Single Mom Here, My 6 Year Old Son and His Eye Medication

His eye does not have to be open in order to get the medicine into his eye. Seriously!!!

Have him lie down on the couch, close his eyes and relax. Put a couple of drops into the corner of his eye and just let it seep in. Even with his eyes closed, it really will seep in. Just have him lay there for a few minutes (5 maybe?) to give the medicine a chance to really seep in. After a few minutes, let him get up and go play (or whatever).

I understand why people say that taking medicine is not negotiable and to remember who the adult is, but that's so much easier said than done. It is completely normal for kids (and many adults) to freak out when it comes to something touching their eye. I know many, many adults who say they are so glad they never need to wear contacts because the very thought freaks them out!

Eye drops are a battle for many people, and it's just not necessary. Let him have the drops with his eyes closed. It works, so there's really no reason not to.

He does not get to decide whether or not to get the drops. He does get to decide whether to sit up with his head back or lie down.if he really will not cooperate, just hold him down and put drops in the corner of his eye. Really mom, you have to get those eye drops in with or without his cooperating. After a time or two, he will accept that you will follow doctor’s instructions. Do not make a huge deal about it. Be matter of fact about necessity and firm.

Strange - another mom just asked this almost exact question last month. Must be alot of eye infections going around . . .

As I said to the other poster, who is the parent and who is the child here? Since when do children get to "decide" they aren't going to take their medicine. No TV, electronics, playdates, toys, nothing until he gets the drops. Non-negotiable. He can sit in the corner doing nothing until he complies.

Medication is not negotiable.
He gets to sit in a corner and do NOTHING at all until his med(s) are taken.
Our son never got that bad about it mostly because we taught him early on that in some things he doesn't get a choice.
For medicine - he must comply.
If it was yucky tasting medicine I made sure I had some juice ready so he could drink it as a chaser to get the taste out of his mouth.

Is it drops or the gel? For drops, I used to have my son sit with his head tilted back (often in my lap) and would squeeze a couple of drops on the bridge of his nose. They would trickle down into his eyes and we'd be done with this (we used to have to do this during allergy season).

For gel, like for conjunctivitis, I used to just put it on my finger and gently swipe that across his closed eye, focusing on the corners and the lash line. You don't have to take the tip of the tube and squeeze it onto the eyes, which can seem scary and gross LOL. As long as it gets onto the lid, it'll do its job.

Find a small prize or incentive for doing this without drama. My oldest was pretty difficult about this but these techniques plus something he wanted made it easier.