Diaper Tantrums!

Its a phase!
It will pass! Believe it or not.
My kids, when they were that age, would even run away full-on sprinting, and scream at diaper changing time. Oh well... sometimes I even had to stop myself from laughing. It was hilarious!

they do get "dramatic." And yes, I had to catch them, lay them down, straddle my legs around them and put my legs on their arms... hold their legs with both my arms, and using just my hands, take off their diaper, slide the new one under them, clean them up real quick, and strap the new one on. Like a stealth jet. The WHOLE time, they are screaming and twisting their torso and balking and oh boy, what an ordeal!

But it passes. It DOES. Saying stop will not make them stop.
Use distraction.... with anything that will keep his hands busy and his eyes on the object. And you will get to be SUPER fast about the process. I always get all the things ready before hand...the diaper, the diaper cream, the wipes... THEN I go catch my kids, and just do it.

Sometimes, just try and CHANGE their mood... I would make my kids laugh and do silly things with my face and voice to "trigger" a switch in their protesting.

It will pass. Then other phases will come up! LOL

All the best,
Susan

It sounds like you've had wonderful advice, i just needed to add my smilie comments. to me, it sounds like you have an amazingly intelligent kid too!!! my son fought me and himself every step of the way. i look back now with a smile on my face!!! you're in for it!!! : ) and i feel nothing but sympathy, but...at the same time...you'll be happy to know you've got a good one!!! he'll never take life sitting (or laying) down!!!
p.s. you're so lucky to be home with him!!!!
have so much fun!!!!

Hi
I almost went through the same thing and here is here iswhat I did
1- hand him something new that he has not seen before or was not allowed to play/hold before
2- chang the place where you chang him to a different room
3- change him in front of the TV. My baby is not really allowed to watch tv,so she loves to watch baby Einstein for 3-5 minutes
Good luck
P.

Try changing him standing up. I know it sounds crazy, but it works. Thats what they do with toddlers at my childrens daycare and when they told me I thought they were crazy, but after a little practice I got it down. The child wants some control of the situation and by standing up and participating in changing their own diaper they have some control. Obviously they cannot do it themselves but both of my kids, especially my son's behavior improved dramatically when I stopped lying him down to change him. I took him in the bathroom sat on the floor next to him and changed him while he stood up. This also makes changing in public places easier once you get the hang of it and don't have to sit on the floor to do it.
Good luck.
H.

Why do you put up with this? Ask that question first so you can find out what you are afraid of in the discipline area. An 18 month old child looks to you for cues, you are allowing this behavior out of fear of taking a stand in the family standing? Does the child rule the house in other ways? There is no conseqence for this behavior, he will not stop.

I've seen alot of advice on discipline and smacking but I don't go that direction and I don't think in this instance its necessary. I have a 19 mth old who has been that way for a while too. I always distract with a book or toy and it works everytime! I may try changing him on the floor when he gets like that too. Might be grown out of the table. Good luck!

Did he have a bad experience on the table? Or has he had a really bad diaper rash? My nephew used to to throw fits only when he had the diaper rash. It could also be a way to control something. Whatever you do, never back down from changing the diaper. He needs to know that you mean business, and what you say goes. You might want to change the location that you are changing his diaper. Sometimes a change of scenery may be a good distraction. Kids can be weird sometimes. Maybe he is to big for the changing table and is uncomfortable. You never know what the deal really is.
I know with my 24 month old little girl, I have to be really careful, give an inch and she takes a mile.
I hope my advise is helpful.
Take care!

