Thumb Sucking - Emporia, KS

hi,
i haven't had this issue but a few friends of mine did and this is what they did to stop the thumb sucking. they bought band aids, let the child pick them out, their favorite character and put it on the thumb they normally sucked on and the child did not want to suck on the character band aid....etc etc. believe it worked for them.
good luck,
D. s.

I had similar issues with my youngest sucking her fingers. I don't know about your daughter, but we started noticing that ours only sucked her fingers when she had a "special" animal/doll with her and once we figured that out and let it take a vacation for a week, she quit sucking them. But hey, I love that fingernail polish idea.

Ugh, I had to deal with this at the rehab center I ran...a 16 year old sucking her thumb! I spoke to our psychiatrist about it, he said cutting the thumb off a surgical glove and putting it over her thumb would do the trick. CHECK with your doctor, that could pose a choking hazard. But, I'm sure there are products out there you can purchase to help stop it, same concept.

Hi A.! We are in a similar situation currently with our 3 year old. We haven't seen a dentist yet, but can tell that an overbite could be a problem if we don't stop him soon. I noticed someone mention a "thumbguard" and that may work, but something we are currently trying and seems to be working is gray duct tape. My husband rips off a 2-3 inch piece and wads it in a ball and sticks that to the end of our son's thumb and then wraps his thumb in a couple of strips of duct tape as well very messy so it isn't smooth to suck. With the big "ball" on the end and the messy taping it doesn't fit the same in his mouth. For the last several nights that we have tried it it seems to be working and we hope that once he is out of the "habit" we can stop. Hope you find something that works for you!

A.,

I have a friend whose daughter sucked her thumb for a LONG TIME...they finally put a sock on each of her hands at bed time/nap time. It seemed to help and didn't cause any pain, etc. (She would suck her thumb while sleeping and not even know she was doing it...not remember it the next morning.) Maybe this would help your daughter, too. Good LUCK!

I agree that for most kids sucking their thumb at nap and bed time is no big deal HOWEVER most kids don't suck so hard they reform their palette. My daughter did the same thing and she HAD to quit sucking her thumb at 2.
We didn't try the yucky nail polish but we did try painting her nails pretty and telling her she will ruin it which is a good thing to try, but she just sucked the nail polish right off. We also tried dipping her thumb in vinegar (you can also use hot sauce) but she just sucked it off too.
So we ended up using the thumb guard and it is absolutely phenomenal. you can find info on it at www.thumbguard.com and can usually find them on ebay for a little cheaper. It says that it takes 30 days but my daughter quit sucking her thumb in a week. It basically just covers up their thumb so that they can't get good suction, and it has those plastic fair bracelets that you have to cut off so that they can't remove it either.
Anyway, whatever you decide, Good Luck. And try not to worry because her palette will start to reform itself some after the thumb sucking stops.
D.

My grandson had sucked his thumb from birth to 4 years old. We were very concerned about his teeth and germs from the thumb sucking.

I wrapped is thumb with tape (the white tape) during the day (when we went out the house I would take it off) and at nap and bedtime. I was shocked that it worked, but in three weeks he had stopped sucking his thumb. It's been two months and his mom says he is not sucking his thumb. Hope this works for you.

Hi, A....I have a great-niece who is 3 1/2 years old, and has the same thumb-sucking "routine" as your daughter. She also was starting to get an over-bite from the "sleep-time" thumb sucking. I was baby sitting her over a weekend several months ago, and decided to polish her nails (an easy form of entertainment too! LOL)...and when it came nap time, she started to suck her thumb, and I told her calmly that if she sucked her thumb, it might "ruin" her pretty nails. Well, she didn't want that to happen of course, so she went to sleep on her own, without sucking her thumb! From that day on, my sister (and I, if I'm watching her) routinely polish her fingernails. She gets to choose the color that she wants to wear, and sometimes we'll put the little "sticky" nail decorations on too if she decides that's what she wants at that time. Since this has become a part of her "routine", she no longer has the desire to suck her thumb. She has it in her mind that she doesn't want to ruin her pretty nails, which she is very proud of, and is always showing them off to whoever will look...LOL It was a very simple, and quick way to stop her from sucking her thumb and has worked extremely well...which is great, because her main concern was the dental issues that may continue to worsen if she continued to suck her thumb. Just a suggestion, but thought I'd mention it..it might work for your daughter too...Good luck to you and your precious little one!

Hi A., I know that you asked this question long ago, but I just noticed it. We had a dedicated thumb sucker who's mouth was changing shape. We ordered a product called Mavala Stop - my daughter stopped the thumb in a week. It's some really nasty tasting stuff you put on the nail and it won't wash off. You put it on every other day (we only put it on 2 times). It's not recommended for children under 3. Thought that I would pass this on just in case you were still struggling. I ordered it through Amazon. Good luck!!

My son eventually stopped thumbsucking at 6. He was developing an overbite. However, he managed to knock both his top front teeth out so it wasn't so noticeable anymore.

The only thing our pediatric dentist suggested was sending kids to their room to suck thumbs when you noticed it during the day. Since his was mostly a night time occurrence this didn't make any difference. Had it continued I am sure he would have suggested stronger measures. It seemed to be a comfort thing.

If she is only doing it during nap time and bed time i dont see the big deal about it. I have a 4 year old who does the same thing. They will stop when they want to.

You can make a very fancy thumb cover out of material and maybe lace. Something cute and the kids will usually stop sucking their thumb. It worked for my daughter many years ago. There are dental appliances that your dentist can have made to fit in the mouth but try something simple first.

Have you called your doctor to ask advice? Did your dentist give you any suggestions? Does she have a special doll that she snuggles with? Perhaps a distraction, something to hold on to, will help her. My kids never sucked their thumbs, they had pacifiers (they were easy to get rid of). The yucky stuff on her thumb sounds gross, but may be your plan.
Good luck!