Thumb Sucking

[oz]

My little 3 yr old boy still suck his thumb.

How do I get him to stop ?

Anyone has experience with this ?

thanks.

[Fat Man]

Wait until he starts school. He'll probably stop soon after.

[crzy4reefs]

don't know zack's never sucked his thumb (he'll be 17 months old june 15th)

i can ask my sister how she got her's to stop but i think they stop once they go to school

[crp]

Short of cutting off the finger, nothing you can really do.

None of my kids sucked their thumbs but I have a friend whose daughter sucked her thumb (mostly only at night) until she got braces at 10.

He's only 3. Give him some time.

Carrie

[AdidaKev]

Is there a reason you want him to stop?

[oz]

Well, I think its bad for the teeth and not so hygienic.

And what else, well, it just seems he shouldn't.

[chip721]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7515769#post7515769 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AdidaKev
Is there a reason you want him to stop? If it goes on too long, it can potentially cause some protruding teeth. They used to make some liquid stuff that can be brushed on to the fingers at night. Sorry don't know the name. It came in a bottle about the size of finger nail polish and included a brush on applicator. I used it for my daughter. It's harmless, just taste yucky!

[Fat Man]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7515908#post7515908 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by oz
Well, I think its bad for the teeth and not so hygienic.

What does a three year do that is hygenic?


Originally posted by oz
And what else, well, it just seems he shouldn't.

Mrs. Man has a nephew that sucked his thumb until he was five or six. His parents put the yucky stuff on his thumbs. It didn't work. The kid would just wash it off. He eventually quit with no harm to his teeth. There are bigger things to worry about.

[griss]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7516064#post7516064 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fat Man
There are bigger things to worry about.
Having 3 kids, I have to agree with that statement:)

[Petie]

My Goddaughter was 6 before she stopped sucking her thumb. Constant reminding to take it out of her mouth helped during the day. The stuff you brush on didn't work for her, she figured out if she sucked it off it only tasted bad until it was gone.

[DJ88©]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7515557#post7515557 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fat Man
Wait until he starts school. He'll probably stop soon after.

:lol:

[AdidaKev]

This article is all about thumb-sucking 3-year olds. ;)

http://www.drgreene.com/21_856.html

"According to the American Dental Association, thumb sucking does not cause permanent problems with the teeth or jaw line unless it is continued beyond 4 to 5 years of age. As it turns out, somewhere between 85% and 99% of children have finished thumb sucking spontaneously before this period."

[hogpark7430]

My niece is 13 and still does it at night. It drives my wife nuts I think is kind of funny(my wife that is).

[reefman30]

I knew a guy in high school that still sucked his thumb. He wasn't made fun of very much but I bet he was in lower grades.

[bluerug]

This is funny b/c i am 16 and i still suck my thumb at night time. (sometimes) lol. But then again i am always washing my hands like 24/7, lol.

[dc]

LOL, when Pat was 3 I told him that pretty soon he would be a big boy and wouldn't need his blanky or suck his thumb. When he turned 4 he gave me his blanket and quit! That however did not work with Nicole! Slowly I made the blanky stay in the bed and she would only suck her thumb as she was falling asleep, it was like a magnet. Retainers were the only thing that worked for her.

[drouner]

I bribed one of my kids last year with $50 at the rip age of 8. It worked for a while. She typically now sucks her thumb when she is really tired. I caught her behind the hotel room curtains last weekend as we were leaving Disney. Everyone was dead tired after a long week at the Magic Kingdom.

[crp]

My son is almost 14. Never sucked his thumb but still has a blanket he drags around the house and takes on vacation with us. Can't sleep without it. Doesn't hurt anything so I don't care.

You have to learn to pick your battles and at 3 years old, this one is worth the fight. Let him be. He'll eventually outgrow it.

Carrie

[wills]

He'll outgrow it. I sucked my thumb until I was in my teens (15 or 16). I would fall asleep without doing it but sometime in the night I would start.

Got braces put on, my mom told me how much they cost and that was the end of that. It must be mental.

[Minuteman]

http://countrystore.tabasco.com/images/template/pep_habanero.gif

It's what my old man used... Worked like a champ!

