Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Parenting

For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

Flip

Original poster

To introduce a dummy or not?

14 replies

Mamabear04 · 27/07/2022 11:47

DS is 16 days old. Up until a few days he has been an absolute dream baby and sleeps all the time (completely different to my first who would cry all the time, not sleep longer than 40 mins and need to be rocked/bounced/walked to sleep).
Once asleep I'm able to put DS down in his moses basket (still amazed by this!) But like I said the last few days he has been much harder to get to sleep. He will fall asleep for a little while and then become unsettled and wake up and it's becoming a bit of a battle to get him down and keep him asleep. He responds well to swaddling and we put white noise on during night time sleep in the hope it will be a trigger that reminds him it's time to sleep. My OH suggested introducing a dummy which I'm 50/50 about mainly because I don't want another thing to have to wean him off in the future and I'm also a bit worried that it Will eventually make his sleep worse if it falls out and then he wakes up because of it. He also seems to have a lot of trapped wind and OH read it could help with this. Any suggestions/advice/experience that could help me decide?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Nat888 · 27/07/2022 12:09

Have a 6 week old and had this debate with my partner when he was about 10 days old. We decided to introduce one. He has tongue tie (disnt find out until last week) so takes in so much air. His gas really pisses him off and will be irritable until he has passed it.

We decided to give it a try but waited until 2 weeks as he was a small baby and didn't want him to suck his dummy instead of taking his feed (advised by midwife)

I dont regret it. To be honest he isn't really interested in it but if he is irritable with his gas he sucks it and it seems to soothe him. He generally spits it out soon after. The battle to get them off it is bloody awful but they are so tiny and new to the world my opinion is if I can help them out now any way I can I will. Its also supposed to help with SIDS but dunno if thats actually proven

Sunflower1471 · 27/07/2022 12:42

I totally agree with PP. We introduced one to my LO at 2 weeks old (he is exclusively breastfed) it's been really good with soothing him! He just spits it out when he doesn't want it. We are going to try and take it away around 4 months so he doesn't get attached to it! There's no harm in trying one! They might not even like it

Ontomatopea · 27/07/2022 12:43

Give it a go it reduces SIDS risk

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

0-3 months old Babies & sleep Children's sleep Families

MolliciousIntent · 27/07/2022 12:45

Are you breastfeeding?

Youcancallmeirrelevant · 27/07/2022 12:48

Reduces SIDS and gives them comfort through sucking. You can limit it juat sleep and naps etc if you want. Easy to get rid of it when they are older, we got rid of DDs around the age of 2 when she could understand the dummy fairy

EV117 · 27/07/2022 12:50

Go for it. It’s really not that hard to wean them off as long as once they’re a bit older you’re not sticking it in their mouth at every opportunity. When my DC were about just turned 1 the dummy was just for sleep and naps. When they were nearly 3 the dummy fairy came along and took them all and left a present. Easy peasy.

buckingmad · 27/07/2022 12:51

My LO (1) has had one since I stopped breastfeeding at 8 weeks old. She only has it for going to sleep. I'm trying to use it less and less as teeth come through.

I have always been of the opinion that you should make life as easy for yourself as possible in the early days where it is such hard work. My baby now sleeps through 8pm-7am so if I have to spend longer settling her now I'm a lot less sleep deprived than I was in those early days!

Porridgeislife · 27/07/2022 13:11

We’ve just introduced one at 22 days. My baby hasn’t read the books about being a sleepy newborn and goes 2/3 hours awake until she’s really stroppy and overtired. Once asleep she’s a dream and naps for a couple of hours in her cot, it’s just getting her there.

We were told not to introduce one until six weeks as she’s breastfed but it does help when she’s sucked me dry and still fighting sleep.

Original poster

Mamabear04 · 27/07/2022 14:03

DS is BF and has already gained weight and is heavier than his birth weight (he is actually huge and grew out of his newborn clothes within a week!!!) So not worried so much about the feeding aspect. I'm more inclined to try one just to help him dose off to sleep. It's really interesting to hear that OP only use it for sleep which I guess makes a difference. I am still apprehensive about it becoming more of an issue as he gets older (I've known OP who have had the worst time trying to wean DC off of dummies).
Did a dummy help any DC with trapped wind? Part of me wonders if DS has a little bit of silent reflux because he quite often makes a face like he's been sick in his mouth...but then he is happy to lie down on his back to sleep, is hardly ever sick and doesn't feed for long periods of time or cry that much for that matter. DC1 had terrible reflux so I'm comparing to this and not sure what a normal baby is like....

OP posts:

Nat888 · 27/07/2022 14:52

Sounds similar to my boy. He looks disgusted sometimes like he has swallowed sick but has very few other symptoms of reflux except he is wheezy sometimes. As mentioned he does have a tongue tie and they say that can cause silent reflux. Terrible trapped wind and doesn't cry just very irritable. I cant say I know if the dummy has solved the wind, but it helps soothe him when he has it /passing it for sure. After that he spits it out

Original poster

Mamabear04 · 27/07/2022 15:10

@Nat888 how did you find out he had tongue tie? I asked about it in the hospital after he was born as I felt he has a lazy latch (and still does- I think this is the root problem of the wind) but the guy who checked him over said he didn't and was fine. Did you get an appointment to get it fixed?

OP posts:

Nat888 · 27/07/2022 15:20

@Mamabear04 They didn't pick my boys up at the hospital either. I spoke to the health visitor about some symptoms. One being a loud click when he is feeding, q lazy latch and the constant wind I couldn't for the life of me solve. They referred me to a feeding midwife who tested his suck with her finger and looked in his mouth. She instantly saw it. Apparently it can be hard to pick up so isn't always qt the newborn check.

He is booked in for division on the 10th Aug. I'd definitely get it checked again - it does sounds similar to my boy

Original poster

Mamabear04 · 27/07/2022 15:33

@Nat888 thanks for sharing! I'm due to see my HV next week so will ask about it again. It really does sound very similar! Hope you're LO gets it sorted soon and you can get a bit more of an easy time...as much as you can with a newborn!

OP posts:

DonnyBurrito · 27/07/2022 22:16

I used a dummy a bit for the newborn bit but didn't need it after that. I didn't offer it unless he was really struggling to fall asleep or was really overstimulated. Sometimes I had to kind of force it on him a bit as I didn't push it often, so he stayed relatively unattached to it. Only for car rides or when he was really struggling to fall asleep. I think we stopped using them completely at about 10/12 weeks.

Based off this... I'd say it could work as a temporary measure, just use it very sparingingly if you don't want him to get too attached to it.

It's supposed to be good for SUID prevention also.

Flip

Swipe left for the next trending thread