How to stop thumb-sucking????

beautifulday32 · Aug 31st, 2007, 02:26 PM

My twin boys are 4.5 years old, and both suck their thumbs. We have limited the thumb-sucking to home and only when they are going to sleep. In fact, when we are out, and they are getting tired, they say, "Can we go home? My thumb is sucking."

How do I get them to give up the thumb?

etagaya · Aug 31st, 2007, 02:52 PM

Oh, my brother sucked his thumb all the time as a kid! He got a big callous at the base of his thumb and my mum was so afraid he'd wind up with buck teeth (he didn't--but I did, even though I never sucked my thumb...thank god for orthodontists!). Sucking his thumb made him so happy! I'll have to ask her what she did to get him to stop...

ILuvMyHusband · Aug 31st, 2007, 05:56 PM

I sucked my thumb religiously until I was about 5 years old. I would rub the tag of a carebear while I did it.
My mom put this bitter tasting stuff on my thumb. I'm not exactly sure what it's called, this was in the early 80's. But I'm sure it would still be around. Anyway, a few days of her applying that and I quit. I even took it upon myself to apply it because since I was a big kindergardner I wasn't about to be caught sucking my thumb at school haha. But try looking up something like that. Good luck!

allbrandspls · Aug 31st, 2007, 08:37 PM

You can buy a nail polish called anti bite nails which has a bitter taste.....if that doesn't work some dentist can order a device that goes over the thumb so they can suck on their thumb anymore.

glily · Aug 31st, 2007, 08:57 PM

My daughter is the same age as your boys and also sucks her thumb. The weird part is that she started doing it well after her 3rd birthday!

Anyway, she only really does it when she is tired and her doctor told me to put my husbands athletic (long) tube socks on her hands at night to keep her from sucking. Sounds mean, but she doesn't think of them as punishment or anything...We call them her "mittens". She can just take them off, but she usually leaves them on and it helps her to "re-learn" falling asleep without her thumb.

etagaya · Aug 31st, 2007, 10:14 PM

My brother's habit sounds a lot like yours, Iluvmyhusband. He would suck his thumb and hug his stuffed kitty toy, especially when he was feeling tired or cuddly. My mum says she asked him (around age 5 I think), "Do you see the other kids at school sucking their thumbs?" He wanted to be a "big boy," so he stopped sucking his thumb at school. In public, my mum would put her fist up to her mouth (miming sucking her thumb) when he did, and he'd see her and think, "Oh yeah! I'm big now. No more sucking my thumb," and make a conscious effort to stop. Eventually, he just stopped altogether without any reminders.

TotallyAddicted · Sep 1st, 2007, 08:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allbrandspls

You can buy a nail polish called anti bite nails which has a bitter taste

My Mum tried this on me when I was a kid - and it did not work.. I used to scratch the polish as soon as she put it on and suck my thumb again

She never found out and actually never managed to stop me until I went to school..

I have small jaws and there was no space for all my teeth, which were already pushed forwards by my thumb-sucking

So at 11 I ended up with 4 teeth removed and braces for 2 years..

Maybe if you tell them this as a bed-time story they will stop??

ILuvMyHusband · Sep 1st, 2007, 07:32 PM

^^That's some determination!
The thing with the bedtime story cracked me up.

Etagaya,yeah, the situations sound very similar!! I dreaded nap time because I would want to suck my thumb to go to sleep and I couldn't do it in front of the other kids. Good for him he quit cold turkey hehe.

caliprincess · Sep 2nd, 2007, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TotallyAddicted

My Mum tried this on me when I was a kid - and it did not work.. I used to scratch the polish as soon as she put it on and suck my thumb again

She never found out and actually never managed to stop me until I went to school..

Instead of just putting it on the nail itself, put that stuff on all over the thumb. That stopped my friend's kid from sucking her thumb. But then her other kid developed a liking to the taste of this stuff, but then she's a freak...

TotallyAddicted · Sep 2nd, 2007, 06:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ILuvMyHusband

^^That's some determination!
The thing with the bedtime story cracked me up.

I guess we're about the same age.. and our sweet Mums did their best, right?

BTW, congrats, I just saw you're a mummy-to-be!

Aug 31st, 2007, 02:26 PM	#1
beautifulday32 Member	How to stop thumb-sucking???? My twin boys are 4.5 years old, and both suck their thumbs. We have limited the thumb-sucking to home and only when they are going to sleep. In fact, when we are out, and they are getting tired, they say, "Can we go home? My thumb is sucking." How do I get them to give up the thumb? __________________ A woman who is convinced that she deserves to accept only the best challenges herself to give the best. Then she is living phenomenally. -Maya Angelou

Aug 31st, 2007, 02:52 PM	#2
etagaya Fun size. Location: Marin County, CA	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? Oh, my brother sucked his thumb all the time as a kid! He got a big callous at the base of his thumb and my mum was so afraid he'd wind up with buck teeth (he didn't--but I did, even though I never sucked my thumb...thank god for orthodontists!). Sucking his thumb made him so happy! I'll have to ask her what she did to get him to stop...

Aug 31st, 2007, 05:56 PM	#3
ILuvMyHusband Member	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? I sucked my thumb religiously until I was about 5 years old. I would rub the tag of a carebear while I did it. My mom put this bitter tasting stuff on my thumb. I'm not exactly sure what it's called, this was in the early 80's. But I'm sure it would still be around. Anyway, a few days of her applying that and I quit. I even took it upon myself to apply it because since I was a big kindergardner I wasn't about to be caught sucking my thumb at school haha. But try looking up something like that. Good luck! __________________

Aug 31st, 2007, 08:37 PM	#4
allbrandspls Member Location: Australia	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? You can buy a nail polish called anti bite nails which has a bitter taste.....if that doesn't work some dentist can order a device that goes over the thumb so they can suck on their thumb anymore. __________________ Wish List 2005 red caviar classic flap

Aug 31st, 2007, 08:57 PM	#5
glily Member	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? My daughter is the same age as your boys and also sucks her thumb. The weird part is that she started doing it well after her 3rd birthday! Anyway, she only really does it when she is tired and her doctor told me to put my husbands athletic (long) tube socks on her hands at night to keep her from sucking. Sounds mean, but she doesn't think of them as punishment or anything...We call them her "mittens". She can just take them off, but she usually leaves them on and it helps her to "re-learn" falling asleep without her thumb. __________________ Love me, love my handbags! g lily

Aug 31st, 2007, 10:14 PM	#6
etagaya Fun size. Location: Marin County, CA	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? My brother's habit sounds a lot like yours, Iluvmyhusband. He would suck his thumb and hug his stuffed kitty toy, especially when he was feeling tired or cuddly. My mum says she asked him (around age 5 I think), "Do you see the other kids at school sucking their thumbs?" He wanted to be a "big boy," so he stopped sucking his thumb at school. In public, my mum would put her fist up to her mouth (miming sucking her thumb) when he did, and he'd see her and think, "Oh yeah! I'm big now. No more sucking my thumb," and make a conscious effort to stop. Eventually, he just stopped altogether without any reminders.

Sep 1st, 2007, 07:32 PM	#8
ILuvMyHusband Member	Re: How to stop thumb-sucking???? ^^That's some determination! The thing with the bedtime story cracked me up. Etagaya,yeah, the situations sound very similar!! I dreaded nap time because I would want to suck my thumb to go to sleep and I couldn't do it in front of the other kids. Good for him he quit cold turkey hehe. __________________