The first time they pull a strand of your hair, it is funny. You might have laughed or screamed for the delight of your baby. But, it becomes annoying when hair pulling becomes a habit. Many mothers come to me with the complaint that their babies pull mother’s hair which is too painful to bear. Those tiny fingers and arms have a strength that you will not believe until they use it to pull your hair. Giving birth, nursing, and taking care of a baby is painful enough and you do not have to bear the pain of hair-pulling too. The habit of pulling hair is a behavior that needs to be nipped from the bud before it becomes worse.
The babies pull their own hair or someone else’s hair as a self-soothing technique to relieve their stress. Although this behavior is seen among babies of both genders, hair pulling and twirling are more prominent among girl babies. It does not look or feel comfortable to us but hair pulling and twirling can soothe your baby.
But, it can become a serious behavioral problem if not managed at a very early age. Hair pulling can start around the age of six months usually but, it can happen before this age too. In this article, we will discuss why babies pull their or your hair and what you can do about the habit of hair-pulling.
CONTENT
1. Why does my baby pull my/his hair?
2. How to stop my baby from pulling my/his hair?
1. Why does my baby pull my/his hair?
Hair pulling and twirling is a sign that your little one is stressed or overwhelmed. This behavior is observed in one percent to four percent of the adult population in the world and prominent among females than among males. It is found that hair pulling helps to self-soothe when a person is stressed or anxious. Therefore, your baby is not abnormal for pulling or twirling his hair. There can be several other reasons which trigger the hair-pulling behavior of the babies.
- Tired/sleepy
When a baby is pulling his hair and sucking his thumb, he is most probably tired and ready to sleep. Hair pulling helps him to calm down and settle down to sleep as same as thumb sucking does. The baby might also pull your hair as he soothes himself to sleep.
- Fussy
A fussy baby will try to self-soothe by pulling his hair. If you notice that your baby pulls his hair, try to comfort him by rocking, singing, or feeding. Fussiness will have your baby pulling your hair too and it means he uses hair-pulling as a soothing technique.
- Eating
Some babies love to pull their hair while being breastfed or bottle-fed. It is also a way to self-soothe.
- Teething
When a tooth erupts from the gums, the pain is intolerable for your little baby. The baby will look for ways to soothe his teething pain and pulling own hair is a natural self-soothing technique which has been evolved to human. Hair pulling to soothe teething pain can be distinguished as the baby will pull the hair around the ear if he is trying to cope with teething discomfort.
- Having fun
If your baby pulls hair in random times and it does not seem to be a habit, he is just having fun. Babies love to play, and pulling their own hair is one way to do that. It is not fun for us but for them, it is. Some babies pull other people’s hair more than their own. One of the top reasons that lead a baby to pull another person’s hair is to have fun.
2. How to stop my baby from pulling my/his hair?
- Offer an alternative soother
An alternative soother can solve the hair pulling problem quickly. Offer the baby a soft toy, lovey, blanket, pacifier, or something else that he loves. If you think your baby needs something to pull to get over the habit of hair-pulling, you can go for a doll with long hair, a furry blanket, or a soft toy with long hair or ears.
When your baby is pulling his or her hair, offer him the alternative to pull. You can also explain to him why you are offering him an alternative.
- Trim the baby’s hair / Hide your hair.
Your baby pulls his own hair because he can hold it. Just trim it or shave the baby’s head, and he will not have anything to pull. Short hair or a shaved hair will be more comfortable for your baby as it does not sweat much and easily dries after a bath.
If you have a baby who loves to pull your hair, tie it back when breastfeeding, playing, or carrying the baby. The mom bun exists for a reason. So, make use of it without letting the baby pull your hair till it comes off.
- Discourage thumb sucking
Most of the babies pull their hair while sucking their thumbs. These self-soothing behaviors are inter-connected in most instances. If you discourage thumb sucking by pulling his thumb out every time he puts it in, it might help with hair-pulling behavior too.
Some parents apply olive oil or something bitter to stop thumb sucking. I personally do not like this technique. But as a parent, it is up to you to decide.
- Say bye to co-sleeping
If your baby is pulling your hair while sleeping and none of these techniques work, it is time to stop co-sleeping. You can train them to sleep on their own or let someone with short hair sleep with them. Babies do not like pulling short and hard hair so, most of the dads can take over the job of co-sleeping with a hair-pulling baby.
- Reject the hair-pulling behavior
Do not encourage the hair-pulling behavior of your child by laughing or screaming. Tell them that it hurts mommy or the other person and they should not do it. Teach them to gently stroke the hair of other people if they really want to touch the hair. Be calm and explain to them the reasons why you want them to stop pulling hair without responding positively.
