Brushing teeth can be tough for our sensory children, as it involves lots of stimulation - noise, pressure, taste, texture and smell. Our mouth is incredibly sensitive and teeth brushing also often involves being in a brightly lit and echoing room with lots of close contact- not an ideal scenario!
It can also be tricky to navigate for the supporting adults involved, as although they want to respect a child's boundaries and sensory limits, toothbrushing is very important for health and hygiene.
Some tips that I have found to help children who are avoidant:
This video, particularly if used in combination with the tips below;
1 - Making it a game of getting to the bathroom (we race up the stairs to see who can get there first and always let them just win)
2 - We always all clean our own teeth at the same time. We model brushing our teeth for the entire length of the song twice a day. This removes the demand and focus being on them, but instead we all do our own teeth (or attempt to)
3- They check that you have brushed your teeth well and can brush for you if they feel it is needed, meanwhile you are modelling what you hope to see from them as you help them. After, you check their teeth and brush any missed spaces.
The benefits of completing the task this way is, yes they have not immediately have the best brushed teeth ever, but they will be regulated, motivated, feel safe and will feel independent. Increasingly they will get better at doing it. This is far better than the battle ground alternative that builds negative feeling and fractured relationships.
Product recommendations to try
These 3-sided toothbrushes mean that the top and both sides of the teeth are covered with just one swipe. Great as they are learning how to brush their own teeth.
These silicone chewable brushes are great if you have a child who is struggling with the bristles of a toothbrush. These are far softer and can be chewed too.
U-shaped whole-mouth toothbrushes are another fab option that you can try. These make it easier for sensory children to brush their own teeth more effectively.
These flavoured finger toothbrushes don't need toothpaste or water. These might be better for children that struggle with a toothbrush and / or the flavour or feeling of toothpaste.
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