[saltwaterfishlover]

well being 41 years old ...in extreme moments of depression or when I dont think about it I still suck mine.... problems I forsee are.... prune skined thumb, severe overbite before braces I could close my mouth and still fit my thumb between my upper and lower teeth. and the only other thing is a high pallette... if you have ever seen a retainer from braces they are normaly 1/4 to 1.2 inch tall mine was almost an inch or more....

[Stephany]

Anyone see that movie Thumbsucker?

[PoukieBear]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7518863#post7518863 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by drouner
I bribed one of my kids last year with $50 at the rip age of 8. It worked for a while. She typically now sucks her thumb when she is really tired. I caught her behind the hotel room curtains last weekend as we were leaving Disney. Everyone was dead tired after a long week at the Magic Kingdom.

I sucked my thumb untill I was in university. The only reason I stopped was because I didn't want my room mate to catch me at it. How embarassing!

I'm 22 now and I still sometimes suck. Only when I'm totaly exausted beyond belief do I do it. I think it's because I did it for so long, I'll always have the tendency to do it when I'm too tired to realise what I'm doing. :(

[dougadam]

My dad put iodine on my thumb to get me to stop.

[bamsickle]

One of my stepdaughters sucked hers constantly and finally stopped (I think) at 7 yrs. Unfortunately, she learned to talk with her thumb in her mouth and it's almost impossible to understand her sometimes cause she's still "talking around it" even tho it isn't in her mouth. I don't think she'll ever pronounce an R no matter how much speech therapy she has.

I think as long as he speaks clearly and isn't doing it 24/7 it isn't a big deal at this age. Btw, I have to ask, is he potty trained :D ?
That's one battle I'm glad I'll never have to deal with again...:p

B

[AcroSteve]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7522215#post7522215 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Stephany
Anyone see that movie Thumbsucker?

No, but I have heard the song Thumbsucker by Shel Siverstien :eek:

"I ain't gona let no thumbsucker suck my thumb"

[baz]

My son is four almost 5 ands we just kinda always said "Stop Sucking your Thumb!" it was mostly when he was bored or tired. We told him if he wants to suck his thumb he needed to go to bed no matter what time it was. We actually made hime go to bed at 5:30pm for about a week. The nafter that he stopped. He liked staying up until 7:30pm =)...

He will grow out of it. Just call him on it when you notice, theyget tired of being reminded... Good Luck

[crzy4reefs]

just curious, my son is almost 17 months old never sucked his thumb (he chews on his fingers when he's teething but that doesn't last long)

do kids start sucking their thumb at any age?

[baz]

Our picture in the womb had him sucking his thumb. Our second, 6 months, has no interest in his thumb remove that pacifier and its on!

[KafudaFish]

Our daughter is 2 and she never sucked her thumb which I was grateful because I hate seeing children sucking on a pasifier or their thumb and you know they are school age. She also gave up her pacifier in about a week. We only let her have it at night before going to bed when we cut it out. I saw some girl at Disney last week sucking her thumb and she was 10 - 12. It made her look really childish.
As someone said pick your battles and if this is one you choose to wage come up with a battle plan before you start. As with any "negative" behavior be consistent. Maybe only allow the behavior before naps or bedtime and the rest of the time simply say "get your thumb out of your mouth." Don't change your tone of voice but simply repeat it.
My wife already knows that I am willing to battle over the nose picking issue if it comes up. There have been a few times I caught our child "examining" and I have told her to quit and she does.
I really HATE when a school age child picks their nose in front of their parents and the parents simply "ignore it".
Good luck.

[Hunter21]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7520514#post7520514 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by lbrty9
http://countrystore.tabasco.com/images/template/pep_habanero.gif

It's what my old man used... Worked like a champ!

OMGosh!!! When I was in 4th grade, I had this kid in my class that sucked his thumb constantly and the teacher didn't feel it was right, so she told him to go home and tell his parents to buy some tobasco sauce for it and that should take care of the thumbsucking, well a few days later, the teacher was gone and the principal came in our classroom to tell us that our teacher had to leave for a long time(we all figured she either was sick, killed or fired) and turns out that stupid kid went home and told his parents the teacher told him to buy some tobacco! :eek1: that was one of the nicest teachers I ever had! lol :lol:

Erin