him knowing what's coming really helps him.

If he ever has a tantrum and won't let me brush I firmly tell him "I'm going to count to 3. When I get to 3 I am going to brush your teeth." He gets a small warning and time to back down. If and when I get to 3 i hold him firm and brush his teeth, despite all his kicking and screaming. I don't normally get past 2 now before he gives in because he knows I'm not bluffing!

I also sing a song he likes or has chosen while I brush. If he bites the toothbrush to stop me brushing I stop singing and give him a stern look. When he stops biting I continue the song. It just shows I've got time and patience to out-wait him trying to stop me. He also knows I'll stop brushing at the end of the song so if we can't get to the end of the song the brushing will never end! 😱

Sorry for the long post. I hope it helps!