How Long After You Got Rid of the Paci Did Your Child Ask for It?

She should stop asking soon. Just don't give it back because it will start the whole process all over again.

Hurray! Two weeks--you've past the hardest part for sure. Honestly, if she isn't crying about it, that is incredible. It sounds like you will just have to keep doing what you are doing and patiently tell her it's gone. Or do what I do when my daughter asks me the same thing over and over. Respond to her question with a question. "Can YOU tell me where the Didi is?" "Do you remember what I told you last time you asked?"
No finger pointing here. In fact, quite the opposite! Good work!
There is no way to predicate how long she will keep asking. But hang in there--she'll stop eventually.

Hi M.,

We are in the process of going through this with my daughter who is actually 3 years. We talked to her about a "Paci Fairy" taking her pacis and giving them to a new baby that doesn't have any--we did this prior to taking them away plus we told her the Paci Fairy would bring her a wagon (she was asking for one) as a thank you. I realize that you already took the paci away but maybe you could introduce the idea of a Paci Fairy and tell her what she did with her paci. I'm not sure if the idea of a gift is of interest, but you could possibly tell her that the Paci Fairy just found a new baby to give her paci to and here is present as a thank you. This might help finalize things by letting her know they're in use and not coming back.

Good luck!

Good job with how you are handling the removal of the paci (or mimi as my daughter called it). At about 3.5 we finally found a way to get rid of ours...we flew back east for a visit and "lost" it on the plane. We had quite a while of asking for it (about 3 weeks overall) but just kept telling her she was a big girl and didn't need her mimi anymore and also that it was lost. I do not reccommend giving in and getting another one (we did that once and it lasted another year!). Now her sister was so much easier...we took hers away at about 18 months and she only asked for it once and that was about a month later :-)
Just remember the hardest part is over! Hang in there and keep up the great work!

Great job! I say just keep doing what you're doing. Do not give in & give them back under any circumstances! Maybe try to keep your responses short & sweet as in " Remember, no more didis.' Then change the subject or distract her w/an activity. Keeping her busy during the helps as well. The key is to stay consistent & don't waiver. Keep up the good work!

Hi M.,

Long Live the Paci. My DD had one until one month after she turned 2. We had them EVERYWHERE, and she knew just about all of our hiding places. Her first week w/o it, she asked every now and then. Then 2 weeks later, when we thought she had gotten over it, she spotted one in the refrigerator and immediately asked for it. But, I just told her that she was a big girl and didn't need it anymore. Then as I quickly removed it from the refrigerator and showed her that it really wasn't there, she went on to something else. So, I think if you give it another week or so, you will start to hear about it less and less.

God bless.

D.

Hello M., My granddaughter is going at 2 1/2 wasn't ready so only got it at bed and nap time for her birthday I have plans to "replace it" with something she can cuddle and get comfort from like a Tinkerbell blanket, a musical bear or doll. Consider that and the need for the pacifer will be less and she won't have a need to ask otherwise it could be sometime-- remember she has always had it soits not like a habit its part of her life. This is only one of the many adventures into parenthood that you will have. Good Luck

My nephew asked for one off and on for a few months. It started out pretty incessantly, but then gradually eased up. My sister "lost" the binkies one by one over the span of a few days, and my sister just kept saying the store didn't have anymore (of course then she had to avoid stores that sold them until he was over the binkies). Since your daughter will probably remember that they "broke," try using that. By bringing up that they broke, it might make her remember how unsatisfying they were those last few days and she'll desire them less. At the same time, you can introduce something else to soothe her, maybe a new snuggly stuffed animal or something. You can tell her, "We don't have didis anymore because they all broke, remember? But how about Baby Bear instead? Where is he? He can snuggle with you..." Personally, I always feel guilty telling my daughter she's a big girl now and so can't do this or that. I find myself doing it sometimes, but I wonder if I'm making her feel bad, like maybe being a big girl isn't going to be much fun or like she should be ashamed of wanting something a "baby" might want. I don't know...
Good luck!! And hang in there! My cousin's daughter had her binkie until kindergarten, and it was terrible. We couldn't understand her when she talked and the world revolved around having a binkie handy at all times. It became a real crutch, not to mention what the other kids at school thought of her showing up with a binkie. You are right to try to end the habit now...

Good Job!!!! My daughter is 26 months and still has it for bed time. I have thought about taking it but she is going to start daycare soon and I think it would be a lot harder with out it. So Good job hope every thing goes good for you guys.

Aww, I miss my boys and their paci addiction. I think mine were both a little bit over the age of two when they finally just gave them up on their own. I'm sure their final paci was all worn and gross. You might want to give her one more and just tell her it's the last one and she better take care of it and when it's gone it's gone. It's a hard call. You obviously see she can live without it, but she probably craves it when she's a tad stressed or tired. If you've already gone 2 weeks and you don't want her back on it, I'm sure she will quit asking soon.... just dont make the conversations long when she asks. Change the subject fast and she'll soon forget about it.

I totally agree with those who have congratulated you and recommend sticking with the no paci program. It shouldn't take much longer for her to give up asking. Do try to keep your responses short and re-direct her to other things. The more you engage in discussing it with her, the longer she's going to keep remembering it. Don't totally ignore her asking either. Just give a quick response reminding her that the paci is gone, and then re-direct her.

Just wanted to say beware of chapstick - I can't let my almost 2 year old see it or she'll throw a fit to have it. When she gets her hands on one she, opens it and "puts some on" which usually means eating part of the stick!

Have considered instead of going 'cold turkey' to phase out and only use for naps & bedtime. We had good sucess w/my little girl and we let her use 'binkies' until she was 3.5! So don't beat yourself up - you are doing great I am sure of it!

I think you are getting past the hardest part... we actually just took away the nuk/paci and my daughter is 3 1/2 years old (we waited way too long so congrats to you for having the guts to do it now instead of putting it off like us).

Anyway my daughter has gone without her nuk/paci for almost a month now... for the first two weeks we did a sticker chart, she got a sticker for every nap & bedtime that she did not use the nuk (we kind of just took the nuk away so even if she asked we said try to sleep without it). During those two weeks she always was asking for one, she knew it was only allowed at sleep times. After getting 20 stickers (she would get two a day so that adds up quickly) we went to toysRus and she was allowed to pick out a toy under $10.

The third & fourth week we said she only gets stickers if she did not ask for the nuk at nap & bedtime.. After getting another 20 stickers (she would get two a day so that adds up quickly) we went to toysRus again and she was allowed to pick out a toy under $15.. Sometime during the END of the third week she stopped asking for a nuk/paci. Now in week four there has been no more talk of nuk/paci.

Hang in there, she should be close to stop asking... maybe try a sticker chart. Even if you do not want to give a reward she can see the progress she is making and that might make her get over it quicker. Good luck and keep at it, she should almost be over it (might take another week or two). I kept telling myself "we have already started this and I do not want to do it all over again just for giving in for awhile and giving the nuk/paci back."