dummies?

[GBLiz]

for some reason i have grown up with the belief that dummies are a sign of weakness, it must be a value that rubbed off on me from my mum....now im looking at that value and wondering if it has any basis in reality (as ive got older ive discovered some of my mums values are picked out of thin air )

so, dummies- good or bad???

 

[Magic Monkey]

They are fantastic! I find that a dummy really comforts mt LO when she is fighting sleep and when she has colic. They only drawback, in my mind is that I seem to spend a lot of time putting it back in her mouth as it falls out and then she cries!

Also the FSID recommends using them to prevent cotdeath - something about keeping airways open i think.

 

[LilysMummy]

They are believed to help prevent cotdeath like sass said they are said to keep the airways open and my HV said it keeps their mouth stimulated so they dont forget to breath.

Lily had a dummy for the first 8 weeks and now refuses to have them which on one hand means I dont have to wake up and put it back in several times a night or have to wean her off it but on the other hand I want to prevent cot death as much a possible.

 

[Kylie1007]

They're a big comfort to Finn but I know we're going to have probs when it comes to weaning him off them! Think we'll go cold turkey!!

 

[GBLiz]

is there any truth in the belief that dummies lead to thumb sucking and buck teeth?

 

[Kylie1007]

No I think a baby is either a thumb sucker or not. A lot of dummies are also orthodontic ones too so designed not to cause probs with teeth.

 

[happy-chick]

Ellie refuses a dummy point blank but sucks her thumb & anything else she can get hold off I think every child is different but in a way im glad i dont have to do the 'dummy run' when it falls out hehe

 

[SarahH]

I personally hate them, but again I think that was passed onto me through my Mum hating them too.

We were told to get Arianna one to help with her reflux but she refused it.

 

[babsi]

I hated them before having Kai, I would also hate seeing them on babies/kids (still feel the same way with kids, I would hate him having one now and going out with it) but before you have a baby you are like that with lots of things because you don't have an understanding of what is involved.

A dummy for me was a lifesaver and would recommend one. I found with Kai he just gave it up when he was fed up with it, I know that is not always the case and some just don't take to them.

 

[GBLiz]

i wonder why they were so disapproved of by our parents generation im really confused now!

Anjali doesnt need one to sleep but sometimes she seems to be using my boob as a dummy and just does the occassional suck to pretend she's actually feeding thats whats made me think about it

 

[valentine]

We've never used one - DD sucks her fingers for comfort or to get herself off to sleep. I'm not a fan of dummies.

Valentine Xxx

 

[purple13]

connor doesn't want his very often, but its useful when he's being really sucky - he'll use my nipples or his hands otherwise. he spits it out when he's had enough and i don't have the problem of him waking up wanting it.

i figure that it'll be easier to take a dummy away from him than his fingers/thumb when he's older

 

[mary70]

Hananh was given one in scbu and so are alot of prem babies because it helps with the sucking reflex when they are tube fed so teh cant be all bad, i find them a lifesaver sometimes

 

[Fingers crossed]

Anjali doesnt need one to sleep but sometimes she seems to be using my boob as a dummy and just does the occassional suck to pretend she's actually feeding thats whats made me think about it

That's exactly what Jess is like, then she over feeds and sicks up everywhere . I've been trying to get her to have a dummy since she was born and it's only in the last couple of days (even more so this morning) that she's taken to it . Personally I don't like to see babies/children with a dummy permenently in their mouths but it is very handy when they're screaming because of over-tiredness. And at least with a dummy you can take it off them, but if they suck their thumb how can you teach them not to do that??

 

[Sage]

I didnt want my son to have a dummy. i work in a nursery with a class of two to three year olds and some of the kids have a dummy constantly in their mouths. They're often very quiet and use it as an excuse not to talk. some of them have a lisp when they talk, as if they still have the dummy in their mouth.

When my son was 3 days old he just wouldnt settle at night, he was trying to suck his hand but it wasnt comforting him. In the end even the midwife told me to try one. Within seconds he was settled and fast asleep.

I only give it to him now if hes having trouble getting off to sleep because im worried he'll turn out like the kids in my work if i constantly put it in his mouth.

I think the problems with dummies start when they are used to quieten a child and not as a comfort. Just because they cry shouldnt mean you should shove a dummy in their mouth. although now being a mum myself it is tempting when you no their tantrum will stop as soon as its in their mouth!

Now hes a bit older i find he'll often shove his hand in his mouth or a toy but unfortunately if he does need a comfort the dummy always works the best.

P.S. and if it makes him happy then im 100% guna give him one no matter what my opinion on dummies are

 

[babsi]

I found when Kai was a baby he would be screaming when he was tired and the dummy sent him off to sleep and yes when we were out sometimes we used it to calm him down, I just don't see the harm in it.

What I don't like is seeing a 6 yes 6 year old with one in their mouth. I wouldn't believe unless I had seen it with my own eyes.

 

[SarahH]

What I don't like is seeing a 6 yes 6 year old with one in their mouth. I wouldn't believe unless I had seen it with my own eyes.

Oh, you've met my nephew then! Grrr, makes me mad that he still has the dummy

 

[Redshoes]

Dummies are a personal choice and I believe they are a Godsend for a baby who will not sleep without that sucking comfort, as some babies won't.

Isaac wouldn't take a dummy as a baby, and I spent many a night pacing with him, and when he did decide to have a dummy at 5months old, his sleeping pattern went from unknown to routine.

I do not think they are any kind of sign, especially weakness If it soothes your baby its an aid not a hinderance. If you still allow a child of 6 to have one, then I'd say maybe you need to sort it out Isaac has a dummy for bed or when he's very upset with his teething, and I am very pleased with that, not to mention the new info on SIDS and dummies.

 

[DebbieM]

I don't particularly like dummies, however, Luke has one and he seems to have a love/hate relationship with it, He likes it for comfort but very soon spits it out when he has had enough/falls asleep which we are pleased about.

 

[Princess_Puddles]

Harrison has his dummy for comfort, like when hes going to bed, is upset or ill. Its like his best friend If we let him he'd have it all day but we won't allow it, I hate seeing kids with dummies in their mouths all day! I wouldnt see using a dummy as a sign of weakness because the choice was never about me it was comfort for Harrison when all else failed, why let him cry unnessecarily. I personally think having a dummy is better than a thumb because it cannot affect their teeth and it can be there one day and gone the next, although you cannot tell you child not to suck their thumb