Thumb sucking

[fearnpw1]

Does anyone have any advice on how to stop thumb sucking. Our dentist confirmed that it can potentially cause problems so in an effort to avoid uncomfortable and expensive dental work further down the line we've been trying to persuade our nearly 4 year old daughter to stop sucking her thumb - with poor results! Any tips?

[*Anna*]

Put some of the 'stop nail biting' nail varnish on it...

http://www.amazon.com/Mavala-Stop-Nail-Biting-Sucking-Prevention/dp/B0000YUXI0

There are some good story books to if she is in to that kind of thing:

http://www.amazon.com/Little-Thumb-Wanda-Dionne/dp/1565547543

[KateW]

As a former thumb-sucker (I'm now 33!) I would try anything to stop my children sucking their thumbs or fingers (my sister sucked her fingers), including giving them dummies because at least you can take a dummy away. I ended up having major orthodontic work at 16, which was the only thing that stopped me sucking my thumb as it wouldn't fit in my mouth in the same way (ironic really as it was the thumb sucking that meant I had to have the brace!). I was more distraught about not being able to suck my thumb than I was about the pain of the brace!. The nail varnish didn't work because I just scratched it off and neither did putting gloves on etc. That said, my sister just stopped sucking her fingers in her late teens as she realised it wasn't very cool and she had no problems stopping. Good luck with this; I wish my parents had tried to make me stop at the age of 4 as it was so much harder as I got older.

[capt_birdseye]

Our 3 year old was an agressive thumb-sucker, so much so that the dentist warned that she was damaging her palette and would potentially need surgery on her jaw in later life. She was really keen on the idea of not thumb-sucking so we ended up buying one of those Thumb Guards (www.thumbguard.co.uk), they're quite expensive but ultimatley a hell of a lot cheaper than a lot of orthodontic work. It looks quite draconian but she was actually pretty proud of herself whilst wearing it. She had it on all the time for 2 weeks and then just at night for another 2 weeks and it really did the trick.

[MitchK]

I can second the thumb guards. Don't look very nice but they have done the trick, so far....

[fearnpw1]

Thanks so much for all your suggestions.

Anna - have tried the stop nail biting varnish and she pulls her face for a while but it doesn't stop her sucking her thumb.

MitchK and capt_birdseye - thanks for the thumb guard tip. They are a bit pricey but I've no idea what else to do so I think we'll give that a try. It's good to hear it works!

Many thanks

[woofmarkthedog]

Stop it all all costs

The damage is very hard to undo

[capt_birdseye]

With the Thumb Guard the first week was particularly hard as thumb-sucking was how she managed to get to sleep. She pretty much had to re-learn how to settle herself at night, which meant several late nights. You have to be tough with yourself as it's very tempting to remove the thumb guard for a bit of peace and quiet of an evening. Worth it in the end though, and I really think it's boosted her self-esteem and made her a lot more talkative.

[littleEDfamily]

I feel your pain!!!! Our daughter has just started doing it (nearly 3) with great relish. It is foul foul foul, but she loves it more than anything.

She stops when we sneak in at night and stick the yucky stuff on (blaming it on the Thumb Sucking Monster), but it's horrible when she forgets she has it on and does it anyway (or inadvertently sticks it in her mouth while eating), ends up spitting everywhere!!

Thanks for starting this thread - you've reminded me I need to sort this out pronto.

The Thumb Sucking Monster is back on duty.

[fearnpw1]

Interesting that your daughter didn't start sucking her thumb until 3 - neither did my daughter! She only started doing it when she joined a nursery where one of the little girls sucked her thumb a lot, so I think my daughter copied her.

We too have tried offering her treats to reward good behaviour when she doesn't suck her thumb, and we've put horrible stuff on her trhumb when she doesn't (which breaks my heart!). I don't think she wants to disappoint us but does it unconsciously now. I sucked my thumb until I was 7 years old and consequently needed a lot of dental work to correct protruding front teeth. Although it's tough to be so firm with her at this tender young age, I'm sure she'll thank me when she's 18 years old!

Good luck - if you do identify any top tips along the way then do let me know.

[Monkey]

When I was about 6, my childminder promised me a square of dark chocolate every evening for each day I did not suck my thumb. Problem sorted in two weeks.

My five-month old is an avid thumb sucker so I guess I will have to use the same trick when she is a little bit older. :))

Hope this helps.

