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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Thumb sucking - how on earth can I help my dd age 7 to give this up?

13 replies

Idreamofdaleks · 25/04/2007 15:10

This is causing much heartache in my house!

My 7 year old sucks her thumb to get to sleep andcan't seem to get to sleep without it...she also thumb sucks in her sleep.

She wants to stop and is terrified she will ruin her teeth etc. But even putting a plaster on her thumb and painting it with bitter nail biting fluid doesn't stop her!

We have hysteria at bedtimes because she is worried that if she can't sleep she will be too tired for school.

Please help!

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LucyJones · 25/04/2007 15:11

I would tell her not to worry and just to carry on if it is causing that much heartache

Original poster

Idreamofdaleks · 25/04/2007 15:13

It is starting to make her teeth stick out, even though they are not cramped, so I don't think she will be thanking me later if she has to have braces

Otherwise I would be happy for her to carry on

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munz · 25/04/2007 15:16

tbh I sucked mine till I was 11 - no word of a lie was at seniors and everyhitng.

anyhow I had to go to hospital for an operation, and had a bangage on my hand - the nurse said I couldn't get it wet - (i'm sure she purposely covered my thumb) but form that day top this i've not stopped.

could something like that work? how about approaching the sleep thing- would it help if you stayed with her till she was asleep - or is it more when she wakes up type thing?

Original poster

Idreamofdaleks · 25/04/2007 18:50

Munz if I stayed with her til she was asleep it might well work, good thinking.

I will have to make time and give it a go.

OP posts:

munz · 25/04/2007 22:10

or a gubby - (like a comfort blanket?) least that won't effect her teeth - I knwo when I sucked my thumb I used to twiddle my hair as well as a comfort but I do know some children like a gubby as well as the thumb.

paros · 25/04/2007 22:19

When you said you had painted a nail thingy on which one did you use . Stop n grow is not strong enough the really strong one is called nail the habit and I swear if this didnt work nothing will . best of luck .

NoBiggy · 25/04/2007 22:26

I gave up when I went on holiday with school (must have been about 11 by then though). If she wants to give up herself then maybe she can do it by putting her arm in the usual position but not putting her thumb in her mouth. Her thumb will be on her lips. See if that will do.

There is a device that's worn on the thumb that breaks the suction. Can't remember what it's called unfortunately.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about thumbsucking at that age, but then I remember what it was like (holds no appeal for me now if that's any comfort!)

tigi · 25/04/2007 22:27

I could have written this thread myself. I painted on stop n grow tonight for first time - told him will make his poorly thumb better (nothing wrong with it!) and we've had tears. I'm worried about his Bugs Bunny teeth too! he is 5

seeker · 25/04/2007 22:43

Is there actually any evidence that it does do any harm to the teeth? I suspect this is an "old husband's tale" If so, then let her get on with it!

Sugarmagnolia · 26/04/2007 07:59

My DD (6) sucks her thumb too - at bedtime and through the night. And yes, her top teeth are definitely coming out ove her bottom teeth and it is loooking very likely she will need braces. But it's impossible to tell cause and effect - I also needed braces for an overbight AND I sucked my thumb as a child. So did we both give ourselves overbights from our thumb-sucking or is it hereditary. No idea I'm afraid. I have mentioned to her once or twice that she might want to stop when she's feeling more grown up but never made an effort to do anything about it.

Original poster

Idreamofdaleks · 26/04/2007 16:04

I will go shopping for nail the habit, thanks for that tip!

I have been advised by several health professionals that thumb sucking can deform the jaw - and dd's teeth are not cramped so they have no reason for going forwards apart from the thumb

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dozydizzy · 27/04/2007 18:43

My dd, aged 6 is an extreme thumbsucker too - we have tried everything including nail the habit and thumbguard (which she just chewed to bits, waste of money) but nothing works. We only tried because it was obvious her teeth are very much out of alignment and the dentist said she needed to stop before her adult teeth came through. they are coming through now and unfortunately we can see they are very wonky, and she will need braces etc in the future. Also, she was sucking it to the extent it was stopping her talking to people, working at school etc - very extreme. Tbh if it was only at night I wouldn't worry so much - that's more of a comfort habit that she'll more than likely grow out of when she is ready. My dds habit was affecting her so much socially it was the kindest thing to do to try and help her stop. We have succeeded to a degree in the daytime but nowhere near stopping altogether.
sigh, any more suggestions welcome!

DougalMcNoodle · 27/04/2007 18:45

There was a thread the other day on this and someone posted a link to something that you put on their thumb. It was really expensive, about £50 for two I think, but apparently it worked. If you do a search hopefully it will come up - might have been called Thumbguard ?

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