When I stopped breastfeeding my baby she began to suck her thumb. She's always chewed on all of her fingers, but I've noticed it has changed from chewing on her hand to specifically sucking her thumb. I've tried to give her a pacifier and she'll take it if I hold it for her. But, moms can't always be there to hold a pacifier. I know thumb sucking can give kids dental problems ( buck teeth for instance ) and can be increadibly difficult to stop once it has started. Thats why I'm trying to end it now rather than later. My son never did this so any ideas or suggestions would be GREAT !!!
Thank you guys so much. J.
Thank you guys for all the great advice. I've chilled on the thumb sucking and she seems to now be preferring the pacifier. It's nice to have a group of moms kind enough to take time out of their busy days to help another mom.
Thanks again, J.
I sucked my two middle fingers from infancy to 9, yes 9 years old. I have no dental problems. I actually get complimented on my "beautiful smile". I wouldn't worry about it. It's a comfort for her, she'll eventually quit. Live, Love, and Laugh... everything else is just a minor detail!
J., 5 months old is very young so what you might do is try different kinds of pacifiers!! She might not like the one you tried! but if it doesn't work then just keep an eye on her and let her alone for awhile!!! She may stop by herself but I would try the pacifiers and just keep trying them! don't give up~make sure you keep some around the house and mainly in her bed!! If it really gets bad and you really want to try and stop her from sucking her thumb then you can always put a small amount of hot sauce on the tip of her thumb!! good luck.......... D.
Well, first of all Pacifiers are no different than the thumb. It can also cause dental problems and it is just as difficult to break. Your just trading one for the other. The only way either one will cause any dental problems is prologed sucking. Like after a year. All babies suck and chew especially when teething. Your baby is only 5 months old, I wouldn't worry. Sucking is a natural reaction. Please don't put any hot sauce on her thumb.
Lots of babies need to suck. Not all of them have a hard time breaking the habit. It's not a problem for their teeth unless they do it well into their toddler years. Most babies will give it up when they start talking a lot, and doing things on their own. IMO, forcing her to break the habit before she's ready is doing her more harm then good. This is something that brings her comfort, and it's always with her. At five months, in my opinion, you should worry about it later. If you are concerned about her dental developement, talk to your dentist and see what he recommends.
I wouldn't worry about dental problems and weaning her from thumb sucking. My oldest son sucked his thumb from the time he was three-months old. I didn't worry about it since his dentist said that it wasn't causing any dental problems. When he was four, the dentist talked to him about it and what would happen if he continued. They agreed (the dentist and my son) that he would stop when he was five. This worked like a charm . . . he turned five and decided it was time to stop. He really only did it at bedtime by that age and decided that he would sleep with a special stuffed animal instead of sucking his thumb. He's seven now and has not had any significant dental problems from his thumb habit. So, don't sweat it and talk to your dentist if you're still concerned! :)
Hi J., I'm Nicole a mom of a 10 month old son. When I was younger I used to suck my thumb...my mom and grandparents tried everything to stop me(wrapping my thumb with tape, hot sauce....lol) but I didn't stop until I got ready and I probably was in the 2nd grade. Your child is young and she's just comforted with her thumb instead of a pacifier. I don't think you can wean her off her thumb this early...just wait to see if she still will be sucking it by the time she's 1. If so then you can try some different methods or talk with her pediatrician for other options.
I've heard that the thumb sucking is better than pacifiers. You might want to encourage this behavior since it's a form of self soothing. I don't know if you have any problems with this, but if your baby has a hard time going to sleep by herself, she can use her thumb to calm herself. This is all hearsay, I'm trying to get my baby girl to do that myself. Hope everything turns out okay.
I know that this may not help at all but it may give you a peace of mind! My daughter started sucking on her 2 middle fingers around 5 months old, she would take a binky too but she prefered her fingers! She did it til she was about 10 months old and then all of a sudden she just stopped! I didnt notice it at first but then one day i realized that she didnt do it any longer! So it may just be a phase shes going through! Hope that helps you out!
Hi, J.. I would try not to worry too much about the thumb sucking. I sucked my thumb until I was 7 or 8 and there are no lasting effects. My teeth are fine. My son also sucked his thumb and I was worried that he would suck his as long as I did. But with my encouragement, he gradually started sucking it less and less until it was only at bed times. Then he sucked it so hard that he made a sore on his thumb. He only sucked his left thumb. I was really upset about the sore, but it actually helped because he couldn't suck it anymore and he just quit. He had just turned four when he quit sucking it. The dentist said there were no dental problems associated with the thumb-sucking.
If you really don't want her to suck her thumb, you could try some different pacifiers to see if there's one that your daughter likes better. Otherwise, I'd just let it run its course.
Hope this helps and good luck!
I know this is a late reply, but I just wanted to let you know. My son, who is now 10, sucked his thumb from the time he was born until he was about 6 years old. His dentist said he has perfect teeth and should not need braces. (Knock on wood!) Like everyone else said, don't worry about it! Thumbs are great because you can't lose it and you wont be scrambling around the house looking for one (like a pacie!) when she's crying :)
