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Original poster

What's the oldest your dc has started thumb sucking?

51 replies

pinkdolly · 21/10/2008 16:36

None of my girls have ever been thumb suckers. But dh was and very much still is. He quite often sucks his thumb in front of the girls.

About a week ago my dd3 who was 2 in July started sucking her thumb. Just a bit at first and would babble about daddy doing it.

I then stopped breast feeding her about thursday and since then she has been doing it a lot more.

breast feeding was very much a comfort thing for her, so i'm wandering if she is using her thumb to replace this.

Or is this just copied behaviour from daddy. should i be discouraging this or will she get bored of it?

Has anyone elses child started thumb sucking this late and did it turn into a habit?

Thanx

Pink

OP posts:
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CarGirl · 22/10/2008 19:14

worst of all my dd1 who has inherited the unusual problem of her upper jaw being way to small is now too old for orthatropics. I feel really gutted. Which practioner are you seeing, I am despertate to find one that lives nearer to me than the one I've found closest so far.

DD1 desperately needs expansion work on her upper jaw, all the orthadontics want to leave it until she is 14

Shylily · 23/10/2008 08:36

I started after my Mum took my dummy away at 2 years 8 months. I wasn't ready so I then sucked my thumb til I was 10. I needed orthodontic treatment over a period of 8 years but would have needed it anyway (not for quite so long).
My DS22 months is obsessed with his dummy but I try to keep it for bed time. I hate it but won't take it away too early as I'd rather that than thumb sucking.
Good luck!

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 12:29

Mine's in Croydon. how old is your DD? Mine recommend starting at around 7 but they have treated older children with varying degrees of success - it's much harder work for older children apparently.

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 13:07

It's the one in Croydon that I emailed & chatted with. Unfortunately dd is away at school in Horsham so there is no way I can get her their every 2 weeks to do the treatment - hours drive to school and then nearly another to Croydon and return and she only has some Saturday afternoons free etc etc etc.

I am so upset about it all tbh she can't breath properly through her nose and the expansion work would really help with that too

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 13:08

When i took her to ENT about her breathing problems, oh she'll grow into her adenoids, well she hasn't.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 21:51

One unexpected side effect is that DS1 no longer snores! I can't hear him breathing at night at all.

One appointment I was at, there was a family who'd travelled from Italy to see them. We're really lucky as it's right on our doorstep. Were they able to suggest alternatives? There's a "find a practitioner" thing on their website.

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 22:00

It's either Croydon or London, on the website it must be his home address as it was quite near her school. It's not just the 4k for treatment it would be all the travelling to.

It wouldn't surprise me if my other 3 children will need treatment too but we just haven't got the money tbh.

Do they do payment plans?

I get upset that my beautiful children are not going to look their best as adults because of their underdeveloped jaws.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:10

Yes. Well you pay £800 every 6 months, you don't have to pay it all up front.

There was a different person out near Haywards heath which is a little closer to Horsham and several in East Sussex (including John Mew) Not sure which area you're approaching Horsham from though.

I know what you mean about worrrying what your children will look like if you don't do it. that wasn't a consideration for me until I'd started it with DS1 - I just wanted to sort his teeth out and figured he'd need something sooner or later and sooner would be better.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:12

I'm sure your children will still look beautiful though It's difficult to judge what the children in their before/after shots would have looked like (there was a case if ID twins where one had it and one did not and although they had different outcomes, the one who didn't have it didn't look ugly IYSWIM!)

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 22:22

We live nearish heathrow airport. Actually I live near Weybridge where people have ££££££'s so can't believe there isn't a practioner nearer. There are lots of supporters/members etc but no qualified practioners, I've tried Berks, Surrey etc

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:28

That's a b*gger for Croydon even without the Horsham part of the journey. It is surprising how many people travel great distances to see them though.

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 22:32

What does registered member been, am I right that they have to be a qualified practioner, I can't find the bit on the website where it says what it all means?

