Evidence:
Actually I sucked my thumb as a big kid, too. My mom had to have a dental instrument permenantly placed in the roof of my mouth to get me to stop sucking my thumb at night. I think I was in 3rd grade. Yea, too old. She said I stopped during the day before school started but she would find me at night with my thumb in my mouth so tight that she couldn't pull it out. I can remember my mom telling me over and over to stop and I resisted her. I would hide it from her in long sleeve shirts. Terrible.
When my twins started sucking my thumb as teensy tiny babies, I knew this was a way of getting back at me for the years of orthodontia my mother was forced to pay for...times TWO!
The girls' mouths are shaped exactly like mine. I can see their front two teeth shift forward slightly from the thumbs, just as mine did. They have a slight tongue-thrust (which hasn't affected their speech but will continue to push their teeth forward). So, I knew I wanted to stop the sucking as early as possible (long before the permanent teeth come in). I decided to start the weaning process in April with the purchase of two "thumbguard" thumb covers. They look like this:
I was very optimistic that they would quit with this device strapped to their appropriate thumb.
Ugh...it was harder than I thought.
Both girls started sucking the other thumb at first. Then when I wrapped that thumb in athletic tape, they started taking the thumbguards off (no matter what this product promises, tiny 3-year old hands and brains can take it off and I'm a directions follower). Then I was forced to wrap each thumb and put the guards over the wraps. As my last ditch effort, I took away the girls "bobbies" (blankies). This was all Teagan needed. She broke the habit once that bobby was gone. Sometimes I'll see her suck her index finger a little bit in her sleep (strange child), but she doesn't touch the thumbs anymore. Boston, however, is a freaking thumb ninja. I can't get her to stop. I can't.
I am very persistent and I will try something over and over and over again to get it but she has almost warn me down. Michael has thrown in the towel, I think.
The other night I put Mavala Stop on her nails (the most disgusting tasting stuff on the planet), wrapped her finger in athletic tape, put on the thumbguard, taped her entire hand with the thumbguard on, covered it with a glove (yea, it's the summer, why?) and taped the glove on. I swear to you this is the truth. She got it off. I did it on both hands and she removed that SHIZ with her TEETH!
I want to beat this child. What do I do? I've tried being sweet, I've tried being sympathetic, I've tried being mean, I've tried bribing. It's not working. I want to put a dental crib in her mouth and I would pay hundreds of dollars for it, but everything I've read says that Ortho's won't put them on until a year before their adult teeth come in.
I finally had to buy Teagan the little doll I promised them when they quit sucking and this hasn't kept Boston from getting the thumb in her mouth at night either. I even bought Boston the one she wanted and put it on the counter for her to see every day with the promise that she could play with her once she stopped sucking her thumb for 7 days and nights straight. During the day she tells me 500 times she's not sucking her thumb anymore and then I find her wraps off the next morning when she wakes up. She's like a drug addict. She wants to stop but she can't do it. Lately, I've been finding her sneaking away from me to suck her thumb or doing it when I'm not watching her.
Boston seems to be my child that is most opposed to change and I don't want to scar her by pushing this too hard, but I don't want her to go through the years of braces, headgear, expanders, more braces and other mouth contraptions like I had to. My mouth is so messed up from it. I have really bad TMJ and my jaw hurts every time I eat. I just don't want that for her.
Advice? Have any of you tackled thumb-sucking? Have you won the battle?
My 6 year old still sucks her thumb all the time (although not at school!). I sucked mine and did so until I was pretty darn big. I've chosen to let it go. I ignore it and try not to think about those ortho bills. To be honest, I've got two others in braces and they never sucked their thumbs or fingers or a binky or anything! I figure it is just the way it is and it is't worth getting into the power struggle that may ruin her little psyche. Chances are she'd need braces anyway right? It fills a need for her and eventually she'll stop. I didn't go to college still sucking my thumb or wearing diapers and I don't know anyone who did. Good luck! :)
ReplyDeleteI don't have a thumb sucker myself, but my cousins daughter was a thumb sucker. They bought a book that they read her about stopping thumb sucking. I don't know the name of the book, but it involved putting the kid in a too big long sleeve shirt and pulling the sleeves down and tying a knot, so the kid in the book couldn't suck their thumb anymore. They read the book and used the shirt method and her daughter stopped within a week. Maybe Boston needs her hands wrapped and the long shirt idea? Good Luck!
