How Do I Ween off the Paci?

i also have a 2 and a half yr old who WAS extrenely dependent upon a passy. they mysteriously disappeared thropught the house. we 1st limited them tpo sleeping and then one night we seriously couldnt find any anywhere int he ouse or diaper bag... and my hubby told kyle that big boys dont need passys and he whined but then went to sleep. i seached everywhere and threw all of them away that i could find... when he gets tired, now he gets his babys (stuffed animals) and cuddles them and puts one index finger to his lips or a milimeter in fornt of his mouth... im so glad we got rid of it... i would just make them disappear one by one and dont have an emergency backup either bc they are smart and will find it!!! it may be rough but jus thtink of how happy he'll be when he can sleep and cope with things without it.

I know with most kids it works best to let them ween them self off it (with help.) I know a good friend of mine took a straight pen and put a hole in it. THen when the child sucked on it, it went flat. And her child put it in the trash, never to be had again. Good luck.

Hi there,
we are on day three without the "B-B". Gracie is 3! she would only use it at night but very dependent on it to comfort her. We managed to get her to give it up during the day, we had her put it in a bowl and then put the bowl up high, but where she could see it. And, then we started telling her about the "binky Fairy". we would say, "you know the binky fairy is coming soon to take away your bb's and give them to babies without teeth, who need them more than you." We told her that we'll wrap up the binkies together and hang them in the tree outside, and when she wakes up, the binky fairy will have left her presents in the tree. She really digged that idea, of getting presents. Also, i started chewing gum around her and blowing bubbles. she was facsinated by that and i told her maybe the binky fairy will bring her bubble gum. the whole pocess took 6 months, so dont be in a hurry!
So, on her own, (second try, first try at bedtime she made us go out and get them off the tree, she asked to put them out for the BF. And fell asleep without it, cried her eyes out in the morning but was ecstatic to see packages of trident hanging from the tree! I think you can't be too hard on him, offer to take it from him and put it in a safe place, but dont fight it. The harder you fight them, the deeper they dig in. My pediatrician told us that 3 is a good age to try and break the habit.
good luck,
M. (mom to Gracie 3 & Maddie 9months)

My daughter, 2 and 4 months was the same way. We got rid of it in October 2006. I just decided to deal with the screaming. I explained to her that she's a big girl now and it's time to throw away the binky. She was totally mortified. But I had her help me throw them all in the trash. We had accumulated many all over the house, in car so that we could grab one when she screamed for it. I was especially dependent on it because,that's how she got to sleep at night. But throwing them away helped me deal with the temptation of reverting back to bad habits just like her. She whined and cried for about 2 days and then was over it. The real test came when we went to the doctor's office and she saw other babies with their binkies. She simply acknowledged "mommy, baby got binky." I responded, "Yep, that baby has a binky, but you're a big girl so where is your binky." She said, "bink in trash."

We recently moved into a new house and she came aross a binky and comes walking up to me with the binky in her mouth. I laughed and said what's that? She said, "My Binky." I told her she's a big girl now and binky's go in the trash. She stamped her feet and screamed. I didn't even respond to that. I took her by the hand and told her to help mommy throw it in the trash. She walked over to the trash and dropped it in. We high-fived, and that was that.

My daughter loved her paci she called a num-num she had to have it and then it started smelling so to break her from the habit i put the paci in buttermilk every time she asked for it I know that it sounds mean but it broke the habit and buttermilk is actually good for you even though it doesn't taste so good.

I have a 14 mth old that has a little bit of a pacifier addiction. It hasn't helped that he has been teething and sick off an on for the last month. I had planned to only allow the pacy for bed and nap time. Hasn't worked.

I've had a few people give me advice that I plan on using when we are ready. I have set his second birthday in Dec. as our goal date. Hopefully before then.

Do you have a friend that has just recently had a baby? Wrap up all of his pacifiers and tell him he is giving the new baby a special gift because he is now a big boy and the little baby now needs pacys.

Another one is to cut the tip of the nipples off the pacifier and tell him that they are now broken.

I figure they are both worth a try. If you do try either one, please let me know how it goes.

ok my 2 year old is the same way but we took his away at christmas time. we put it in his stocking on christmas eve and told him that santa was going to leave him big boy toys in the place of the paci. so now that easter is coming up tell him the easter bunny is going to take the paci and leave an easter basket full of goodies in its place. my son actually did really well. he did cry and pitch tantrums but overall it went great. please let me know if this helps.

