Thumb Sucking - Saltsburg,PA

My one son was a thumb sucker, He even sucked a whole into his nail. We have him know who is 10 pretty much without his thumb, but sometimes we catch him. My brother on the other hand. Was sucking his thumb all the way till the age28 and that was during t.v and really tired.

Keep working with it during the day and the rest of the time will work out. Also there use to be a nail polish out there, Also try that if she goes so long with out sucking her thumb that maybe see about have a little girl time and do her nails or something like that.

Although I haven't dealth with this issue personally, I felt compelled to write you that my husband's twin sister sucked her thumb until she was 5 or 6 years old. She has beautiful, straight teeth that NEVER needed braces! So, I agree with the previous poster who said to talk to a dentist about how serious thumb sucking may or may NOT be. I'm of the school of thought, if it soothes your child, why fight it?! My oldest daughter was a binky baby. She LOVED her binky, and gave it up willingly around 3 1/2. We had it down to bedtime-only by 2 1/2, but like your daughter, she needed it to soothe her to sleep at night. She was a great sleeper, so I didn't want to "rock that boat" by forcing her to give up something that comforted her. My dentist said binkies were not a big deal, so we let her keep it at night. I thought of it this way, if my daughter had a special blankie or stuffed animal (instead of binky) that soothed her to sleep, would I be trying to take it away from her at 2 1/2? No. Your daughter will stop thumbsucking on her own at some point.

Hi T.,
No real experience here with a thumb-sucker, but she seems near the age for dental visits. See what they say.
Mostly I just wanted to comment (and commend you!) on your "a little about me" comments about "living with less but living more"! God DOES provide...your hearts are leading you in the right direction. What a wonderful situation to find yourselves in! God Bless.

Hi T.; As a former thumb-sucker and the mother of one I can tell you this, she has to want to quit, you can't make her. You can try all the useless suggestions I'm sure your gonna get like putting hot sause on her thumb, or other nasty crud, but take it from me, it won't work in the long run. Sure, it is going to change (mess-up actually) her bite which means you are looking at some kind of orthadontics in her future. You can never really predict that or even prevent it. There is an appliance that an orthdontist can put in her mouth to help her quit sucking it's known as a "cage" and at this point she is far too young for it (most insurance's pay at least half for this until the age of 14 but you should check with yours when the time comes). Talk to your dentist, between my dentist and his assistant they managed to talk two of my girls into giving up their binky's when they were just over 2 yrs old. If you have a good ped's dentist he will have good solid suggestions for you. You are on the right track with teaching her to limit her thumb sucking to her room at night, that really is a good first step espically if she is being cooperative. You have to understand that thumb sucking and the need to is more than just a comfort issue. It truly is a physical need. Best wishes.

I agree with the people who say to take her to the dentist and see what they say about it. Thimb sucking gets such a bad name and its not always harmful. I sucked my thumb till i was older than im willing to admitt and had no problems because of it, i never needed braces or any other major dental work. i would take her and see how they feel about it before you start trying to get her to quit. One day she will decide she doesnt want to suck her thumb anymore and just stop.

My daughter sucked her thumb until around age 5. She did get a palate expander in 1st grade (crossbite) and now has braces for an overbite. My son never sucked his thumb and is now 8, and the dentist has said his bite is fine. I don't think the problem is with teeth coming in straight, it is more of a bite issue which can cause issues later in life. This is just my situation, everyone is different.

We tried everything to get my daughter to stop, made her wear mittens to bed, used the nail polish with the bitter taste. Tried to do rewards as well. Nothing worked until we took her special blanket away. HATED doing this, but it worked in less than two weeks. Gave it back and she remained thumb free at night. I think at 2 1/2 some of these things won't work though, you may have to deal with it for a while. Good luck!

My son just turned 6 and still sucks his thumb when he's tired. Right now, yes, his front teeth do stick out some, but my dentist isn't that concerned about it because he has not started to get his adult teeth yet. He doesn't suck his thumb all night though, only as he is falling asleep. Once he's asleep it falls out on its own, or if I take it out, it doesn't disturb him. My husband sucked his thumb until age 7 or 8 and has perfectly straight teeth, never needed braces. So, I wouldn't worry about it too much yet, she's still little. Best of luck!