thumb sucking, and not just ANY thumb sucking.........a 14yr old and a 12yr old..........how the HELL do I get them to stop???

[psychohohohoho]

seriously, it is finally getting me cross.

they speak round their sodding thembs, and they just won;t listen when we tell them to please not do it.

I have clearly been far too soft, it has never really got to me much, and it isn;t ruining their teeth, but it is now to the point where

they need to stop.

ok, rant over.....

tis xmas

((but please, any advice bar chopping their thumbs off??))

ps I saw a middle aged bloke sucking his thumb at a traffic lights once but he was driving a Merc so it obviously hadn't held him back

be comforted!

stuffmyturkey.........I am thinking I might need to resign myself to it.......but I still want a little control from them over when they do suck at home IYGWIM.

they don;t have control tho when on sleepovers or at scout camp from what I gather, so I am not holding out many hopes here.

altho being able to rant here is offloading for me.

My mum tried to get me to stop numerous times though my childhood. She always gave up in the end because she said not sucking made me so miserable that she gave up. Instead I was steered towards socially acceptable thumb sucking - ie bedtimes and when on my own. Maybe this is the way to go?

I still do it now when stressed,and the only issue really is my right thumb looks like it belongs to an old lady. As for teeth, these are straight and I've never had to wear a brace.

If it really bugs you that much why don't you "puinish" the for sucking during times you have decided they should not be. ie. Whilst eating and when talking. No TV, games etc. But I think you should just give up trying to make them stop completely! Sorry!!

yeah, I think I am going to have to give up thinking that they can give up.

I will go with the ignoring route when they speak and suck for now and see how that works, and then crack on with the next step after.

Psychohohohoho Why not find the worst picture of pushed up teeth and show them it saying this will happen to them if they continue to suck there thumbs can you see how terriable my parents are chilli sauce horrible pictures

Why not ask the dentist for a referral to the orthodontist? They can fit them with a brace that stops thumb sucking - it makes it feel strange and helps break the habit. Failing that, I've heard there's a spiky brace alternative, that literally digs into the gums/roof of mouth if they try and suck their thumbs. I'm not sure if you'd get an NHS referral if there's no need to correct their teeth, but it might be worth asking about. It was the only thing that worked for me (I was eleven).
Other than that, the stick and carrot approach is probably the best option.