I totally get the meltdown thing—my kid once refused to brush unless his stuffed animal “approved” first. Does anyone else worry that all these little rituals might make it harder later on? I’m always nervous about starting a new routine...
That stuffed animal “approval” thing sounds so familiar—my daughter used to insist on singing the same song every night before brushing, or else she’d just freeze up. I get what you mean about worrying if these rituals might make things harder in the long run, but honestly, most kids seem to outgrow them. If it gets them brushing without a meltdown now, I say go for it. Starting new routines is always a bit nerve-wracking, but sometimes the silly stuff becomes less important as they get older.
That’s reassuring to hear, honestly. My son has a whole routine with his superhero toothbrush—he won’t start unless we do a little “power up” chant together. I used to worry it was just reinforcing picky habits, but like you said, these things tend to fade as they get older. If it means less resistance and more actual brushing, I figure it’s worth it for now. Sometimes I wonder if we’re just making things harder for ourselves down the line, but I guess every stage brings its own quirks.
We’ve got something similar going on at our place. My daughter refuses to brush unless we do this whole “tooth fairy countdown” routine—she picks a different voice for the fairy every night. At first, I worried we’d be stuck with it forever, but after talking to our pediatrician and a few other parents, it seems like these little rituals really do fade out on their own. I get the concern about forming picky habits, but honestly, she’s brushing without a fight, so I’m not sure it’s a bad trade-off. I guess it’s just one of those things you adapt to, then suddenly they outgrow it and you miss it a little.
That makes me feel a bit better, honestly. My son will only brush if we do this “brushing robot” act—I have to beep and talk in a robot voice, or he won’t even pick up his toothbrush. I was worried we were making it too much of a thing, like maybe he’d never want to brush on his own. But hearing that these habits just fade is kind of reassuring. Still, I get anxious that we’re setting ourselves up for trouble later... but for now, at least his teeth are getting clean.
