4 1/2 Year Old Son Hates Haircuts

pick up a child friendly kit at Walmart....I found one that is yellow, it has a cape, a book, scissors and other hair cutting devices. The best thing about this is it is QUITE. The child barely knows it is there. Now it's not very powerful, so if you little one has really thick hair I wouldn't recommend it. However, because it is so quite, they get used to it eventually and then you can move up to a more advanced cutter. You can also try the Flobie

Hi S.,

Find out why he doesn't like his hair cut.

Good luck. All the best. D.

HI S.,

I have been cutting hair and specializing in cutting childrens hair for 12 yrs. And trust me I have seen it all. This is typical for boys around his age. I would say 2-4.5 would be the worst time. He should start to grow out of it soon. However, the worst thing you can do is wait a long time in between haircuts. I always recommend to my parents with this problem to not wait any longer than 4-5 weeks in between haircuts. If you continue him on this routine, he will eventually get used to it. By waiting to long in between, he forgets the time before and you are starting all over again with the haircut process. I live and work in the Mechanicsburg, PA area if you are close to this area, I would be more than happy to work with your son on haircuts.
Good Luck B.

k.

Hi S.,

I am going to reiterate some of the advice the other mothers have already said. Just so you know my son was just like your until he was about 5. I am not sure what helped him get over it, but here's some advice that the hair stylist gave me. First, she did say to send him to the barber with his dad, so he could see that his dad, and other men have the same experience and not one gets upset. She also said to bring my son for frequent hair cuts. The more exposure he had to the experience the quicker he would get used to it. Finally, like the responder before me, we make it an event by going to lunch after the hair cut.

N.

That is exactly my 5.5 year old. He finally was able to explain to us why he doesn't like it. He is really sensitive to the hair that sticks to him and it makes him very itchy. We've helped this in 2 ways. First, we will do small trims at home with a kit we bought and he can immediately get in the shower and rinse and put on clean clothes. He still has to go to the barber or salon once in a while for a "real" haircut, but we tell the person, they bundle him up really tight and we plan to go right home and get him showered and changed.
Good luck!

You can buy an electric razor w/different covers for different lengths at places like walmart & let him cut his hair himself. If he is in charge of the cut maybe he won't get as upset. He might even think it is fun. If you do all of his head the same length, then its not difficult & you can easily touch it up. Plus with a shaved cut you would get a much longer time before you needed to cut the hair again. I think my husband bought his for about $20. (Even w/out the blade covers the razor is safe, he won't cut himself).
One more suggestion...you may want to ask him what he would like his hair to look like. I have some friends who say their 5 year olds want mohawks (b/c their friends have them). He may have friends with long hair, or a particular style that he really wants.

When my grandson was younger only 5 now we had trouble getting his hair cut so we bought a razor from walmart and cut his hair at home. What we did was stand him by the mirror and he watched as his hair was being cut. His hair was long when we first started so we used scissors first and then cut his hair with the razor. He likes his hair buzzed all off now. When we first cut his hair we stood with him and laughed and he laughed with us. after we cut his hair we left him rub his head and he liked it.

I could have written your post when my son was just turning 4. We have improvements now. It may not be anything you are doing or not doing - he may not be able to help it. To rule out Sensory Processing Disorder, please go over this checklist:

http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/sensory-proces...

kids with these issues can really suffer without help.

Hope that helps.

L.

Have you or your husband tried taking him along with you when you get your hair cut? He could see that there is nothing to fear, no pain, etc. Unfortunately, I don't have any practical experience as I've been cutting my kids' hair at home. My son's hair is curly and kind of forgiving if I don't get it exactly right. My daughter's hair is short and fine and it grows so slowly that she just needs a trim a few times a year. Good luck!

I know this is going to sound ridiculous but has your husband tried taking him by himself to get his hair cut? My son who is 4 1/2 also and they both go to my husband's barber first to get Daddy's hair done and then to Kids Cuts for my son's. Then usually they go to BK for lunch. So it is an outing...He screamed and kicked up until 3 1/2 when I was taking him....first I was upset that he did not act of for my husband but now I love that they have a special outing every 4 weeks-gives me a few hours to myself :}

try having your husband take him to the barber. My son carries on in the beauty shop around a bunch of women, but seems to feel he must act like a big boy in front of his dad at the guys place. And of course I am thrilled to have one less kid to take for a hair cut.

Hi S.,
my kids didn't like them either when they were smaller. Actually mine refused to sit still. I am not sure where you live but there are 2 salons around Pittsburgh that cater to kids. One is called Sharkey's cuts for kids in Cranberry and there is one in Greentree but I forget the name. They sit in airplanes, motorcycles etc and there is a tv in front of them where they pick the cartoons. They can play video games, toys - anything that can distract then while they get their hair cut. The stylists are trained to be quick- 15 minutes and out. I would search your Yellow Pages. In my experience it was worth it to pay a little more $ and travel 1/2 hr to go there. They loved it. Good luck!!!
Diane

Take him to a barber on Saturday's where he will see other males and little boys getting their hair cut Or you could take him to a place that just specializes in cutting childrens hair. Or you can take him to a salon and let a female cut his hair. They are usually better cutting children hair than men.

FJ

Most kids do not like haircuts. I would see if you could do clippers and give him a buzz cut. It may be quicker and easier. An old coworker has a nephew who hates haircuts so they just buzz cut him. he knows it is easy and only takes a few minutes then he is done. Most kids do not want to sit still that long. my son is 18 months old so i get in the bathtub with him and cut his hair while he is playing with toys. he is pretty good about it. i felt at this point he was too little to go get his hair cut. right now i would not worry about cutting his hair it is cold out. may be in the interm you could trim his bangs yourself.