I've got a thumb sucker... good or bad?

[xJodieLoux]

Jaida has never been too bothered about her dummy and always used to try and suck her thumb, but couldn't find her mouth and always got frustrated. Well now she has figured it out (the last 3 days). The night before last she woke me up at about half 2 (around the time she usually has a feed) whinging, then next thing I know I could her sucking away, looked at her and she had her thumb in her mouth. She went back to sleep for 50 mins. Then last night, she woke me up again at half 2 moaning, then started sucking her thumb, went back to sleep and she woke me again at half 4, sucked her thumb again then woke at quarter past 5 to be fed. She only has 2 or 3oz in the night so I think it might just be a habbit feed.

So I am really pleased with last night, considering she usually has a feed between 2 and 3. My friend has got a one year old and she has to get up 3 times a night to put his dummy back in, so she thinks its good that Jaida sucks her thumb.

But my other friend has got a 2 and half year old who sucks her thumb all the time and she thinks a bad thing.

What do you think?

 

[LisaJ1986]

I think it's good. Angel started around 3 months, but it's getting less frequent anyway. A dummy is a toy to her. She is settling herself so i personally don't see a problem.

 

[Emma58]

Sam is a thumb sucker he will not take a dummy. I doesn't bother me TBH i'd rather he sucked his thumb than had a dummy anyway.

 

[xJodieLoux]

I have posted this on another site and they all say it's really bad, like for their teeth and skin, but I've researched online and read that it isn't a problem for the alignment of teeth until their adult teeth come through, and that thumb sucking shouldnt be considered a problem until they reach about 4. Also it says that the urge to suck decreases at about 6 months.

 

[nickilubs]

I would prefer sucking their thumbs to a dummy. But really what can you do to stop her from sucking it anyway

 

[Red_Fairy]

my older sister sucks her thumb even now (when she goes to sleep) her teeth/skin have no problems at all (she actually has perfect straight white teeth)

 

[purplebluered]

I can't wait till Isaac can find his hand! He's chewing on his hands and likes sucking on them, but it's really frustrating as he's losing interest in his dummy and wants his hand but can't find it some of the time. So I for one can't wait!

 

[LisaJ1986]

My sister sucked her thumb til quite late on (about 10) and yeah she had bad teeth, but we all did. It wasn't to do with thumb sucking as much as it is said to be linked. I had bad teeth and spent 6 years with braces and i had neither dummies or sucked my thumb.
I've tried Angel on a dummy for the reason that she uses my boob, but it's not working anyway. She has gone from constant thumb sucking to once in an evening as long as she has something silky in her hand.

 

[kellysomer]

Morgan loves his thumb!! He did it from newborn and i could never get him to take a dummy really. I hated it at first but now i love the fact he soothes himself, he is so easy to get to sleep! I do wonder how i;m going to get him off it though He sucks it half the day and all night.

 

[Storm.]

my older sister sucks her thumb even now (when she goes to sleep) her teeth/skin have no problems at all (she actually has perfect straight white teeth)

Ok Im gonna make an emabressment out of myself here, But right up till the age of 17 I sucked my thumb, it was my security and comfort blanket!!! My thumb is normal and my teeth are fine, (apart from a chip from a lip peirceing!)

I see nothing wrong with thumb sucking, my lil one had a dummy & I hated it he became so reliant on it, (also had probs when Bf) I am never using them again, thumb all the way!!

 

[Squiglet]

Thumb sucking... remember you can throw a dummy away, but child services will be called if you try and do the same with thumbs...

 

[katie05]

I prefer a dummy to thumb but thats because me and my sister were thumb suckers from birth to early adulthood mum said she wished she gave us dummies. My son started sucking his thumb at 2 weeks and i introduced a dummy and he stopped. However, he was insistant on wanting the thumb i would have been o.k with it.

Everyone is different, go with what feels right for you and your baby.

 

[trixipaws]

melissa started at the same age. she grew out of it.

my mum told me she wouldnt let me or my lil sis have dummies, also she put scratch mittens on us so we couldnt suck our thumbs either! sigmund freud would have something to say about that...

 

[xJodieLoux]

I prefer a dummy to thumb but thats because me and my sister were thumb suckers from birth to early adulthood mum said she wished she gave us dummies. My son started sucking his thumb at 2 weeks and i introduced a dummy and he stopped. However, he was insistant on wanting the thumb i would have been o.k with it.

Everyone is different, go with what feels right for you and your baby.

Don't mean to be cheeky but what are your teeth like? Do you think thumb sucking effected them at all?

 

[Sherlock]

OK the down side to the teeth aspect.

I nannied for a family where one child was a thumb sucker since early weeks. As the child got older would more or less lived with the thumb in mouth. At ages 8 was told by dentist that the thumb sucking had to stop or else it would require major braces etc when older. Teeth were growing outwards due to the angle of the thumb in mouth all the time.

The child is now 14 and is undergoing corrective procedures on teeth. They are really bad, have grown down and outward and mishaped the mouth. Also the speech is noticably affected. Its years of braces and other things ahead. Last time I saw this child (a few months ago) it was almost like the front teeth had been filed down to bring them back into the natural shape of the mouth. No idea what had been done, did not ask. But a brace is next I think.

And yes, this was caused by thumb sucking. You could see the actual shape form in the teeth where the thumb would go.

I actually got this child to greatly reduce the thumb sucking when I nannied for the family. To the point where the child actually used to realise that thumb was in mouth and would take it out. But as soon as I went home or was off for a weekend the parents didn't really do anything to continue with the good progress.

This is the worst case scenario and most children grow out of thumb sucking naturally. But I really would advise any parent whose child sucks their thumb day and night (and I mean all night sleeping with thumb in mouth sort of thing) to try to stop the habit sooner rather than later. Once the adult teeth start coming in damage can be done and can years to correct. And as the correction often cannot begin till the teeth are done growing (teenage years) then a child faces having braces etc at a time in their life when they would probably rather not have such things done.

 

[lfc_sarah]

Callum just sucks his whole hand

Or tries to

 

[Becky]

DD is a 2 finger sucker and we don't have any problem with this. She only now sucks her fingers when she is tired and that's mainly at bedtime. She is gradually weaning herself off her fingers and you never see her talking with her fingers in or doing any activity. For this reason I am confident it isn't going to cause a problem. Her speech is perfectly fine and if anything she's always been slightly ahead of "average".

I sucked my finger till I was 10 (bedtimes) and my brother used to suck his thumb. Ironically it was my sister who needed braces to correct her teeth and she didn't suck anything or have a dummy.

I think the key is to discourage the sucking when speaking/doing activities so say things like "Please take your fingers out when you're talking" etc. but this applies to dummies too. Ok you can throw a dummy away but I don't think there's a problem with either so long as it's controlled.

 

[xJodieLoux]

During the day she doesn't do it much at all and when she does it's more like she has touched her mouth with her hand and thought she'd have a suck, when she does this I gently pull her hand away. I'm definately not going to encourage it, but I'm not going to try and stop her. She does suck it alot during the night though, last night she slept right through (didn't wake up until 20 past 9!) but she did stir a few times and start sucking her thumb. I don't think she sucks it when she's fully asleep (wont even have her bottle when she's asleep, tried to dream feed but she's not interested). And when I've given her a dummy to go to sleep with she usually spits it out, also when I've looked at her in the night, since she's started sucking her thumb, her thumb isn't in her mouth. I suppose for now it's not a problem, she might grow out of it no problem and I'll have been worrying for nothing! But if she does end up a thumb addict as she is getting older we'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it.