Dummies!!

[kimmumof2]

hi all,
just wanted to know if any of you had any tips on altrnatives to dummies. reanna never had a dummy and sucked her thumb from the age of 1 week. the thing is i cant remember whether it was hard to resist giving her a dummy or not and also two babies are never the same, so was just wondering if any of you had decided against using dummies and if so did you use any certain methods to prevent you from soothing baby with a dummy.

xxxxxx

 

[rusks]

i never wanted luke to have a dummy but unfortunatly he is one of those babies who likes to suck something. however a lot of the time he spits the dummy out and likes to suck a muslin cloth (comfort blanket) he likes to hide his face especially when he is tired and sucks the blanket to sleep. its great also as they are so easy to wash

 

[Freya]

My personal thought is that if they need something to suck let them suck a dummy.

Saying that my daughter sucked her thumb - we tried desperately to get her to suck a dummy instead because we thought it would be easier to wean her off when she was older but she spat it out and stuck her thumb in instead

With son he just wouldn't take a dummy just kept spitting it out. He also doesn't suck thumb - which a lot of people think is great but sometimes it would have been nice especially when sick as a baby if he had had a comforter. But now he is 1 it is lovely that he doesn't have anything.

Have to say I don't mind dummies (as said above) but cannot abide children over 2 sitting in pushchair with a dummy in their mouth who are not using it to go asleep or anything - But that is just me!

 

[Lyndsey]

Logan won't take a dummy but he does suck on his fingers and puts the muslin cloth in his mouth..... just like your LO rusks........

 

[missac]

I was totally against dummies!! I always said why get a baby hooked on something they have no experience of! How wrong was I! Thomas is a really sucky baby!! We give him one to help him sleep, but ut is controlled we take it off him once asleep. Generally speaking though he spits it out after about five minutes though!

There are lots of things I have done that I said I wouldn't do, but reality steps in doesn't it!?

 

[Gemma & Jake]

Jake has a dummy and I don't think that there is anything wrong with it whilst they are little. I wasn't going to give him one but when he was tiny he used to cry a lot and to be honest it was a god send. If you can get away without using one it will save the upset of taking it away from pudding when he/she is older but if you feel you need to use one then do it.

 

[Terrie]

we didnt want to give rhys a dummy but he is just so sucky! at the end of the day a dummy is easier to take away than a thumb!!!

 

[kimmumof2]

i disagree my daughter stopped sucking her thumb naturally when she was about 2-3yrs i didnt even try, sometimes it goes in when she is ill but not normally, whereas my friend has a daughter that walks to school in the morning sucking a dummy.
think i will just try same as last time and not have a dummy in th house.
xxxxxx

 

[*saulino*]

Hi

I gave Kiara a dummy when my BF got established then took it away at 6 months as it was more of a pain wakingup just because it fell out.
I will most likely be giving one again
Katrina

 

[Minime]

When Eefie was born his chin was red raw where he'd been chewing his hand so we gave him a dummy straight away to stop that.

 

[andreag]

I don't like dummies and my husband is a speech therapist and is very against them as long term use can damage the shape of the mouth and casue speech probs in later life. However, I think it would be a mistake to say I would never use them. We have agreed not to buy one "just in case" and then see how things go and revisit the situation if we need to. A friend of mine was against them also but her baby would not settle without sucking, and so they got an orthorpedic one - apparently it is flat and less likely to cause damage. It is only long term use anyway which causes a problem as far as I can tell.

 

[Nicola]

I don't like dummies and my husband is a speech therapist and is very against them as long term use can damage the shape of the mouth and casue speech probs in later life. However, I think it would be a mistake to say I would never use them. We have agreed not to buy one "just in case" and then see how things go and revisit the situation if we need to. A friend of mine was against them also but her baby would not settle without sucking, and so they got an orthorpedic one - apparently it is flat and less likely to cause damage. It is only long term use anyway which causes a problem as far as I can tell.

My husband is against them for similar reasons I have to say. I haven't bought any, shan't be buying any and seeing how things go really. You can get more specialist ones should baby need something but I'd certinally not buy the regular store bought ones. They can also, following long term use, give baby dental problems longer term.

 

[Terrie]

i was really really against dummies but at the end of the day when your baby is screaming and screaming because it needs something to suck... its either give the baby a dummy or go mental... i chose the first.

 

[Freya]

I agree Tezzy - as someone previous said - reality sets in!!!

 

[mrs_tommo22]

I did buy them when stephen was born and did give them to him, however after a month he spat them out and didnt want them anymore!

Im not sure what to do this time around as people keep telling me only lazy parents use dummies, I dont believe that too.Il be ewatching thois thread for answers myself!

 

[cloud9]

we bought dummies before Dylan was born and gave it him when he was 3 weeks old the first time as he had spent 3 1/2 hours on off feeding as he wanted something to suck then he'd fal asleep wake up when i moved him it was midnight he had the dummy for 10 mins then slept for 2 3/4 hours.

He is now lying with his Daddy in the lounge now with his dummy in although generally he doesn't have it in the day he is tired and clingy and has spent 3 hours on off then crying for comfort.I want him to know comfort.

I don't automatically give it him unless i think he needs it.

I have however bought the orthdontist ones right from the start.

 

[Jade89]

I gave aaliyah a dummy when we come out of hospital as it was the only thing apart from food which would settle her. I bought them when i was pregnant just incase. she started off with a cherry one but they are not orthadontic so i swapped over to the funny shaped orthodontic ones because she couldnt keep the flat ones in. I bought a japanese kimono from avon and its like a satin material, i wear it and then give it to her when shes tired, she likes the feel. A peice of silk or a really soft comfort blanket should do the trick.

 

[Jade89]

I don't like dummies and my husband is a speech therapist and is very against them as long term use can damage the shape of the mouth and casue speech probs in later life. However, I think it would be a mistake to say I would never use them. We have agreed not to buy one "just in case" and then see how things go and revisit the situation if we need to. A friend of mine was against them also but her baby would not settle without sucking, and so they got an orthorpedic one - apparently it is flat and less likely to cause damage. It is only long term use anyway which causes a problem as far as I can tell.

lol sorry i had to laugh at that, it confused me weather we were talking about backs or dummies!

easily mistaken.