When to ditch the comforter?

[lisbapalea]

Hi there,

My DD (2yrs 4mo) has a bunny comforter which is supposed to be for sleeptime only, but has accidentallyt become omnipresent! I am reasonably confident I can restrict to bed (and probably car) with no major issues, but I wondered when and how I should actually get rid of it?

If she JUST cuddled it I would be happy for her to have it forever, but she sucks its ears and always has done so it is powerfully successful when it comes to sleeping and soothing. I can't imagine her sleeping without it!

I took her to a dentist a while ago and showed him - he didn't seem to think it was affecting her teeth, but I think she does look like her top front teeth protrude a little.

Any thoughts? I think I view this as a dummy rather than a soft toy so any advice would be welcome!

Thanks,
Lisa

Hmm... well my Ds had a dummy until he was about 4. He has lovely teeth. I was never over worried, but perhaps would hvae been if it were a thumb or something else which tugs on the front teeth?

I am a bit funny about soft toys/blankies though - as DSS still sleeps with a special blanket and certain soft toys at the age o f 12. ??

Your DD is only 2 - so I am sure you can let it go for a while.

We gave my sons up to the Easter bunny in exchange for Easter eggs! He was 2 yrs and 8 months. He only ever asked for it when he hurt himself but we never gave in after that!

DS (8) and DD (6) both have Very Important Bears. And I imagine they will do for a while. They also suck their thumbs. Top teeth seem OK at the moment but I do discuss it with the dentist when they go.

I'd just leave it, when she is ready she will give it up. You can take it for the occasional wash etc. But my kids all had their snuggles for a long time, 2 is tiny. She will probably suck it less as she gets older and more active, but I know plenty of 5 year olds who suck their sleeves.

The comforter will become less important as she gets older, but a cuddly toy is usually part of the kit list for Brownie camp etc.

Thank you for the reassurance!

I spoke to her nursery about it on Monday and they mentioned that they actuagotlly for to give her the bunny at lunchtime sleep one day last week and she went off to sleep perfectly, so we agreed to "accidentally" leave bunny at home this week (but actually have him in her bag in case of an emergency!) and that's happened for the past two days and she has apparently been absolutely fine and not asked for him at all, which has amazed me!

I think I will use this to try and cutback in having bunny with her all the time, but definitely keep him in bed at night time with her for as long as she likes - I took my teddy with me to university so I have no issues with that! (although to be fair I wasn't sucking my teddy's ears at the age of 18!)

not sure what happened in that top paragraph - should say "actually forgot to give..."

The big plus of having a comfort object is when you go on holiday or other times she sleeps in a strange bed, it really helped mine get to sleep. So I wouldn't want to totally break the attachment.

I would let her keep it for sleep time and not let it out of the house, ideally not out of the bedroom.

They are comfort objects that really help with sleep, if it's not doing any harm then don't take it away.

Just be careful taking it out and losing it. I know a few children that have lost their comforter/fave teddies in the past and it has been hideous.

Don't worry we have 5 of them which we rotate as we have been washing them every day (lots of sucking means they STINK!). There are 4 very well loved/sucked ones, which she calls "special bunny" and a newer one which she calls "new bunny" (imaginative), which she's less keen on but it still does the job. She does know we have a few of them (as she sees them hanging on the line to dry), thank god, so it does mean that if we lose one we always have back ups!

We became very well prepared with bunny management after the transformation they made to her at about 4mths old! 2yrs down the line now....