How to brush my 1 yo dd's teeth?

[natashaccat]

Help! I'm not quite sure how care for care for my 1 yo dd's teeth. I brush using a regular baby tooth brush and kids fluoride toothpaste but I'm not sure if I'm brushing properly because dd wiggles an awful lot while I do it.

Any links or other info would be appreciated.

TIA
Simone

[malamamama]

It is a challenge!!!!!

Lucky you! She's just a wiggler and not a screamer
And lucky dd that she has you for a mama taking care of her teeth!!!
...most important, don't give up!
You could also try gauze sometimes if easier, as it is important to reach all the surfaces of the teeth.

Try these threads:
"Start brushing and make it fun"
"Flouride"

[stargazer]

brushing a toddler's teeth

my ds is 22 months and he wiggles a lot too. I was finding that I and he were not enjoying brushing teeth and I thought it could only get worse from here if he gets the message the brushing is no fun. So I started to talk about the day with him while I brushed his teeth. It worked! It ended up being a distraction. I go really slow and talk about the details of the day or what is going to happen tomorrow. He is very interested and just sits now and allows me to brush them quickly. I also try to respect when he needs to swallow or when he needs to stop so that he trusts me more with the whole process. Singing also seems to have helped reduce the wiggles and struggles.

Good Luck!!