My 10 1/2yr old still sucks her thumb we've tried everything?
Now she has no braces yet still stucks her thumb at night. If she does suck it during the day (we homeschool) she will lose computer time which she hates. She's lost it as long as almost 2mts. Still no luck.
Last night my husband noticed how her teeth are turning outward again. She only sucks it really at night. She really can't help it. It's a bad habit.
Any tips?
Answer:
Your story is exactly like mine. My 11 year old daughter just stopped sucking her thumb recently. I too found it cute when she was around 3 months old, sucking her thumb and I thought "well, at least I don't have to worry about taking a soother away from her".
Ha ha...I never thought she would suck her thumb for 11 years either.
Anyways, the only thing that got her to stop (and we did try everything) was a dental appliance, i.e. a retainer.
The retainer helped her with the over-bite (caused by the thumb sucking) but the dentist also added another piece to the top which prevented her from sucking. Because of the piece on top, she couldn't get a suction and so she didn't care to do it and next thing we knew, she wasn't doing it anymore. The added peice was taken out when she no longer needed it and she continued to wear the retainer.
The whole device was pretty cheap.....well worth it.
For the first time in 11 years, she doesn't suck her thumb.
Hypnosis.
It's an unconscious effort on her part.
You can try hot sauce...(It work for my cousin)
tape her fingers together. If she takes it off then take something away. It should still be on in morning!
say she will be in trouble if she dosent stop
There is a product that is supposed to help children stop biting their nails, which may also help with thumb sucking. It is a nail polish that can be applied ( in your case only on the thumb) that tastes sour to the mouth. Im pretty sure you can get it at any drugstore.
Hope this helps!
The orthodontist can put this instrument in called a "rake". It makes it uncomfortable to suck her thumb. look into it. It's worth it.
At this point in her life, this is a self-comforting act. What kind of life have you given your child that she needs this?
What does she have to enjoy of her own interest that cannot be taken away by you as a means of control?
I sucked by thumb until I was 8 or 9, then one day just stopped. I stay completely ignore it, and she's stop before too long. If her teeth get turned out, she can wear braces when she's a teen- like everybody else.
I know this sounds horrible, but this is what my girlfriend did when she was little. Every night before bed her mother would put some sort of pillow case over her both her hands and wrap a cord over her wrist so both her hands were trapped together. She told me she hated it when she was younger but now she is glad her mother did that.(She is now 32.)
This is very crude but she needs kids her age to tease her and call her a baby.I know it`s not nice but sometimes other children can do miracles in this kind of situation.She will get over the teasing and grow up a little with no lasting damage done.a sleep over is what you need.
talk to your dentist there is a thing that he can put in her mouth so she can't put her thumb inside. I here it can stop thumbsucking in a few days...
If you find anything that works please let me know!! My 9 yr. old stepson has the same problem. We have tried taping his thumb for 1, 2 and 4 weeks to no avail. It was horrifying to me when he sucked his thumb during a boy scout den meeting. His teacher is also very concerned that he may be bullied for thumb sucking and baby-talking by his classmates.
PUT A SACK OVER HER HAND
i have a few sites you can look at this one is called a ThumbGuard its supposed to make it hard to suck your thumb
http://www.thumbguard.net/english/ourpro...
this site suggest other opptions for school aged kids below is some of their suggestions as well..
http://www.familyresource.com/parenting/...
Reward Program (5-9 year-olds)
Start a reward program for the older child. It could be a game. For every night without sucking her thumb, she gets a sticker. When she fills up the card with stickers, then she gets a surprise or a trip to McDonalds. Use a reinforcement that you know will work with your child.
Remove the Pleasure of Sucking
Place a Band-Aid over the fingers.
Place a cotton glove on the hand.
Other Suggestions
Let the child's dentist talk to her about giving up finger sucking.
Exchange thumb sucking with another habit. Find a special toy that they can sleep with. Some examples are a ball that they can squeeze, dolly, stuffed animal, blanket to suck, rock side-to-side on the bed, or a tipsy-cup with water for the night. It is easier for the older child to replace one habit with another habit.
Dentists have orthodontic appliances that can serve as a reminder to stop sucking. Ask your dentist.
good luck
at night make her put mittens on so she dosent suck her thumb. and for the rest of the day set up rewards for when she dosent suck her thumb like shopping or anything she really wants or wants to do.Or make her hold something so then her hands are busy and her thumb isnt in her mouth
i had to get a trap
a metal trap in your mouth it does not hurt
it just makes it uncomfitble for them to suck on her thumb
and strathens her teeth at the same time
with no pane
She could grow out of it. If she's home schooled i dont see it being a social problem just yet.
i didn't read it all but my friend (shes 11 or 12) and she constantly sucks her thumb I tell her to stop sometimes but its like w/e.So.Idk
Hi there, I know you said you tried the polish...I am not sure which one you tried, but my son is 8 and occasionally sucks his thumb because of habit or sometimes nerves. We order this stuff online: google Mavala Stop, It is nasty stuff! It made him throw up.whenever he forgets (its a bad habit! compare it to smoking or anorexia!) we apply it to his thumb. He always remembers and is quick to correct himself!
well to be honest their really isnt anything that you can do. I also suck both of my thumbs and my mom tried everything to get me to stop. she tried hot sauce tying them up you name it she tried it. IM 26 yrs old and i still suck both of them. I think she will have to stop on her own. i only suck my thumbs basically when im trying to go asleep or when im alone I dont do it around people i'M not comfortable with. I think she will probally grow out of it or she may not it all depends on her
You may want to rethink the homeschooling choice. Attendance in a school setting would invoke some serious peer pressure on that little habit. Additionally, she may be very anxious in the home and some personal space during the school day may alleviate it. Your dentist/orthodontist should be able to attach a very unpleasant little appliance to the back of her front teeth that will cause pain in that thumb every time she tries it. That is a last resort, but I have seen it work.
To tell you the truth I doubt the thumb sucking was the cause of her having to wear braces. Take a look at old family photographs, the need to wear braces is almost 100% genetic. Both myself and my sister sucked our fingers into our teens...neither one of us needed braces. Frankly I wouldn't consider it a "bad" habit.
go back to the bitter nail polish. It needs to be applied every night before bed (it loses it potency during the day) or even morning and night. You need to do it every day, twice a day, consistantly. Do all nails as she may just change to sucking her fingers. Socialise her as much as possible because in front of other kids she is not going to risk the teasing that would happen if she sucked her thumb in front of them
The answers post by the user, for information only, FeelBaby.com does not guarantee the right.