How to Get 2.5Yr Old to Stop Sucking Thumb?

There is some stuff at CVS you can buy to help people stop biting their nails--it is a little bottle--can't remember the name--this helped my daughter stop quickly--it tastes terrible

My now-9 yr. old sucked her thumb until she was 6. Unfortunately for us, she was an aggressive sucker and did change the shape of both her upper and lower palettes. However, our dentist cautioned us not to to do anything drastic to stop it at such a young age. She was also a chewer and pretty much destroyed her crib AND she is also a tooth grinder. The poor baby teeth that she hasn't lost yet are almost worn away.

As for the thumb-sucking, the dentist said that forcing small children to stop like that can really be very traumatic for them. For our dd, the damage was already done. He said there were appliances that could be used at an older age (8, 9 and older) but luckily for us at 6 she just stopped, "because I wanted to". At that point she was only doing it at night or when riding in the car and it just so happened I noticed one day in the car that she wasn't. I paid attention a few more times in the car and when I finally realized she'd broken the habit I asked her about it and that's when she told me she just decided on her own to stop. :o)

Hopefully your daughter will just eventually stop on her own. Talk to your dentist and see what he recommends. I never sucked my thumb, but ended up being in braces for 2.5 yrs. My sister sucked her thumb and developed an overbite, but only need braces for 14 mos. My 6 yr. old never sucked her thumb or took a pacifier and the dentist seems to think she may be in braces longer than my 9 yr. old (the aggressive sucker, chewer and tooth grinder). So while thumb-sucking can indeed cause dental problems, not sucking doesn't guarantee you won't have them either.

Good luck! :o)

Wow, I have a 9 year old daughter who still sucks her thumb. The sooner you can get them to stop, the better. We are getting ready to have a heavy orthodontist bill. She has to have a palate divider put in before they can take 2 teeth out to give her braces. Her palate is so high that it is causing nasal congestion, speech impairment, among breathing issues due to the narrow nasal passages.
I do not have any recommendations for a 2 year old. Mine is old enough that I give her gum to chew on when she can. That is why I have a 9 year old still sucking her thumb. I know pacifiers are not a great suggestion, but it does substitute that sucking and it will help get him/her out of the habit of putting his/her thumb in her mouth. I really wish I could help you with a tip, but rather all I have is the effects.
Whatever you find out, please be persistent. It does not pay to let it go on any further.
I will definately pray for you.

Good luck stopping the habit! My daughter is 8 y/o and still sucks her thumb in her sleep, which we can't seem to get past. She's about to have a palatal expander put in her mouth in the next couple of weeks because of the damage thumb-sucking has caused. It will have a "habit-breaker" attachment, so hopefully that will finally do the trick.

In the meantime, at 2.5, there are plenty of things you can try. If you can swap the thumb for a pacifier, that would go a long way toward stopping the thumb sucking. There are things you can paint the thumbnail with that taste nasty. You can try putting a sock over the hand (with a rubber band, which I didn't like at first, but you do actually need to use the rubber band or the sock comes off) or a glove. You can also try wrapping an ace bandage around the elbow to keep them from bending enough to reach the mouth. Amazon.com has Thumb Guards that are not too expensive as well. Nothing else comes to mind at the moment.

Be sure to talk to your child about the habit. You don't want to make them feel bad about it, but you do want to be sure they understand that it's not a good or healthy thing to do.

Hope this helps some. Good luck!

I personally wouldnt worry too much with it right now. Our 9 year old daughter sucked her pointer and middle fingers until she started kindergarten and almost instantly she stopped.

Even now on occasion I see her put both of those fingers up to her lips - not in her mouth.

And by the way....I have kids who have NEVER sucked their thumbs, fingers or pacifiers who have needed extensive ortho work.

At age three we had a dentist look at our daughters mouth to see if her fingers were causing damage and he told us that it was not.

I felt sick inside when I read the other responses about putting hot pepper stuff on the thumb or rubber banding a sock on their hand. Your child is 2 1/2 not 10. I have an uncle -in - law whose parents actually tied his hands to the bed at night so he could not suck his thumb. I think that was HORRIBLE!! Does he remember it? Absoutely. It was very hurtful to his spirit.

I would pray for guidance in how to handle this delicate situation. Your child has had this comfort for 2 1/2 years now.

The worst thing to do is try to get them to stop. I have a 22 year old that still sucks his thumb, my brother, who is 41 still sucks his thumb. Both have straight teeth, never needed braces.

The more you try to stop them the worse they get.

Good Luck

Have you tried the hot pepper stuff that you paint on their thumbs and fingers like nail polish? I know it sounds harsh, but it certainly won't cause as much harm as long term thumb sucking.

Well I'm no good at this, because my 5 yr old still sucks.

I found a product that he loves, we're just not good at implementing it. It's called thumb busters (I think). It's just like a thumb-part of a glove, wraps around wrist to secure. It's for having a gentle reminder not to suck if they already agree to stop. I call it a superhero glove.

I would like to know this myself. My daughter is 5 & still sucks her thumb. We tried putting something on her thumbs so she wouldn't like the taste, didn't seem to matter. She likes her nails painted, so I tried painting them often but never the thumbs unless she stops sucking her thumb - but that doesn't seem to encourage her to stop. Now we remind her everytime we see her with her thumb in her mouth to take it out, and she will, but I know it slips in every night when she goes to sleep or whenever she gets upset or even just when she gets comfy on the couch. I'm hoping she will grow out of it soon and I certainly hope she doesn't do it in school. But I've pretty much come to the conclusion that she'll have to get braces down the road.

There's a little clear thing that you can put on their thumb to discourage thumb sucking. I just saw it in a catalog I got in the mail. The website is www.leapsandbounds.com I would search for 'thumb sucking' to see if it will take you to what I saw.

Good Luck!

Take Care,
N. :) SAHM homeschooling 3 boys 12, 8 & 2 yrs old and married to my Mr. Wonderful for almost 15yrs. I love to help other moms, who want to become SAHMs, reach that goal. If you or someone that you know want to become a SAHM, please email me at ____@____.com. Thanks!

When our son was little (and very attached to his thumb) he got up one morning, and had a cut/blister on his thumb. Big brother told him that his thumb was starting to fall off, he looked at me and I agreed that I guessed it could, and it never went back in his mouth again. Nothing else worked!!!

My daughter is 2 and also sucks her thumb... I have been told not to worry about it until her baby teeth start falling out. I actually used to suck my thumb... until I was 9! I sucked my thumbs so much that both of my thumbs had blisters on them!! The way my mom got me to stop was she made a "grab bag" filled with cheap little toys. For everyday that I didnt suck my thumb, I was able to pull a toy out. She had things like decorative pencils for school, cute erasers, wild shoe strings, toys that could come from a gumball machine, etc. I think she did this for a month. After each full week, if I was able to go the whole week without sucking my thumb, I got a new coloring book! She had my teacher at school write a note if she caught me sucking my thumb, and she would talk to my daycare teachers. She also had some of my friends "spy" on me to make sure I didnt slip up. It worked for me!!
I know your child is still young for that... but it might work later!

The tooth fairy left my daughter a note asking her to stop because it was causing the teeth she collected to become crooked. It worked.

Daughter number two had a wicket put in the roof of her mouth at the age of 5 (prongs hang down and there is no room for the thumb anymore). She wore that for one summer and within about 4 weeks - no more sucking.