Daughters Will NOT Stop Sucking thumbs-HELP

Hi L. :)

I sucked my finger til I was 4 years old. My parents tried everything to get me to stop! They even put cayenne pepper on my finger (thinking that would stop me) but I just washed it off the second they left the room and put my finger back in my mouth! My grandmother was eventually succesful in getting me to kick the habbit. She showed me a picture of some really crooked, messed up teeth. She told me that if I kept sucking my finger, my mouth would look like that. I didn't want to have teeth like that when I got older so I quit THAT DAY and never sucked my finger again! Maybe if you show them a picture of what their teeth could look like if they continue to suck their thumbs they will understand why it is important for them to stop. Good luck!

Try letting them suck their thumbs but only in a certain designated area like their bed. This way they can do it but they must go to their room and stop playing, watching tv, interacting with the family etc. to do so. If they share a room perhaps making them go sit on the stairs, a certain stool etc. would work better so they are not intereacting with each other. Just make sure there is no positive stimulation associated with the area you pick. Since you are letting them suck their thumbs there is no sense of the forbidden but if you make it inconvenient for them to go do they will slowly stop.

Hi L., My stepson was still sticking his thumb in his mouth when he was reading or watching TV at the age of 12. We finally broke him of this habit by giving him a dollar a day for not doing it. In addition to that we made a game out of it for his brothers. If they caught him with his thumb in his mouth and told us they would get his dollar and he would get nothing. This might really work good for you because they are twins. It would be a game and they would be aware of when they are putting their thumbs in their mouths. I don't believe they actually know that they are doing it. It just automatically goes in there. I hope this helps. We had tried everything also even a dental appliance, but he figured out how to get his thumb around it. Good Luck and best wishes.

I sucked my thumb until I was about 8 or 9 and I just quit on my own. It didn't really affect me in any way to suck my thumb, except give me security when I needed it.

If these were my kids I would sit down with them and calmly explain to them what is happening. I would tell them that although they like to suck their thumbs, it is causing them health problems. If they don't stop, they will have get braces (or whatever the dentist said). If it takes having the dentist telling them that, so be it. Maybe they even need to have someone show them the x-rays if they haven't already.

I would find out how they feel when they suck their thumbs. Do they do it when they're sad? Sleepy? Lonely? Help them identify their emotions when they do it, and then have them come up with ways to deal, other than sucking their thumb. For example, "I suck my thumb when I'm lonely, so when I feel lonely I'm going to go give Mommy a hug instead".

Of course, they could just be doing it to get some attention. You could also try just dropping the subject and ignoring them for a month and see if it clears up on its own. One more month of thumb sucking isn't going to harm them--it takes years for the bone structure to get changed.

My daughter had the same problem. We got her to quit by everyday that she didn't suck her thumb she got to put a sticker on the calendar and at the end of the week if she had a sticker on each day she got a present. I just went to the dollar store and bought rings or braclets or something she was really into at the time. It really worked great for us. She was more excited about getting a present at the end of the week so she tried very hard to keep her thumb out! We did put a bandaid on her thumb so that when she did it without thinking about it she would taste and feel the bandaid. We let her pick the bandaids out so she had a say in it too!! She quit cold turkey at the age of 5. Unfortunately we will not be avoiding the braces but thats ok. Hope this helps! Good luck!!!

I am an identical twin and we both sucked our thumbs until we were about 8 or 9.....I think it is a sort of security blanket. We did not do it at school or anywhere but in bed. We were SO shy and I think it was a way of calming us down. I remember one day just thinking I must look ridiculous and forced myself to quit even though I did not want to! Heck, if it was socially acceptable I bet I would STILL be sucking my thumb at 43, ha!
So try not to worry too much about it. if they were doing it at school and being teased then it would be more important to quit.

I have been in the process of this myself with my three year old daughter...she sounds exactly like yours do...hiding, and when I look at her she quickly pulls it out. We have been putting long socks on her hands at night and nap,(pinning them at the top so that she couldn't get them off) and now during the day we wrap duct tape around both of her thumbs. We also showed her the picture of gross teeth of a thumb sucker on-line. We have been at this process since november, and just in the last couple weeks notice a difference. The important thing for us was to not punish her for sucking her thumb, but we did punish her for taking off the sock or the tape. I have heard that you are never suppose to get angry about it...it just points it out more I guess.

I guess I don't think it's a big deal that they are six and sucking their thumb. When they are ready, they will stop. Lots of adults still bite their fingernails and this isn't that different. Actually, when you think about it, smoking is sort of like sucking a thumb in a small way.....

My daughter was born sucking her thumb - the Dr said she'd sucked it inside me - and she sucked it until she was almost 12 and just one day, she stopped doing it - she decided she'd had enough - and that was it. I encouraged her to stop early, but she just wasn't ready. Once she decided - and she remembers making the decision that she'd had enough - then, and only then, did she stop. It sounds to me like you have several kids that are independent thinkers and not easily swayed. That's a good thing that they are strong willed and independent!! Enjoy them just as who they are. Children come with their own wills and as parents, we can guide, but we cannot control and yours are letting you know their needs are definately their own!