Hi A.:
I sat here and cracked up,after reading your request.Both my sons went through the same thing. It's just a phase some toddlers go through. My oldest was the worse. I'm right there with ya SH. I use to chase after him sometimes. He'd start laughing,Probably at my expression as he was OUT RUNNING me! I'd start cracking up,and we both lost it. He loved being naked. Especially after his bath. The way I looked at it was "So what if he's naked a while? Whats the dire emergency in getting another diaper on him? He's only going to be able to get away with streaking like this for a short time in his life.When they throw a fit,its not so much they don't want a diaper change,as they don't want to stop what they are doing. Make it fast,and give him something to keep him happy a few minutes.This will help.When he realizes,that you are going to be quick,and he can soon continue having fun,he'll be more cooperative.The only thing I'd like to add,is: When you find yourself getting a bit frustrated,over things such as this,try to loosen up,and see the funny side of the situation.It's great for your children to see you have a good sense of humor,and that they can make you laugh without even trying.It's healthy for you to. I wish you and your witty son the best. J. M

I am sorry that he has started this. It is very hard to deal with. My little guy began at about 10 month sold. I would literally have to gently put my legs over his shoulders to pin him down long enough to get a diaper on him. He was just too busy to be bothered with laying still. He soon learned that he could kick his way out of my hold. For us it only lasted for about 2 months. He is just now starting to relax and be still. I think maybe it is an independent act. They want to do what they want at that specific time. He soon learned that being still gets the job done quickly. Don't get me wrong I still have to wrestle him down about once a day, but it's much better now.

Maybe he's ready for the potty. This might be his way of communicating that he's through with diapers.

Do you have underwear for him? Make it into a party and have him pick out his own big boy underwear. I had a sticker chart that my son won prizes for good potty days. He was really into Thomas Tank and has a rather large brio Thomas Tank collection earned from his accident free days. I started with one whole day and then a prize, then two, three and so on.

I know that people tend to potty train a whole lot later in the US, but I think it should really be child directed. Some kids are ready at a very early age.

If he isn't ready and is just throwing tantrums, then he's probably trying to exert some power/control over his life. These little people are routinely told what to do and when. Have him make some decisions for himself (pick out his own clothes in the morning, choose where he'd like to go in the afternoon, choose his food etc.) Then set some boundaries for unacceptable behavior and reward the good.

Good luck!

Hi
This is a pretty common phase that a lot of kids go through. I had a couple of "exclusive" diaper change table toys that only came out at change time. Make them fun, distracting, interesting toys, but don't let him have access to them all the time
Good luck

I would suggest two things - be prepared, and use distraction.
Forget about using the changing table. I would personally try laying him down on the floor throughout the day in the same position that you would use to change a diaper, but instead play with him - tickle, "eat the belly", raspberries, etc. That way, the position itself doesn't conjure up the idea of diaper changing, but rather could be seen as fun. When you need to change his diaper, have all of your supplies close at hand, ready to go, and then do the belly play routine, maybe have something interesting to play with for him, and then swoop in and get it done while you are still playing with him.
That sort of technique worked for a lot of things when my son was little (and even now). Distract him with fun.
And as other moms have mentioned, this too shall pass!

Hi A.,
My 16 month old used to do the same thing. Now he likes to read while I change his diaper. We have a bookshelf next to his changing table. I only give him the smaller cardboard books because they are easier to hold than the flimsy paper pages. As soon as I set him on the table, he asks for a book. Sometimes he might "read" two books during a change. It keeps him entertained for a few minutes and it encourages his love for books. There are a couple books that have animal sounds so I recite the book and we work on our animal sounds. Good luck!

We had the same thing. Location, location, location.
He needs a change of scenery. We would change him on our bed, on the floor of his room with a blankie, on the couch. He loved that. No probs.

Hi A., The only way to correct bad behavior is discipline, a child should never be alound to pull or pinch their parent, or anyone as far as that goes. maybe you want to try potty training and get rid of the diapers. J.

is this every place you change him? maybe if hes not messy let him stand while you change him. have the diaper already fassend and let him step into it. this may calm some fights.
my daughter did this time to time and i would have to put the top portion of my arm acrossed her chest and hold her feet with the same hand. then clean her with the other. this was around 16 months and by 18 i started potty training because she didnt want to have her diaper changed.
hope this helps good luck!

Try just one quick swat on the but and a firm no that has worked for me. Also you may need to change him on the floor so you won't have to worry about him falling down if he is struggling with you. Stay firm & learn to be quick. Good luck this will pass too.

