Bath time is one of the moments we look forward to as adults. After an exhausting day, all you want to do is stand under a running shower and have that water calm your nerves.
We expect or at least hope it to be so for everyone but it isn’t when it comes to babies.
Bath time can be the highlight of your baby’s day, you could either be dealing with a baby excited about bath time or a baby that cries when bathing, and there could be several reasons why your baby cries when bathing. Read on…
Baby Cries When Bathing
Some babies genuinely enjoy shower time, they’re busy flapping their feet in the water or playing with the foam from their soaps.
However, some babies would cry all through the entire time, they just can’t have a bath without bringing down the house with wails and screams.
There could be a variety of reasons why you’re dealing with a baby that cries when bathing but this doesn’t rule out the fact that, some babies do not just love to bathe.
Aside from the hygienic benefits of bathing, shower time gives that soothing feeling that will put your baby to sleep instantly.
If you’re wondering why your baby doesn’t seem to enjoy any of the benefits bathings provides.
Here are a few guesses that may likely be making your baby resistant to bathing and possible ways to tackle them.
Possible Reasons Why Your Baby Cries When Bathing
There could be a variety of reasons why your baby cries when bathing, some may include the ones listed below.
But there’s still a possibility that your baby’s detest for bathing has nothing to do with any of them, and in such cases, you could visit your doctor to check for any health-related issues that may be causing him discomfort during bath time.
1. Temperature of the Water
This is one of the common reasons why many toddlers hate to bathe time. Babies are very sensitive to any temperature change and may react differently depending on how intense it feels.
Why prepping your baby for a bath, mind the air and water temperature. The water should not be too hot or too cold, and the weather should help determine the temperature of water best suitable for the moment.
Using very hot water can cause burn and damage your baby’s skin, and using cold water in cold weather can expose your baby too cold, cough and catarrh.
The best option is a bath with warm water followed by clothes that will cover them up properly.
2. Hunger
This could be another possibility why your baby cries when bathing. Generally, whether as an adult or a kid, hunger makes one irritated and stressed, and since your toddler can barely speak, they’d express themselves by crying.
What to do is to feed your baby at least 30 to 45 minutes before shower time so that, they’re full and the food is well digested to avoid choking during bathing.
3. Tiredness
To be honest even as an adult, whenever you’re tired bathing seems more like a chore than something enjoyable what more toddlers who just want to be allowed to sleep when tired.
What to do is try and advance bath time a little before their usual bedtime to avoid disrupting the baby’s sleep routine.
4. Soap Entering the Eyes
If peradventure soap enters your baby’s eyes while bathing, this could be a turn-off for them for the rest of their bath times as babies.
It’s like suffering a PTSD, bath time will always trigger the memory which is quite dreadful.
What you can do is to try to consult with your baby’s health care provider to know his skin type and the soap that’s best suited for him/her.
You must use soap and shampoos that are made specifically for babies.
5. Unfamiliarity with Bath Tub
Toddlers who are having a bath for the first time may likely cry due to their unfamiliarity with being merged in water and the change in temperature that comes with it.
If this is the case for your baby, give it time and it will come around after a couple of more bath times.
You can also explore the option of distracting your baby during bath time by including a rubber ducky and other floating toys inside the bathtub.
6. Bathing Area
Some babies are very sensitive to their surroundings that they can sense how comfortable, neat, or dirty an environment can be.
If your baby is this type that is very meticulous about their surrounding, it might just be a reason why they hate bath time so much.
The best way out is to try a different environment from the usual place you bath them, preferably a spacious bathroom.
Even if it doesn’t work out for a long time, the seemingly new environment will distract them for a while until they become familiar with it again.
7. Baby Has Rashes or Sore That Burns
If your child is suffering from rashes or sores, contact with water and soap can help ease the burning sensation, hence causing discomfort to your child.
The best way out is by applying soap and excessive water on the affected area, and then wait until the rashes subside before submerging your child in the bathtub.
8. Uncomfortable Positions
The position of your baby in a tub can be a contributory factor to why your baby cries when bathing.
Usually, toddlers with no balanced body coordination need some form of support to keep their necks upright or their bodies in a good position.
If your baby is placed in an uncomfortable position when bathing, he may develop neck cramping or in other parts of their bodies like their limbs, this could lead to them crying and detesting bath time.
The best thing is to have an experienced parent or caregiver monitor the bathing processor to use a bath pillow to support their bodies.
9. Water Entering the Eyes
Water entering the eyes could be equally as painful as soap entering the eyes for toddlers.
If this happened once, it would always be a trigger also, but if it keeps happening; your baby might just hate bath time for a very long time.
What you can do is use a head visor to protect the eyes and avoid pouring too much on the face while bathing.
Other Ways To Improve Bathing Baby’s Experience
There are other ways to help your baby cope during bathing which may include:
- Engaging them with lullabies or musical toys
- Taking showers together with them
- Gradual transition process into the tub, especially during the early weeks of introducing your baby to deep water bathing that way you’re the baby is more at ease and feel safer staying inside the tub.
Related Posts:
- Baby Accidentally Drinks Bathwater (Tips To Help You Cope)
- How To Heat Bath Water With Electricity
- How To Keep Bath Water Hot Longer
Conclusion
If you’ve been having a hard time dealing with a baby that cries when bathing, one of the aforementioned reasons should be the cause.
Followed by some suggestions of how best to tackle it, understanding why your baby cries when bathing shouldn’t be much of a problem.
Also, it is good to note that no matter what, there are babies who cannot just have a peaceful bath without throwing a fight just as there are adults who would only bath after sniffing their underarms for any offensive odor and if none, do not mind going to bed without a bath throughout the day.