A friend of mine has twin girls who were addicted to the paci still at two. What he did was one night him and his wife went through the house and gathered up all the pacis and when the girls woke up and wanted there pacis he explained that the paci fairy had decided that they were big girls now and had came down and took all the pacis. He said they never asked for it again. All kids are different but its worth a try.

Hi. Have you tried talking to him about it? Telling him it is time to let it go.. Try to bribe him with a new toy let him know that if he doesnt throw it away that he will not get the toy.. I had to do that with my sons sippy cup he wanted a blanket with super man on it I told him that he needed to throw away the sippy cup so super man wouldnt get wet from his milk. and he fought it for a couple of days but he soon gave up. Try it. it may work. some people think because they are 2 or three that our kids dont understand what we say and they do.. let him throw them away. and just be firm with it. your husband dont have to deal with it during the day he will be fine.. he has to stand behind you for things like this to work..

I know this sounds silly but I watched that nanny show on t.v. and one of the parents were dealing with this same problem. They talked to the little boy about it and had him throw away all of his paci's himself and they had a little celebration for him for throwing it away (clapping, cheering, a couple of baloons) and they said that he never asked for it again. He didn't throw it away at home, they went to a park. I guess so that he couln't try to dig it out later. They just kept telling him before he threw it away that paci's were for baby's and that he isn't a baby anymore and by him throwing it away prooves that he is a big boy.

I know you said you don't want whining and temper tantrums, but we didn't have any of that. We just emphasized the "Puppy" he sleeps with. We just took it away, and he still asks for it, but no temper tantrums. Good l uck!

My son was about 3 when he "quit" his bink bink. People kept bugging me about it but I figured he'd quit on his own and he did. By playing with older kids (4 and 5) who didn't have binkies and the need to talk more often seemed to make it an inconvience for him. I just decided not to replace them one day and he was over it.

My 2 y/o son is still on the paci and we're seriously working on it. I'm trying something different now. I tied his paci to the rocking chair. That's our "time out/quiet time" spot and it has a couple of his favorite picture books. Now he can sit and use his paci in quiet time, or he can decide to let go and come play with the rest of us. So far, it seems to be helping. My one concern with this was the safety hazard of a string that he could get wrapped around his neck, so make sure you watch him if you try this. And make it a "safe" place that is NOT his bed/crib.

T.

I have a 6 month old who LOVES her paci, so I can't answer this as a mom. I CAN however, answer this as a teacher and child behavior management specialist.

The kind of plan you develop to get rid of the paci will greatly depend on the personality of your son and how well he responds to positive/negative reinforcement.

I would absolutely recommend beginning with a positive behavior plan, and at his age, it would require some sort of tangible reward. Kids his age love the good ol' fashioned sticker chart. Make one up on your computer, buy a package of those gold foil stars, and a particular item he's been wanting for a while.

Then set up something you think would work: If he goes without his paci for the whole morning, he gets a star. If he goes without it a whole afternoon, he gets a start. If he goes without it a whole night, he gets a star. When he earns 10 stars, he gets his toy.

This is just the first idea I had...if it doesn't work, it can be adapted and changed to fit his personality.

P.S. Some people will say having him work for a reward is "bribing" him...they will say the desire to give up his paci should come from within him. Obviously, that would be ideal, but it's not where he's at right now. And as far as "bribery" goes...we all work for rewards. I love teaching, but wouldn't do it from 6:30 in the morning until 6:30 at night unless I was getting paid. We ALL work for reward!

Let us know how it goes.

Edited to add:
Oh!! I just looked in my Babywise book, and they suggested using a needle or scissors to poke a hole in the tip of it. They say it reduces the pleasure/soothing and kids usually just give it up on their own after you do this. It's worth a try!

Does he watch Dora The Explorer?

We told our daughter , at about the same age, that Swiper the Fox SWIPED her passy. SHe totally thought it was cool and told everyone that he had taken it!

It worked like a charm!

Good Luck!

We gave Caitlin the paci they gave her when she was first born. It was so small she could barely keep it in her mouth. She gave it up right then, I guess she thought this is to much work. When she cried the first night for it, I gave it to her and she just held it. She couldnt figure out what was wrong with it, but she did like to hold it. I had it on one of those Pooh bear holders and she knew it was hers because of that. Try giving him one very very small, you could even ask the hospital for a newborn and I am sure they would be glad to help you. Hope that helps.

I just had to do this with my son who will be 3 in april. We just took it away from him slowly, only giving it to him at nap and bedtime. then took it away at naptime and eventually bedtime. We had to deal with the crying, he eventually learned to sooth himself and now doesnt even ask for it.