Is this a thing people actually do?

[sheriffofnottingham]

My best friend has an 8 week old DS. Last night she told me the story of how during a conversation with the health visitor she asked what to do if DS gets a cold because he can't blow his nose. She was told by the heath visitor that most parents just suck the snot out of DCs noses.

At this point in the conversation I nearly threw up (as did my friend at having to recount the story). Do parents actually do this? Is it just because I don't have children that I find it beyond disgusting?

Agree I don't think it is necessary. Just wipe the nose or at most put in a few saline drops surely? I suspect some people may do it to shock' [hides]

I was advised to do this wen my now 14 y/o was a bubba witnessed my friend doing it to her 6 week old (yuk) in costa, my little boy asked her why she was sucking babies brains out

Actually this reminds me a friend of mine who is constantly tidying - she once offered to clean some snot out of my baby's nose. Clearly I have very low snot standards. I do love to clean out ears though with a [gasp] cotton bud.

You know that feeling when you wished you'd never asked, but at the same time can't stop reading the replies?

I feel quite ill now but this is a real education! thanks

'she once offered to clean some snot out of my baby's nose.'

Your own child's snot fine, but snot removal on a child unrelated to you? YUCK!

Yes, everybody does this except neglectful mothers who just don't care. Also, real mothers never use wipes, but lick the poo off their babies' bottoms. Also, they don't use nappies, but put the baby skin to skin under their own clothes at all times and just live with the excretions. They also achieve top quality bonding with their babies by drinking only their bathwater (although some mothers heat it and use it to make placenta tea)

Yes I am joking but I expect to hear of some of these practices some day soon.

suck as in directly suck it up? noooooooooo!

As others say, you get those suction things.

Who in their right mind would consume their child's... I can't even finish the sentence. I feel the bile rising.

Oh yes I remember what I was thinking of when I typed all that: the people who were horrifed that I cut my baby's nails, instead of biting them off. WTF

I'd always hoped this was an urban legend, I have never needed to do more than wipe thank the lord!

{BabyDubs is off to check snopes in desperation!}

My friend's mil does actually suck the snot out of the gcs with her mouth! She's actually a step mil so not even blood related, so gross!

I know someone who told me that she sucks it out herself, and spits it. It IS a thing, but I don't think most parents do it!

My Mum and I were once at a crossing and a woman was there with a baby in a pram. The baby was cooing and smiling and Mum and I were smiling back.
Then it did a massive snot sneeze, Mum was rummaging in her bag for a tissue when the woman just leant forwards and slurped up the snot, the lights changed and she walked over the road!
I was standing like this Mum was calling weakly "I had a tissue"

I bought a suck-snot-tube thing and the leaflet that comes with it says something unutterably twee and naff about "until the great rite of passage that is a child learning to blow his own nose..." which I found hilarious, the attempt to encuten or monumentalise snot.

dd2 has just learnt what to do when you put the tissue to her nose and every time we perform this satisfying evacuation I am reminded of this guff and wonder if we should throw a party to celebrate. Like a first menses party.

Snot sucker thingy been used here several times.

Picking bogeys out with little finger nail is very acceptable, sucking snot yourself, no!

Yes, I have heard of this. Not something that I would do myself - unless my child was literally on the verge of suffocating. Little sucking devices might be useful! What's wrong with a damp cotton bud?? twisting near the nostril will draw the snot out.

It happens. I'd completely blocked it out but this has reminded me of my friend who did suck her DSs nose ( and bite his nails ) she thought I was odd, because it made me boak

never in a million would i suck snot from my childs nose .

It is a real thing.

BIL rang DH recently and gave him a blow by blow account of how he'd done exactly this on the advice of a HV.

BIL was just as about what he'd done as DH

The baby was only a few weeks old, btw.

I would not, could not, suck my baby's snot, no.

I would file the snot sucker with the cat net I was given to protect my baby (cats could not, and still do not, give a fuck) as useless things you will never need but kind of panic accumulate when you are having your first.
Cat net going free if anyone wants one (still in the packaging 7 yrs on!) .

I have two kids and our little snot sucker is a god send when they have a cold.

Snot = constant night waking, No snot = sleep - no brainier IMO.

Erm I have done this. It really didn't strike me as being that odd. We both had colds, he didn't like the saline drops (when I could get near him with them) so I had no chance of getting a snot sucker up there. It seemed like a sensible thing to do. It really wasn't that gross. Not compared to the sensation of warm sick trickling down my cleavage. Now that is gross.

If I thought my child was struggling to breath and the only thing that would help was me sucking the snot out of his nose I would do it in a heart beat!! I wouldn't chose to do it though!!

I must get one of those devices. So far we have found baths seem to help when you can clean the nose by dragging a sponge underneath. Jumping on the child when it sneezes gets lots out. One of those big chunky cotton buds gets the slimey stuff and saline drops.

Have also heard of the device that attaches to the Hoover!!!