[blparent] Wiping Noses

[Leanne Merren]

Hi Miranda,
This is a good question.  Most babies I care for do not like having their 
nose wiped, and they will move their head like you said.  What I do is this. 
Whether they are on my hip while I am standing, or on my lap while I am 
sitting, I basically do the same thing.  Let's say their body is on my left 
side.  I will use my arm/elbow to support their back, and I will reach up 
with my left hand to gently press their head against my left shoulder. 
Then, using my right hand holding the kleenex, I will first bring my right 
hand to the cheek where my left hand is holding their head, then move across 
from there to their nose, as quickly as I can.  You could also work from 
their chin up, if you are more comfortable with that way.  You need to 
gently pinch the nostrils in order to get the whole nose clean, so the chin 
method may help you avoid accidentally getting their eyes if they jerk their 
head, which they are still likely to do.  You can't hold their head too 
firmly, so there can still be some motion there.  You also want to make sure 
you wipe the skin just below the nose, even down to the upper lip so they're 
not eating it - yuck.  It's always easier to learn these things when you're 
not feeling self conscious with a sighted person watching your every move. 
:)
If I didn't explain any part of this well, please feel free to ask me to 
clarify.
Leanne
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Miranda" <knownoflove at gmail.com>
To: <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, October 18, 2010 2:40 PM
Subject: [blparent] Wiping Noses


> Hi,
> As we were working in the nursery at our church yesterday morning, I ended 
> up with a little one who had a very runny nose. I attempted many times to 
> wipe her nose with a cleanex, but she kept moving her head from side to 
> side and trying to take the cleanex from me and eat it. :-)
> I used my finger first to find the bridge of her nose, but the minute 
> anything (including my finger) came near her face she went crazy!
> Any ideas? We're already dealing a little bit with skeptisism from the 
> sighted volunteers, so I don't want to look incompetent by not even being 
> able to wipe a baby's nose properly!
> Although, I must say one of the workers let me try and didn't "rush in to 
> save the blind person", and she didn't try wiping the baby's nose until I 
> asked for help.
> Thanks for any help, and have a great week!
>
> In Christ, Miranda
>
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