Dummys/pacifiers??

[nori]

Hello mums,

I was just wondering whether you would recommend using these from birth or not? There seems to be lots of different advice. On one hand you have literature saying they can cut down the risk of cot death and on the other you have people saying it can confuse the baby if you are breastfeeding.

Is it best to just use at night? wont this then get annoying when baby is older and keeps waking cos the dummy has fallen out?

Any advice welcome.

Claire x

 

[hennaly]

i didnt use one from birth as i let each of my babies see if they needed one first, some did and some didnt, although they can be a god send i hate them being used just for the sake of it and seeing a toddler runnung round with one is the worst thing.
I did find with some of them it helped them doze back off to sleep or would tide them over if they wanted feeding just for a few minutes till i got to where i could feed them but luckily none of mne had a big issue with them and a couple even refused to have one.

I dont think i have been much help atall there have i

 

[LisaJ1986]

I didn't use one due to the confusion in breastfeeding. I gave in a few times and tried but she refused it. I've tried again recently for night time but it's more a toy than anything. I'm pleased really that she doesn't have one.

 

[Hazel]

I was dead set against giving Connie a dummy and hadn't bought any. But, she started sucking everything and thought best to give her a clean dummy rather keep sucking on anything within reach that might be germy. She only has it when going to sleep and isn't interested in it the rest of the time.

 

[Fly]

Some babies just love to suck n if they can't find their thumb then a dummy can be useful. You can get ones these days that are specifically designed so as not to intefere with breastfeeding. I was dead set against them until i got some out of sheer desperation and found that yes infact i could get some sleep after all LOL! They're not for all babies certainly - i have got some put away just incase this baby takes after his big brother in the sucking department and i won't beat meself up about using them this time either if we need them xxx

 

[nickilubs]

I express milk (strange boobies not choice) and Ivy is a very sucky baby! Shes sucked her fingers since day one and I find on the odd occasion she will not settle through the night without my finger in her mouth lol I have gotten used to sleeping with one arm dangling over her moses basket with a finger in her mouth! Its a comfort thing for her if I can get away with not giving her one then I wont I will just use my finger but when Im expressing and shes crying because shes hungry I will sometimes give her one but to be honest she usually just ends up spitting it out I think shes to young to grasp that it wont just stay there like my finger does. It recommends on them that if you are breast feeding only give them from 1month onwards but I say if you can get away with not giving them then don't its just a personal thing though I don't really like seeing babes with dummys but thats only because none of my familly were allowed them. And if babes want to suck something they will usually end up finding their fingers and thumbs anyway

 

[daftscotslass]

I was dead set against them at first but Becky was comfort sucking on the bottle (which made her projectile vomit). A dummy really helped to settle her. Now they spend most of their time in the cupboard.

I would wait and see if you think your LO needs one and go from there. It's also trial and error as to which ones they'll take if you think they do need one as there are so many shapes available!

 

[Sherlock]

We didn't use one from birth and our LO was fine without one. He is also breastfed.

About 3 weeks in he developed colic and we gave him a special nipple shaped one to help ease this. Sucking helps colic so it was really good for us and him. Letting him comfort suck on my boob then was not good as that only makes the colic worse.

We only used it through till about 12 weeks then. We purposely didn't use it much outside of his colicky episodes and now he hardly ever has one. He does not rely on it to help him fall asleep or to remain so.

If you are breastfeeding I'd try to avoid using one in the early weeks unless your baby is colicky or something.

FWIW if you ditch them before your baby is 5 months old then you can usually do so with the minimum of fuss as before this babies don't have memory of it. After 5 months is when they start to really remember and associate this sort of thing and it can be harder then to ditch a dummy as LO gets older.

Our LO went from dummy to muslin square and he finds it soothing to play with the muslin in his hands when drifting off to sleep.

I'd say don't start with one but see how you go. And if breastfeeding make sure you don't get a flat shaped dummy as really not good and can cause nipple confusion. Go with a nipple shaped one to encourage your LO to suck on your boob properly. We use NUK dummies. Can be found online http://shop.nukbaby.co.uk/products.aspx?cID=24

I'm not a fan of using them but they can have their uses if need be. However I don't use one to stop LO whinging or fussing or to keep him quiet. I try to find other ways to settle him then.

 

[CoreysMummy]

Wasnt a great fan, as I guess most people arnt. But Corey has Reflux, sucking helps him keep things down, mainly the acid. I ditched the dummy 3 weeks ago, as he was waking in the night for it - I was not having that. So got rid of it when he was 4 months and one week. Seen as the reflux is under control with medication, I dont see a need for it anymore, theres no difference with him.