[fearnpw1]

I've tried the chocolate bribe - it hasn't worked for me. Great for potty training! But hasn't worked on thumb sucking - she's obviously got wise to me. Thanks for the tip though.

[nunheadmum]

My LO loves to suck her thumb too. Nursery have done a good job with her and she doesn't touch it when she's there, other than at nap time. But as soon as we turn up, in it goes if she's in the least bit unhappy. If we keep nagging her then she will keep it out during the day but it's clear that it's almost an unconscious thing. And at night, you can tell she's sleeping lightly as the thumb sucking gets louder.

Glad to have heard about the thumb guard tho as I think we're going to have to go down that route. Though may try some books first to see if she can give it up herself. That seems a little gentler!

[snowboarder]

Oh no - I think I will bookmark this thread for later....my 9 month old rarely takes his thumb of out of his mouth.....

[nunheadmum]

This thread has got me thinking that I need to do something about my LO. I'm more worried now by the comments of kids starting at 3 - I'm worried my youngest will start copying big sister!

Can anyone recommend any of the storybooks on the topic? I thought this may be a good way to start the process but I don't want to waste money on books that don't quite hit the mark....which is what I usually end up doing. She's a typical little girl so (unfortunately) one about a pink, thumb sucking, ballet dancing fairy would probably go down well!

[damzel]

Oh dear, where have I been, I didn't realise it would cause a problem as long as they stopped before their proper teeth came. I sucked my thumb up to at least 10 and it didn't cause any probs. My daughter is nearly 2 and she finds it such a comfort. When's it advisable for them to stop by? What type of problems can it cause?

[budur]

You have to stop it now if you have the courage! I asked my HV about it and her answer was "I sucked mine until I was 15, tasty isn't it?" now what sort of advice is that! and my pediatrician at my home country was absolutely petrified when she saw it and ordered us to stop it at all costs as it's a really nasty habit (she was 5 months then). A few sleepless nights... and I gave up. And the main reason I let her do it because I didn't know it's so bad (I blame it on Tracy the Baby whisperer who said it's a great soother in her book and they stop it when they are ready. I met a few people who did it until they are 15 and still do when they are over 30 - when nobody is looking of course) and because my sister in law advised it (both of hers are sucking - 4 and 2 years old). My husband was against the idea of getting her off it - it will traumatise her too much...

But i did remember my pediatrician, so at 1 year I gave it another go - the nasty nail varnish (Mavala stop, supposed to be from 3 years i think and harmless but i tried a little bit to check that she wouldn't have any reaction first and she was fine). It worked straight away, a couple of nights of crying when trying to fall asleep without sucking, lots of cuddles and she was off! so 2-3 weeks she was thumb-sucking free and it was so great! but then she got cold and probably could not taste it any more - and it came back, worse than it was before. I have to admit that I think i stopped putting it on for a couple of days thinking it's gone already, so you really do need to continue for at least a month I think they advise. So even after the cold was gone, she didn't care about the nasty taste and continued sucking on. And I could see already that her front teeth are protruding forwards a bit, guess trips to orthodontists in the future are already on the agenda.

Attempt number 3 - thumb guards, gloves did not work because she would just get them off with her teeth and her sucking was getting really bad. So at about 17 months I bought the guards, I know they advise them for 3 years olds, but I could not think of any other alternative. They didn't fit perfectly, but did the job: 2 days of crying when trying to fall asleep and a week later she was totally comfy with them. Poor girl, she had to wear them over Christmas (much to the astonishment of the family, but oh well). I took them off after 2 weeks of wearing them 24/7, now it's been 2 months she's not sucking her thumb, but I kept putting the nasty nail varnish i used before as an extra security for 2 weeks after I took them off (for some reason she didn't like the taste of it again). She falls asleep easily now without any need to suck but I am watching her as she is now in the nursery, so who knows, may pick it up again.

Good luck, the earlier you stop it the better. My friend's daughter started doing it at 3 months and she just put gloves on at night and she stopped, the easiest to stop when they are just starting: give baby a dummy or a lot more breastfeeding just to get their sucking instinct satisfied. I know it's supposed to be a natural thing that they even do in the womb, but I've read that if they stop, they should do it by 6-9 months when the sucking instinct subsides, if they still do it afterwards it is turning into a not a nice habit.