ReplyDeleteoh gosh :( I wish I had words of advice. I knew the horrors of it (as such you are going through) and therefor shoved a paci at my boys each time I saw them trying to use their thumbs. The pacis are much easier to get rid of than those dang thumbs as you can't throw them away! ;)
ReplyDeleteWow, that's pretty amazing that she can get all of that stuff off. The only thumb sucker I know was my Aunt, and they just put nasty tasting stuff on her thumb, and they used hot sauce. I have read that using guards/gloves can just produce anxiety, and that can make them want to suck even more to soothe themselves. My little guy won't take a paci, and I found myself wishing he'd just start sucking his thumb or fingers something to satisfy his need to suck. After reading this I'm glad he hasn't taken up the habit. Good Luck!
ReplyDeleteI have shit for advice, but I do have a strong sense that Diane is chuckling her butt off over this, Teague! Remember what I once told you....it's never easy raising strong women!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh. I have no words of advice for you, but I wish I could give you a hug. I had to break my daughter of her pacifier, and that was bad enough, but at least those can be thrown away! I'm so sorry you guys are dealing with this. I had braces for 3.5 years, so I can understand wanting to shield your children from that if possible. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter sucked her index and middle finger, when we went to the dentist he could see the effect on her teeth so he told us to tell her she could only suck her thumb in her room on her bed. Let me tell you that stopped quick. Now as for my 5 year old son who insist on sucking his thumb that does not work. He could careless what we say he continues to suck his thumb. He tries to hide it by putting his other hand over his thumb. We are constantly saying " Micah take your thumb out".... He stopped for awhile because my husband said every time he found him he wold spank him so when Micah saw the paddle he would cry but now we are back to square one. So I'm in your same boat. One child quit and the other won't.
ReplyDeleteLook up the Thumbsucking Clinic on the Internet and Facebook. My girlfriend Carla, who is in the dental industry, is helping lots of little kids give up their thumb sucking. She may be able to give you some tips!
ReplyDeleteI had one who had a pacifier until 5, then was horrified when her pediatrician threw it away right before her very eyes. My third daughter sucked her thumb. Not so easy to toss in the trash. I guess because she was my third I didn't worry too much about it. She sucked her thumb, mostly at night, until she was in 4th grade and was preparing for braces. The Dr. put an expander in her mouth thinking that would stop it. She sucked on it at night until she had a huge cut on her tongue. The ortho was amazed that even the pain of her sliced tongue didn't stop her. She was fitted with another appliance that stopped her thumb sucking right before braces. Her teeth are beautiful and she hasn't sucked a thumb since. We made sure to remind her to stop whenever we saw her during the day but at night it was the hard. She did eventually stop when we told her she would never get her braces off unless she stopped.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I wouldn't worry too much at this age. I think if more people could comfort themselves this way we would have way less violence in the world :)
My son, at 2.5, got a paper cut on his thumb-sucking thumb, and never sucked it again. Now I wouldn't encourage you to purposely cut your child's thumb, but...I'm just sayin':)
ReplyDeleteOkay...so this is probably not what you want to hear...but I was a Boston!! I think I was like in middle school before I quit...only because I got the dental guard put in when they put in the stuff for my braces. My mom tried EVERYTHING...even that nasty paint stuff I would apparently just suck it off. I didn't suck my thumb during the day...only at night..and my mom said I wouldn't do it while I was awake...but would just do it while I was sleeping? I wonder if that is what she is doing? Good luck!!
ReplyDeleteI have an 8 yr old who continues to suck her thumb despite all manner of bribing, threatening, cajoling, deal making, etc. I saw your post about those guards and wondered if they would work for her being so much older. She knows how we feel about it, but claims she has no control over it - what do you say to that? You would think the kids at school would 'tease' her out of it, but I haven't heard anything from her about this and I continue to catch her at school, with friends, during Girl Scount meetings, etc. I'm not adding much to the party, just chiming in with my own woes. Hope I didn't freak you out that mine is 8 and we are still struggling with this! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm 36, married and still suck my thumb. I never needed braces though... I think it's because i had my thumb way up on my palate not against my teeth. I actually suck either thumb. It just feels so good :-)
ReplyDeleteMy 2 1/2 year old never took the paci or thumb but still nurses :-) she may be the one who asks me to stop when she's older.
She sometimes takes my thumb out of my mouth already!