My son loves his pacifier!!

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Permalink Reply by Shawna on September 11, 2008 at 6:07am

I'm sooo glad I'm not the only one going through this!! Thanks you made me feel better!!

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Permalink Reply by Afroditi Caramuche on September 11, 2008 at 9:53am

I'm probably the worst person to reply considering my 5 year old still has his pacifier. He suffered from severe food allergies so i felt sorry for him and kept putting off taking the pacifier away from him. Now his teeth are protruding and he looks like he has fangs. I've gotten rid of all but one of his pacifiers, and he gets it only every once in a while. Your son is little, but the sooner you get rid of it the better. His teeth will thank you for it. And he won't remember it after some time because he is so young. Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by Shawna on September 11, 2008 at 10:07am

Wow! Very good advise thank you! My daughter was a thumb sucker. She just gave that up just recently(even though I catch her doing it when she's sleeping). And she gave that up because she went to the dentist for the first time. The dentist told her she must give it up and she stopped basically that day!! I never really knew that the pacifier could be bad for the teeth as well. Wonder full news!! lol!! Now how do I go about getting rid of it so it's easy on him as well as me??

Afroditi Caramuche said:

I'm probably the worst person to reply considering my 5 year old still has his pacifier. He suffered from severe food allergies so i felt sorry for him and kept putting off taking the pacifier away from him. Now his teeth are protruding and he looks like he has fangs. I've gotten rid of all but one of his pacifiers, and he gets it only every once in a while. Your son is little, but the sooner you get rid of it the better. His teeth will thank you for it. And he won't remember it after some time because he is so young. Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by Christina on September 11, 2008 at 8:23pm

Hi, as I read your story I understand you problem. My daughter is five and still has her blanket, she does take it to school with her but leaves it in her backpak. I took the pacifier away at 1 yrs old. My recommendation is to just take it away. remember you are the parent. The pacifier can def. re-arrange your son's teeth, and cause an overbite or underbite which will require braces in the future. The longer you wait the harder it will be for the both of you. Good luck. chris

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Permalink Reply by Brenda Nixon on September 12, 2008 at 7:51pm

You're correct; children need a security object be it a pacifier, blanket, or in my daughter's case a stuffed animal. You asked when's a good age to get rid of the pacifier? Since you're only allowing it as a comfort nap or nighttime object, then it's perfectly fine to allow your son to keep it.
The only problem would have been if he sucked on it all day long - then it interferes with language development and could possibly affect incoming teeth.
When you decide your son has outgrown it - or he looses interest - then you can have a "pacifier funeral" and together throw it away. There's a chapter in my upcoming The Birth to Five Book on thumbsucking and another one on going cold turkey with the pacifier.
~ Brenda Nixon
speaker, author, mom

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Permalink Reply by Shawna on September 12, 2008 at 8:29pm

wow!! Thank you for your advise!! That's what I was thinking of doing is holding off from taking it away from him till he's ready. I only do give it to him at night and nap time even though he'd be happy to have it all the time. He tries to sneak it but I always take it from him. I heard that it can affect their speech!! And believe me he's talking just fine!! Thanks a million for your advice!! And let me know when your book is published as I love to read it!!

Brenda Nixon said:

You're correct; children need a security object be it a pacifier, blanket, or in my daughter's case a stuffed animal. You asked when's a good age to get rid of the pacifier? Since you're only allowing it as a comfort nap or nighttime object, then it's perfectly fine to allow your son to keep it.
The only problem would have been if he sucked on it all day long - then it interferes with language development and could possibly affect incoming teeth.
When you decide your son has outgrown it - or he looses interest - then you can have a "pacifier funeral" and together throw it away. There's a chapter in my upcoming The Birth to Five Book on thumbsucking and another one on going cold turkey with the pacifier.
~ Brenda Nixon
speaker, author, mom

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Permalink Reply by Lindsay on September 16, 2008 at 11:57am

Hey there! My little man loved his pacifier. One day we were talking and I asked him if he was a big boy now. He very emphatically said "Yes!!" I told him how great that was. Then I asked him if he still needed his pacifier since he wasn't a baby anymore. He said no because he was a big boy now. So we sent his pacifiers in an envelope to the "Binky Fairy". he walked it to the mailbox and put it in himself (I think that was the key). Then I told him that the Binky Fairy would give his binkies to babies who needed them. That too was comforting to him. He went running into the house and told my husband how excited he was to be a big boy and to help little babies. When he would want his binky he would cry for a minute and then say "I big boy now babies have my binkies" and once he said it out loud he was able to comfort himself. I just kept telling him how proud I was of him for helping the little babies and sharing with them.

