The great dummy debate

[LouisecH]

I never wanted Zara to have a dummy (although I had one until I was 8 yes you read that right).

However, with future babies I will try them with a dummy because I have been sucked to death with Zara and sometimes it's not convienient. It would have helped with the 3 hellish months of reflux and colic too.

Other than the brief one hour love affair she had with an enormous purple dummy (see photos) Zara has refused every dummy we've given her.

 

[minikins]

Thats what i did with Jess to get her off a dummy. Father christmas took it and left toys instead. Worked a treat.

Bless, that's so funny, what a good idea for any kind of a wean off thing, get Father Crimbo in to help

See I knew this could be a cool thread

 

[LauraB]

My best mates nephew just gave his up last year on his 8th birthday!!! (his mams a right hard faced thing though so no one ever teased him about it)

My ex-husband's son (who didn't live with us) still had one when he was about 9 or 10 - my ex-H went round to his house one day, grabbed it off him and blew it up in the microwave

 

[minikins]

Blimey !! LOL

 

[Urchin]

Ha! That's great, if a little overdue.

 

[michelle82]

no way will matthew still have one at that age, besides do they make them for kids that old!!!

 

[Amanda]

I didn't get a dummy for my daughter as I thought I disagreed with them. Actually, looking back on it, I took some bad advice from my dad. He told me that dummies were only for people who didn't want to take care of their children, and would shove a dummy in their mouth when they were grizzling instead of finding out the reason why. I believed him and had an awful time with her. Looking back on it, she was feeding because she wanted the comfort, not because she was hungry. She wanted feeding every hour and a half, day and night. I was exhausted. I'm sure that if she had had a dummy, she would not have wanted to feed this much, and I would have continued breastfeeding for much longer.

This one is therefore definitely getting a dummy (if he wants one that it) I told my dad, expecting an argument, and he agreed with me!! He admitted that Kayleigh was a nightmare and also that he had heard about the link betwrrn having dummy's and reducing cotdeath. So, they are already bought and packed with the rest of the baby stuff, just in case!

 

[lauramumof2]

[My ex-husband's son (who didn't live with us) still had one when he was about 9 or 10 - my ex-H went round to his house one day, grabbed it off him and blew it up in the microwave

I think thats awful on both parts. He shouldnt have been weaned off the dummy years before it got to that stage but to grab it and blow it up, thats evil.

 

LOL trust you to start a debate Minkins

I was neither for or against dummies before Damien, I just thought I would see how it went. Damien has reflux and uses it to settle him to sleep. My in-laws got arsey about it, and other people do make comments sometimes or give a dissaproving look, but Damo is my son and I think he needs the comfort sometimes, especially with the stomach pain from reflux.
I think it's good if you can persevere without one though, the night time falling out bit was a chore, but thankully Damien settles with his then spits it out to sleep.

 

[*saulino*]

Hi

I waited about a month before giving it to Kiara as i wanted her used to breastfeeding and to not get confused and aftercrying for days on end i let her have it and its great for teething .
When she is sleeping she will just spit it out its also good to know if there are actually sleeping or not lol.
Katrina

 

[Tara & Liam]

Liam has one during the day when he is tired. sometimes he is so tired and moaning and he wont settle so i put the dummy in and hold him tight and then he goes off, brilliant. joshua never had a dummy and kieran used to suck his thumb, which i personally think is much much worse.

we keep a dummy in the cot but Liam very rarely has it.

Liam only has the cherry ones, hates the orthopaedic ones.

 

Damien is the opposite, prefers orthapedic.
He favored his thumb for a few weeks when he discovered sucking his hands and fingers, I was worried after having a dummy for so long he would change to a thumb sucker! I think kids who suck their thumbs are wprse, after all you can take a dummy away, not a thumb.

But I kids will be thumb suckers, they will be thumb suckers!

 

[Yvonne]

Amy and Jack both have dummies. Amy's are being given to father christmas in exchange for presents. I take them off her when she gets up but the odd time i see her having a sly suck of Jacks

Jack very rarely has his.

The only thing i worry about is their teeth, its ruined my nephews teeth as he had his til he was 4 all his teeth are a funny shape.

 

[pips]

i'm not for dummies, but i just gave zoé a soother as she is constantly screaming for the breast to have sth to suck on. she's teething and i think she's really sore so she wants the comfort of sth to suck on but hates teething toys and when i give her the breast she overdoes doses and ends up sick

so this morning i did what i thought was best and gave her a soother. she's been sucking on it and seems content
how long does it take for a baby to get used to them??

 

[Xena]

Lydia has never really taken to dummies.
I've never been a fan of giving babies dummies just for the sake of it, but we did buy one for her for incase she wanted something to suck on to help her to sleep. However she always just spat it out and didn't seem interested in it, so after a couple of attempts when she was younger we just decided to not bother.
So nope - Lydia isn't a dummy baby.

If the next one takes to dummies s/he will have one just to help settle him/her before going to sleep. And perhaps to calm him/her down during the day if there is a big temper tantrum going on. But otherwise not.

 

[Juzza]

I always vowed not to use dummies as to be brutally honest i always followed the crowd by thinking that they were for lazy parents who couldn't soothe their children any other way, i also thought that they looked awful.

Before anyone sends me any death threats that was a completely unreasonable and inexperienced viewpoint - not to mention prejudiced.

Jacob was a sucky baby from day one and this was partly why i gave up breastfeeding as at one point he was on and off for 7hr periods.(The really sad thing is that i believed and trusted the mw's who a) said this was completely normal and b) said to NEVER give a bf baby a dummy - i think that maybe if i had given Jakey a soother then i might have realised that half the time he just wanted a comfort and then maybe i could have persevered with bf - nevermind i can't turn back the clock )

Anyway - he had a dummy in the early days as a soother to take away very bad colic. As he's got older he's rejected it and i can't remember when we last used it.

I got terrible verbal and visual responses from people though which i hated. But then i was one of those people b4 i was a mummy so i can't say anything...

Horses for courses anyway

 

[Juzza]

Forgot to say - Jacob would much rather suck on a muslin nowadays! Bless

 

[ToriElla]

Eva wanted to suck on me (when i was bf) or our fingers! She just needed something to suck all the time for some reason. So she has a dummy. But it is a pain if it falls out.

I'm gradually going to start getting her off it now. Giving it to her less and less x

 

[sonia205]

[My ex-husband's son (who didn't live with us) still had one when he was about 9 or 10 - my ex-H went round to his house one day, grabbed it off him and blew it up in the microwave

I think thats awful on both parts. He shouldnt have been weaned off the dummy years before it got to that stage but to grab it and blow it up, thats evil.

I bloody well agree!! Evil and twisted if you ask me.
i thought my neighbour was bad still giving it to her 6 yr old !!!
I was too against them but have any of you thought to mention about the REDUCED risk of cot death when baby is using one??

 

I will allow my child to have one but will wean it off one when it gets older