My son is hard to change too. I usually put a sticker(right now he likes cars) on the back of his hands. He is usually so busy looking at the stickers that I can get the diaper change done quickly and before he realizes that I'm changing him. Good Luck!!!

Hi ,

I keep stickers in the changing table drawer
and they get stickers if they are good for a diaper
change. Sometimes they just want to hold them. You
can buy books of stickers for under $2 at Wal Mart.
Good luck .. I think I got this idea from another
Mom on this site.

T.

are u still breast feeding by any chance? or maybe just give him a bottle or something to occupy him..a toy?? something he can play w/ or look at..i used to say "booby" and my son would run to me and i could change him easily that's one of the reasons i breast fed for so long ..til he was almost 3..made life way easier but u can try toys..or some object from the house that he normally can't touch?? then he learns to be gentle with things at the same time.

Hi A.,

My 19 month old daughter also sees diaper changing as torture, but I think it's an area where she feels completely out of control and vulnerable. Which makes sense if you ask me! I think it's a power struggle but I don't see the need to "win". I don't want her to get the message that anyone who is bigger gets their way. What seems to have worked recently is that instead of me telling her that it's time to change her diaper, I say "what song do you want me to sing while I change your diaper?" And I scooper her up. That appears to distract her because she starts rattling off songs and I go ahead and sing. Sometimes I also let her choose a toy to bring along. Oh- I've also let her change her teddy bear's diaper, at other times. Oh one more thing- sometimes when she starts to thrash and scream, I say, "I'm going to give you a hug!" (and I do) And that seems to sort of surprise and relax her at the same time.

Hope this helps!

Hope this helps.

Possibly it is time to start potty training him. I did that with my son. He is currently 4, however, when he was 18 months old he was ready. I did not force the issue, just asked him to pick out his favorite BIG BOY underwear, and the rest was history.

Have you tried changing him while he is standing up? Obviously A little more difficult with a poopy diaper, but always worked great with my active little boy for just a wet one. Good luck!

Oh I'm so glad my son is not the only one that does this - - I was starting to worry that it was an indicator of some sort of behavioral issue but I see that it's really normal! My boy is almost 16 months old, and it's a 30/70 split between him being okay with a diaper change (or changing his clothes) and it being the end of the world for him to have to let me change his diaper... I just try to distract him and get it over with asap when it's a high drama diaper change. And I know part of it is he does love being nekkies and will try his hardest to get away from me and run around for as long as he can w/o anything on!!

I know it is super early, but maybe you can see if he wants to use the toilet?

Hey A.,
Boy do I know what you are talking about!!! my son is 23 months and he still thinks that it's a "game", but the trick is to be "fast", I would give him a toy or something he does not normally play with (i.e. old remote control or a disposable camera), and while he is in amazement on the unfamilar "play" object I get in there and change the puppy in less than 45 seconds #1 if it is #2 about a minute in a half, you have to have everything ready and not have to be looking for things (i.e. wipes and diapers always in full supply and at your finger tips before you have to "go in". And another idea is to allow him to take some part in the prep, let him carry his own diaper as you walk to the changing table and allow him to take out some wipes with your help, and throw soiled diaper away. By the way congratulations on furthuring your education despite the many odds you may face.

Lift Him Up Higher,
K.

Could the changing table be the source of the problem? I gave up on the changing table and just started changing Ava's diaper on the floor (with the new diaper under the old in case I found an unexpected blowout situation:) )
I also found that she appreciated the fact that I would sit with the bottoms of my feet together in like a "yoga cobbler's pose" (you can type that into google for a photo) with her head cradled by the insides of my feet (her lying in the middle of my legs). This made her more comfortable than lying flat on her back and there was no cold changing table under her back. We've always had happy diaper changes and I think this was the reason. If I had to use a public restroom changing table she always looked miserable and would say she "hurt" (I think she was trying to say she was "uncomfortable")
Annnyway, hope that helps!

He is too big for the changing table now. Also, let him look at a book or hold a toy while changing him. (My son is still in diapers and this works for him).