ASD children and teeth cleaning

[jenk1]

i am having a problem with ds about teeth cleaning, every morning its the same,tantrums,tears,rolling on the floor because i ask him to clean his teeth, even though its on his visual timetable he,ll do anything to get out of it.

He says the toothpaste stings him so ive changed it a dozen times and we have gone back to baby toothpaste, i dont think its doing his teeth any good though as they are quite an off white colour,has anyone had sucess with this and their ASD child,can anyone advise me as its getting quite stressful.

TIA

My delightful(not at the moment) ds will only do his teeth if I let him try to brush them first then I finish them off. Not much help I know but my ds is quite placid and doesn't need planners for much.

Things improved for ds1 when he was given a toothbrush that lights up for 1-2 minutes when you switch it on. The idea is that he keeps brushing until the light stops flashing. It's worked fairly well for him but not quite so successful with ds2 who will basically suck on the toothbrush for a few seconds and then do a runner.

have you tried the oral wipes

DS hates having his teeth brushed so I sympathise. Things have improved since buying him an electric toothbrush. He chews on it and sucks the toothpaste off but at least the constant movement of the brush is giving his teeth a bit of a clean. He has it in his mouth for about 30 seconds, so not as long as he should but it's better than nothing. His teeth are very white but he's only 3.10.

We generally go for the 'pin him down and do it by force approach', but he's little, accompanied by much singing (sometimes the singing helps).

I've previously used (for myself) a special pink mouthwash which is supposed to be good against plaque, though doesn't help the gum margins which is a key area of problems.

What happens if you don't use any toothpaste at all?

Also we occasionally have a really thorough go when he's deep asleep!

Am also a meanie when it comes to sweet drinks / food etc.

Can you try brushing them while watching TV?
Bribing with stickers etc for good brushing / good letting you brush?
Smaller t/brush?
New t/brush (they're horrid when the bristles go all frayed)?
Brushing yours at the same time facing him, so he sees that you're doing it?

I know when we've had a bad patch we end up in a vicious circle as he thrashes so much it hurts him, then he doesn't want to do it as it hurts etc...

best wishes!

thanks for all your tips everyone

Coppertop-what make of toothbrush is it that you use for your ds that lights up?

TIA

I've just had a look and there's no name on the brush itself but we got it in Tesco. It's an ordinary child-sized toothbrush with a rubbery bit on the end of the handle. You push the end and the brush starts to flash. They're pretty cheap too. I think ds1's was only about £1 - £2.

We have a flashing one as well, with a floating duck in it. Ours came from Superdrug.

thanks

Message withdrawn

last summer Tescos had some toothbrushes where you pushed the end of the handle in and the brushed flashed and stopped by itself.