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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

When did you give you DS/DD a dummy?

20 replies

thomcat · 12/08/2007 21:18

My lovely cousin's wife has a 12 day old gorgeous daughter who likes to be on her mummy's breast the whole day, mainly for comfort, sometimes for nourishment. She was asking me about when I gave DD2 a dummy and I really can't remember. I know I held off as I didn't want to use one (DD1 never had one or sucked her thumb). People suggested I tried one for the same reasons (she was on my breast all day and night) and it was amazing, I actually got to put her down and do something else!

So, what's the youngest you gave a dummy to a child?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

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gibberish · 12/08/2007 21:24

Hard to remember really but I think dd1 was given one within the first 2 weeks. She was a screamer - not a happy baby - and the dummy was a last ditch effort to calm her.

dd2 never had one - sucked her thumb.

dd3 again it was very early, within the first 2 wks anyway as she was another screaming baby.

dd4 didn't have one.

My sister has just had her first and gave him a dummy the first week. I was surprised as he is such a contented little thing, but it works for them

orangehead · 12/08/2007 21:26

probably about a 2 weeks old. I really dont like dummies and didnt want to use one, but he constantlty wanted to feed for comfort, I was in so much pain and nipples bleeding, I think if it wasnt for dummy I prob would of given up breastfeeding coz they just werent getting a break

Tatties · 12/08/2007 21:26

I gave ds a dummy when he was about 7wks old for naps and bedtime. At around 3 months old he wouldn't take it any more and went back to feeding to sleep!

Original poster

thomcat · 12/08/2007 21:30

I never liked dummies either but it kept me sane with DD2 and made breastfeeding pleasurable rather than a pita. Her DD2 is 12 days so think I'll suggest she try and hold off for at least a week yet and see how she goes.

OP posts:

MunchiesMama · 12/08/2007 21:39

I gave my bf DD a nippled shaped dummy from about 7 days, she was a REALLY sucky baby and the first night that i fed her i latched her on wrongly to both boobs and ended up with both nipples bleeding (I was so afraid of feeding time that i couldn't bear the pain of her just sucking for comfort.) But we both made it through and are still bfing at 6 months.

j20baby · 12/08/2007 21:40

i am contemplating packing mine for the hospital stay after the birth!

mamabear2b · 12/08/2007 22:46

My ds was about 6 weeks, I really didn't want to give him one but he was such a sucky baby and I needed to rest my poor boobs!

When I bought it I actually cried and felt like I was a crap mother for not being able to soothe him myself but when I gave it to him for the first time he gave me this look of relief (he had been crying for 1/2 hour because he wanted comfort)which made it worthwhile.

The reality check my mum gave me was that whilst there's some serious tat marketed at new mothers dummies have been around for a long time and there's a reason there are so many..babies like them and mum's don't have to spend the child benefit on nipple cream!!

Cutiecat · 12/08/2007 23:20

My ds had one from about 4 weeks and dropped it by 3 months.

Dd had one from about 2 weeks as very sucky and screamed in the car without it. She found her thub at around 2 months and has not been intrested in the dunny since.

Both my children only had them at bed-time or in the car. Even the thumb only goes in when she is very tired (forgot to add that ds also has a rabbit).

HTH.

Cutiecat · 12/08/2007 23:21

Sorry about rubbish typing in the previous post. It is a bit late for me.

aloha · 12/08/2007 23:23

Can't remember - my mum took out a howling ds and returned a contented one plus dummy an hour or so later! He was quite small - two weeks old?
I was initially quite but soon realised it was a wonderful thing.
DD (second child) never needed or wanted one.

bobblehead · 13/08/2007 00:45

dd1 2 weeks old

dd2 tried from around 3 days old but never took to it

Skribble · 13/08/2007 01:09

Day1 for both I think. It was just for sleep times when older for comfort at that age. Did breast feed but meant he wuld sleep in others arms and in the pram and didn't have my boobs out except for feeding.

margosbeenplayingwithmynoonoo · 13/08/2007 01:09

About 3 in the morning...

margosbeenplayingwithmynoonoo · 13/08/2007 01:13

Seriously though, DD1 was about 7 weeks old - colic had just struck. She stopped taking a dummy at about 10 months.

dd2 was earlier but she never took to it.

I felt guilty about giving it to dd1 - it was one of those "things I'd never do when I had children"

Skribble · 13/08/2007 01:19

I never felt guilty, I jsut thought its how you stop a baby crying when its not hngry and needs to sleep, if we could walk about with babies latched on all the time perhaps we wouldn't need them but in the real world it isn't practical.

joejoep · 14/08/2007 22:35

hi! like so many other parenting areas, before kids thought I never would, after kids realise have to do what you can to get through. baby one - 2 weeks after feeding constantly and crying all the time. held off with second but now has regular naps with one in day - don't give at night as he spits it out annd wakes every hour - has leared to suck thumb and self comfort. every baby is different i guess

tori32 · 14/08/2007 22:56

I left it until about 2 wks too. Similar probs with baby wanting to suck boob all day. Only used it sparingly and it used to drop out while she slept so she learned to use her thumb then. Once it fell out of my dd mouth I never replaced it for her mid sleep Trouble is now I think it would have been better to get rid of a dummy as stopping her thumb sucking will be even harder.

harleyd · 14/08/2007 22:59

never

mixedmama · 15/08/2007 17:28

my DS had it from about 3 weeks... DH couldnt take the whimpering, it wasnt actually that bad. Unfortunatelly for us we havent really ever got him off it and he is now 18 months, he only has it at home and only ever when he is tired or i really need to get something done but cant have him running around. Apparently the only way now is cold turkey.

anniealan · 15/08/2007 20:59

i think my son was about 3 weeks old and it was my heath visitor who recommended it cos he was always wanting fed and she felt it was for comfort and he had it till he was about 7 or 9 mths i took it away before he was 10 months as apparently they start to remeber then, and to be honest he didn't really bother that he didn't have a dummy so i decided he didn't need it and that was that.

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