Any one have a "little camper" who is afraid of the shower?

[loriandmatt]

My DD (2.5) is generally an easy going gal and so far loves the camper. however, up until this point, on our camping trips (not to FW, but other campgrounds) she was just a toddler and we bathed her in a rubbermaid basin.

I knew that would not last forever and have been (over the fall/winter) trying to get her used to the shower at home. (get in with me - not alone) She freaks! hates it!

any one have any suggetions on how to get her used to the shower? this is a must before our Aug FW trip. 10 days is just too long to deal with giving her a basin bath.

 

[akamom]

I'm looking for tips as well, my 4 year old hates to shower!

 

[dlnsmmy1]

What about one of those shower heads that you can hold in your hand. Maybe if you start with that now letting them hold it themselves and wash themselves and then gradually work into just standing under the shower head while it is hung up. Maybe that would ease some of the fear. I found some kid themed ones by going to www.Froogle.com and searching "shower for kids". When my little girl was younger we would use one of those small ring blow up pools and fill it with the shower water. We would bathe her in the pool in the shower stall with the water turned off. It is small enough to fit, it does cause extra work to haul the pool to the comfort station and wait for it to fill but if they don't get over the fear before you get there it is definitely a better alternative than a terrified childs scratch marks all over you.

 

[JAM'S MOM]

We had the same problem with one of our kids. Turns out she didn't like getting the water and shampoo in her eyes, nose and mouth. It was just too much going on for her and it frightened her. She was too afraid to close her eyes and got too much in her nose and mouth as she cried.

We got a plastic visor and tried that out -- it helped a lot. It kept most of the water and shampoo off her face. Eventually, she outgrew her fear.

 

[Mac and Us]

I agree with the removeable shower head. Our DD5 has been taking showers since she was 2. 1) it saves water and is quicker during the summer when she needs a shower everyday.

We started giving her showers just before our cruise because we knew we wouldn't have a tub in our room.

She loved that she could hold the shower herself and spray her own body and head. I would lather her up with soap and shampoo pull the shower curtain and tell her to rinse herself off.

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

If you use the handicap shower at FW it has the removable hand held head.

Neither one of my boys (13 and 16) like to shower.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

I sure wish I had advice like this when my kids were small. My daughter always liked the shower (now we can't get her out), but my son was another story. He, too, didn't like to get his head wet. Our first camping trip to WDW we stayed at the Kissimmee KOA. The first morning I took him into the shower with me (he was about 3) and he screamed bloody murder. When we got out, there was a crowd of people standing outside the door to the men's room. I'm surprised no one called the police. I just smiled an embarrassed smile and said "he hates the shower." Every single mom in the crowd nodded and walked away, while their husbands said "what does he mean?" At that point I knew I was not alone. He did outgrow it - he is 20 now and has no issues with water on his head.

 

[annakris1973]

My DS hated the shower as well. I have a couple of suggestions...if she hates the water in her eyes and nose, how about a snorkeling face mask? Sounds silly but it may work. If she dislikes actually standing in the shower, how about getting in with her, (in you bathing suit if you have to) and having her stand to the side and cover her face with a washcloth and use a small bucket (or the popcorn souviner bucket from the parks) and fill it up and use that to wet and rinse her off. That is what we had to do in that bathtub. I hope this helps!

 

[Tricializ]

Seriously though. My little one hated (and it was like the screaming bloody murder thing) showers. The bath hats (visors) worked a bit but it was just something we had to get though. After a day in the hot sun and parks, the kids need a shower or bath. But, I found you could skip a day here and there with a nightly swim. LOL (not for me to skip but for a 2 year old). Then I would just wash them up at the sink with some nice soapy water and felt they were good enough every once in a while.
Tricia

 

[loriandmatt]

thanks for all the suggestions. DD generally loves to get her head wet....loves to pretend she is swimming in the bath tub, jumps in and has no qualms about going over her head when she is in the pool, lets me wash her hair (even masaging her tear ducts with johnsons baby shampoo as directed by her doctor for an ongoing problem she has) and rinse by dumping cups of water over her head.....but it is something about that shower that freaks her.

i will try the small kiddie shower head that she can spray herself off with and try and work our way up to something that would be reasonable in a campgroud shower house.

thanks all (and i am glad mine isn't the only kid who is freaky about this.)

also glad (don't know if "glad" is the right term....perhaps "perplexed in a funny way") that my DH isn't the only person out there who's solution was "just let her hit the pool - chlorine kills everything." nice.

 

[We4mickey]

We had this problem with Nicholas last year. We took a rubbermaid tote and went into the handicap stall, filled it up and let him have a bath. It worked pretty good. Then just dumped it out slowly, as to not flood the bathroom.

 

[MinnieGi]

I just had to laugh at your post. As our 2.5 yo DS just HAD to try a shower after seeing his older 6yo sister take one with a cute fish head shower nozzle for kids. Well he got in there and screamed his head off!!! We took him out and filled the tub up for a bath like we had wanted to but that he insisted he did not want. No more showers for our DS!

But good luck on the camping shower dilemma!!!!

 

[campingcorgi]

Our little camper had tubes and couldn't take showers. At home we only had showers (I know, what were we thinking--custom built home before we had the kid) but this is what we did at home and at FW. Had a large baby bathtub with the drain on one end. Set the tub on the counter next to the sink. Used a large cup to fill the tub, scrub kid and rinse with said cup. Pull the stopper, drain and rinse the tub, wipe down the counter and voila--clean kid!


Finally by about age 4 she could take showers and get her head wet in the pool. And we remodeled a bathrom at home and added a tub!

 

[CCIntrigue]

I just had to laugh at your post, too! I also have a "little camper" who is afraid of the shower, but mine has long fluffy hair and four paws.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

Try placing a washcloth or hand towel around the shower head so that the water is more like a tub stream than a shower. You may need a ponytail holder to keep it in place but it may be easier than a "tub" in the CS. Some kids just don't like all the directions that water comes out of the shower.

 

[mmcguire]

Wow -- this post brought back some memories! Our DS13 used to HATE the shower when he was 2-3. I remember staying several sites away from the bath houses at Myrtle Beach, and when DH took him for showers, I could hear DS screaming from there hundreds of feet away. We were sure people thought DH was in there beating him - I wouldn't have been surprised to see Child Protective Services show up.

But back to the OP's question - we had some luck by getting DS to cover his eyes with a rolled up wash cloth, and DH also started taking a plastic cup into the shower and getting DS to look up at the ceiling while he rinsed the shampoo out. I tell DD4 to put her head up and howl like a wolf now -- she thinks it's funny.

Best of luck with your little camper!!