Brushing my 15 month olds teeth is impossible! Help please!

[lizzyttc2017]

When I say brushing her teeth is impossible it is no exaggeration. I feel like I've tried everything!

We brush dolly's teeth, i have played brushing teeth videos during 'brushing' (if you can call it that), I let her see us brush our teeth, I've tried buying an extra toothbrush and letting her hold one too and my last resort I've been having to do is literally pinning her down and I can maybe manage to get 1 or 2 brushes in with this method (if that) she clamps her mouth so small and I hate doing this because I don't feel like it's actually going to help anything as it will probably just make her hate the toothbrush even more but it's the only way I can even slightly brush her teeth. Oh I've also tried the silicone finger brushes and she won't let me in with those either.

Please help :( I don't know what else to try?

It's a phase. A very frustrating one, and I used to pin mine down and force it, but after a couple of weeks, he got it. We happened to borrow a library book called sugar monsters (I think) and that helped.

Mine hates having his teeth cleaned, always has. We just have to hold him down and get on with it.

I used to pretend I was getting out the animals. For example- ‘oooo I think I see a lion at the back, let me get it out’ then roared as I brushed. Managed 5/6 animals (favourites were a cat and a monkey) and her teeth were brushed well.

I also regularly "force-brushed" my children's teeth. Brushing teeth is non-negotiable, and sometimes I'm really not in the mood for some entertaining.

That being said, what helped with both of mine (at least for a while, then we switched to the next thing):

• singing
• letting them "brush" my teeth at the same time
• listing all the food the ate that day, whcih we have to brush off
• holding toys or books
• me making stupid noises/faces

One arm round the chest to clamp arms down, head cradled firmly in crook of that arm. She starts screaming, brush goes in and it's down a bit brutally but it gets done. Then she's allowed to do a little bit herself afterwards. We've had a tantrum about it night and morning for about 8 months. It's a fun phase!

Mine was the same until I got him an electric toothbrush now he willingly opens his mouth for it. Game changer! Have you tried an electric one? They also have a timer so it stops when two minutes are done

With my daughter I actually stopped brushing all together for 3 days, which broke the cycle of refusal/upset/seeing toothbrush and getting upset and when we went back to it she was fine 🤷‍♂️

We had this. Ended up ditching the brush and getting one of the plastic ones they chew on from boots. Like this.

We put toothpaste on it and she chews it, she loves it. I'm not sure how good they are from a dental point of view, but in our case it definitely does more than the toothbrush. Like you say, even if we tried to force it we couldn't actually get the brush in her mouth.

I tried everything to make it fun, but like a pp said toothbrushing is non negotiable so if she refused to cooperate I had to hold her arms down and just do it. It does feel horrible but it’s one of the few non negotiable bits of her day. She eventually learned it would happen anyway and also once she could stand on a step to do it herself / hold toothbrush under the water she was more into it.

Also find any programmes with her favourite characters brushing their teeth. Mine brushes hers soooo much better after seeing Bing, Mr Tumble, and topsy and tim brush their teeth!

Non negotiable at this age. Clamp between legs, arms down under one arm. No fannying about. Rotted teeth for life is worse than that. They do grow out of it.

Electric toothbrush was a game changer for us too!!! Highly recommend

@Lana1234 can I ask what age your LO is? I think an electric toothbrush would be a game changer but the only ones I've found have been for 3+

www.amazon.co.uk/Brush-Baby-Baby-Sonic-Electric-Toothbrush-color/dp/B00FGUUW16/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?s=gateway&keywords=baby+brush+sonic+toothbrush&sprefix=baby+brush+s&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1568123118&sr=8-3

This one is what we have! Just tried it on a whim out of desperation and my now 2 year old is quite happy to get them brushed. You get 0-18 heads then 18-36 month ones for when they are older. Definitely recommend!

We have the same brush as @Lana1234. It is incredibly gentle vibration wise. I think the light going out helps him to start to understand how long we go for too. So I will repeat "we keep going until the light goes off" and he seems to know that means it is finished.

That's exactly what I've been looking for! Thank you so much @Lana1234 & @Rosebud1302 & thanks for this thread OP

I had this exact situation with my daughter who is now 3.5 years. Nothing NOTHING anyone recommended would work. Ended up just holding her down and forcing it as teeth brushing is non negotiable. We did it that way for some considerable time and even now it’s not perfect (she won’t do it herself). I think she eventually got sick of being held etc. It did also help having ANOTHER GO once we’d been doing the enforced brushing for a while to once again go to the shop and choose her own toothbrush. (Did that at least twice already at the start - didn’t work). She didn’t really care that it was a toothbrush - it was purple and had a princess on it which is what mattered 😆 electric type one. (Which I hasten to add cost about £6 and has lasted longer than ANY electric toothbrush I’ve ever owned!!). And it took a while but gradually GRADUALLY it improved. There was no lightning bolt. We also use strawberry toothpaste (My little pony branded - off amazon - tastes better than most of the others!) as I’ve worked out the taste of the toothpaste makes a huge difference to her. Even between different brands of strawberry toothpaste! (FFS - toddlers) 🙄 Good luck OP. you WILL get there it might just take a while... (And if you have any advice on how to get my daughter to agree to wear trousers, I’d appreciate it.... Toothbrush refusal. Trousers refusal. There’s always bloody something haha!)

Headlock.. teeth brushing isn't negotiable .

Hey Duggee toothbrush song on YouTube. It's like hypnosis for my wee one!