Little crazy I know but it worked for a little guy who I thought was going to take his binky with him to college.

Good luck to ya!

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Permalink Reply by Dana on September 16, 2008 at 12:17pm

My son was going on three. He had it at nap and night time. My dentist told me NO!!! Get Rid of It. So I started to cut the end of the pacifier off a little at a time. Till one day he put it in his mouth and then took it out and told me that it was broke and he put it in the trash. Never said another work.
Dana

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Permalink Reply by Judy Dippel on September 16, 2008 at 12:46pm

I'm impressed how Lindsay found such a creative way to help her "little man" feel good about giving up the pacifier. She didn't have to feel bad as a mom for taking it away, and He learned to give to others in the process. Proof that kids are never too young to learn to think of others needs.
Lindsay is my daughter, the "little man" my grandson, so I must admit to being a proud mother and grandmother!
Judy Dippel

Lindsay said:

Hey there! My little man loved his pacifier. One day we were talking and I asked him if he was a big boy now. He very emphatically said "Yes!!" I told him how great that was. Then I asked him if he still needed his pacifier since he wasn't a baby anymore. He said no because he was a big boy now. So we sent his pacifiers in an envelope to the "Binky Fairy". he walked it to the mailbox and put it in himself (I think that was the key). Then I told him that the Binky Fairy would give his binkies to babies who needed them. That too was comforting to him. He went running into the house and told my husband how excited he was to be a big boy and to help little babies. When he would want his binky he would cry for a minute and then say "I big boy now babies have my binkies" and once he said it out loud he was able to comfort himself. I just kept telling him how proud I was of him for helping the little babies and sharing with them.

Little crazy I know but it worked for a little guy who I thought was going to take his binky with him to college.

Good luck to ya!

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Permalink Reply by virginia salazar on September 16, 2008 at 1:32pm

my daughter had her pacifier till she was three almost four now she is 11 she has a really nice smile. nice big stright teeth. when i took it away she cried for it and i would give it to her so i throw them in the trash the nightthe trashwas to be picked up.i may take longer for him to fall asleep but he will get used to it. i did the samething with my son not a pacifier but his bottle he never had a pacifier. they do live threw it and you will too. let me know how it goes.

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Permalink Reply by Shawna on September 16, 2008 at 5:40pm

Hi Lindsey! I saw this episode on "Super Nanny" and I thought it was a really cool idea. I'm glad to hear it really works. How old is / was your son when he said he was a big boy and does not need his pacifier any more.I do the same thing to my son. I ask him if he's a "baby" or a "big boy" and his reply is always the same "baby"! I've even gotten my older daughter asking him that as well. So I'm hoping that one of these days his response will be like your sons "I'm a big boy!!" But for now I guess he's a "baby!!" And hopefully he will decide when he needs to give it up!! Thanks for sharing your story.

Lindsay said:

Hey there! My little man loved his pacifier. One day we were talking and I asked him if he was a big boy now. He very emphatically said "Yes!!" I told him how great that was. Then I asked him if he still needed his pacifier since he wasn't a baby anymore. He said no because he was a big boy now. So we sent his pacifiers in an envelope to the "Binky Fairy". he walked it to the mailbox and put it in himself (I think that was the key). Then I told him that the Binky Fairy would give his binkies to babies who needed them. That too was comforting to him. He went running into the house and told my husband how excited he was to be a big boy and to help little babies. When he would want his binky he would cry for a minute and then say "I big boy now babies have my binkies" and once he said it out loud he was able to comfort himself. I just kept telling him how proud I was of him for helping the little babies and sharing with them.

Little crazy I know but it worked for a little guy who I thought was going to take his binky with him to college.

Good luck to ya!

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