DD1 top jaw is so small that her tongue protrudes through the gaps in her teeth

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:40

I did read that somewhere, hang on...

Qualified Members are dentists, who have taken additional training in orthotropics®
Registered Members are clinicians who have some experience in growth guidance.
Supporters agree with the general principals but have no training in Orthotropics®

It's on the homepage

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 22:46

There is a registered member in greater bookham which is on the way to school, perhaps I'll ring her and see if she will start expansion work this young (perhaps even on the NHS!!!!!!!) she will get orthadontic treatment on the NHS I'm just worried about the missed opportunity of maximising her upper jaw horizontal growth.

She wears a mouth guard for sports 5 days per week and can't breath with it in!

KaplumbagaBloodyBones · 23/10/2008 22:51

DD2 started thumb sucking after last christmas. She was 3 and gave her dummies to santa. Took to her thumb instead. I regret it totally! At least i could control when she sucked the dummy. Thumb in most of the time now.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:51

How old is she? I've seen them treat a range of people (including, oddly enough, a couple of adults. I say "oddly" as they don't like doing older children as the results can be less successful). Obviously I know b*gger all about it really but it does sound like your DD1 would really benefit. DS2 has been on it 6 months now I think and has widened the top jaw about 2cm across (I can't tell unless I look at how much bigger the brace is!).

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 23/10/2008 22:53

I would tape BabyDragon's thumbs to her hands if I thought it would stop her. In fact, I'd have her hands put in plaster if I thought it would help!

CarGirl · 23/10/2008 23:00

She is nearly 12, it is the fortnightly visits for the first x months. I am not allowed to take her out of school, they even have lessons on a Saturday morning this one in Bookham seems to be open on Saturdays and is fairly close so perhaps we could do something between exeats, fortnight half terms, month off at Christmas & Easter and 2 months in the summer.

Still at least Ikea is in Croydon - could do with some more bowls and a kiddy night light.....

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 24/10/2008 08:20

Yes, DS1 was fortnightly for about 9 or 10 months.

Can they really stop you taking her out of school for something medical? I'm sure this can be termed medical if you don't mention straight teeth but how it's to sort out the narrow palate and breathing problems & throw in something like "avoiding surgery" (I'm not saying surgery is on the cards, just that this could avoid it. It is kind of true )

It really does sound like your DD would benefit from it. Could you take her for an initital consultation (£90 IIRC) and see what they say? It may be they feel they can't do anything because of her age.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 24/10/2008 08:21

I sound like a saleswoman! I'm not, honest. they don't do a commission scheme

CarGirl · 24/10/2008 09:29

It forms part of the contract, the school heavily subsidises all fees (according to complex means testing - we do not have much money tbh), it is very academic and missing lessons every fortnight and in fact just interrupting them is not in their best interests. Altough dd has settled very well and is loving everything about apart from she misses home.

Plus the school has their own dentist and orthodontist.

If the orthodontist wants to do expansion work at 14 surely they can achieve more starting at 12.

ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween · 24/10/2008 13:05

Can you get the school orthodontist on board?

CarGirl · 24/10/2008 20:32

I haven't got a phone number to talk to him, nor is there one on the web. I've made an appt for this other one - Nov 22nd!!! I'm going to get hold of the school one before then and beg him to do expansion work & now! He may of course not believe/be trained/do expansion work!

SoupDragon · 26/10/2008 19:04

There's also the chance that he may not have heard of it or not seen the results. I've listened into the Mews talking about it and there seem to be some traditional orthodontists who are of the impression that it is impossible to do what they are doing. which is odd given they have photographic records of all the stages for all the children they treat.

Hope it works out for you!

CarGirl · 29/10/2008 17:44

got a cancellation with one of the registered members tomorrow - only does private work, shall see what he says. Then perhaps go to an appt with the school orthodentist (although will have to pay if I want it this year!) and then make a decision?

I can just feel the £££££££££££££££'s being stripped away meanwhile we still haven't put the heating on because we're desperately trying to economise!