 

[trixipaws]

i wasnt gonna bother with dummies but my colleagues bought me a big baby box filled with baby stuff when i left on maternity leave and it contained 2 dummies, so we used them. at first she took it but after week one she wouldnt take dummies at all, until she was about 3 months old. then she pretty much lived with one!

we have weaned her off daytime dummies now she's only allowed a dummy at nite. and day weaning has been a piece of cake really. i expect nite time to be a bit more difficult, but i dont mind her having a nite dummy for a while longer. its not annoying at nite really when the dummy falls out, they only notice if they wake up anyway and would probably cry anyway! sticking the dummy back in is a nice easy quick-fix at 3am when ur tired and just wanna go back to bed!

i leave out spare dummies for melissa in the nite lol she's got one of those fabric pouches things hung on the cot rails, and i put the spare dummies in the top one so if her dummy falls out of the cot she can stand up and get another one out herself! and this is what she does, for most mornings all 5 dummies are in the cot with her, bless!

oh yeah forgot to say melissa was breastfed for 8 months, the dummies didnt affect it

 

[NIE]

Hi,

I was against them to begin with but I soon changed my mind after the first night we took DS home.

I never really knew about the for and against arguments until recently...ie, the cot death thing.

A dummy has been a real help to us. He doesn't get the dummy much at all through the day apart from trying to get him to have a nap. He goes to sleep with it but doesn't ever wake up during the night for it. (we co-sleep so we're his comfort at night). xxx

 

[flowergirl]

I didn;t want to use them and I managed not to unitl LO was 3 weeks old. BY that point I was an absolute exhausted emotional wreck who couldn't make even the simplest decision. MIL gave me a couple of hours off and in that time (after 20 mins coaxing) gave Kathryn a dummy. It has been a mixed blessing- but more of a blessing than a curse I have to conceed. Kathryn did go through a phase at around 3-4 months where she needed it to fall asleep but couldn't put it back in if it fell out so I was up and down to her whilst she settled. However, the dummy helped her to settle to sleep whatever the time of day or night and now she has far better sleep habits than her non dummy sucking friends.

In those early weeks the dummy saved my sanity and now it helps to keep her settled for daytime naps...I suppose I'm a fan although I would still have preferred her not to have one- strange huh?

btw- I exclusively breastfed from birth and used the the MAM tiny dummies- never any problem with nipple confusion.

 

[Quill]

I used one after the first week. He was a very sucky baby and would comfort suck a lot. Still does, in fact. I exclusively breastfeed and have not had any problems with nipple confusion.

We try not to use the dummy except for when he's having his grouchy periods (usually 5pm to 9pm or so), and when we take him out in case we need to buy a few minutes to get him to a place where I can breastfeed without undue embarrassment/hassle.

I don't let him use it to fall asleep so I think he'll be able to drop it in a few months naturally.

 

[lea m]

Wow I must be the odd one out lol but I think dummies are great! And have every intention of letting Lola-Mae have one too! Obviously I wont force it on her! I knew about the benefits of them before having Joseph (about how they make the baby widen their nostrils etc and help prevent cot death) and also most babies are comforted by sucking! I was always "for" dummies lol!
Totally different if you can breastfeed of course! Then I cant really comment!
I made sure all my children stopped using a dummie totally by 12-18 months (daytime alot sooner) and didnt have any trouble taking them away! (maybe one/two nights being upset about it?)

 

[Geordie&Bairn]

I was dead set agianst them too
As i Nursery Nurse id see the parents use the dummy and a shut up stopper and id have kids going of to school still with dummy in mouth

When Collier had very bad colic i did try it a few times but he never took to it nad i never pushed it
He got over his colic then started teething now both his fron teeth have broken through therereally pushing up and causing a lot of pain to my poor bairn
last night we gave him a dummy after a 3 hours screaming match and he sucked on it like he loved it
which shocked me he kept it in for about half an hour then spat it out and didnt want it back
so i'll try and give it to him when hes in pain thought last night when he woke up he refused it so its hit and miss
if he dosnt want it then thats ok

Im not going to use it through the day hes such an active baby we go out alot and he is occupied with other things so dosnt need it
Agian hes a active baby and he gets bored in doors and cries i will not give him a dummy to keep in quite but entertain him or if i need to make dinner just let him get on with it give him his fave toy to play with an talk to him a i make dinner and eat

sorry that turned into a essay