Help with a 1.5 year old addicted to pacifier

[Anonymous]

I know I need to get her off it by two but she loves it so much and I’m trying to figure out how to do it. She uses it for sleep and id say she wants it about 30 to 40 percent of the time when she’s awake. She really wants it at home when she comes back from daycare but she doesn’t use it there except for sleep. On the weekends she likes it in the early afternoons/evenings. She also wants it in the car. I tried taking it away a few weeks ago and she started sucking her thumb so I gave it back because I can’t take that away from her. Any tips? She has no interest in cuddling stuffed animals unless I model it for her and then she gets bored of them fast.

[Anonymous]

The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

OP here. Any issues with her teeth? That's the main reason I want her to stop by two.

[Anonymous]

My son sucked his thumb until elementary school (at night going to sleep by then.) His teeth are perfect as a 20 year old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

This is not a good idea.

[Anonymous]

Mine used hers until 4. It’s really not a big deal. When she turned 4, we gave them to a new baby and that was it. Seriously—don’t worry about it.

[Anonymous]

Eh I wouldn’t worry about this right now. Have you talked to a dentist? Ours didn’t particularly care until the first adult tooth came in.

In my case, we did away with the pacifier but then my kid moved onto her thumb. That’s a lot harder to break because we couldn’t take it away!

[Anonymous]

We are in the same boat but our child is 2.5!
Our dentist said not to worry until 3. And I’ve also seen some people say it’s ok until 4.
I plan to take it away just after 3. I suspect our naps will stop then and I’m not ready for it yet (we have 3 kids and it’s my sanity right now).
We do limit it to the crib, long car rides and rough evenings when there’s only one parent.
We took our older kids pacifier away at 6 months and she became a thumb sucker. She’s 5 now and has almost completely given up thumb sucking at her own this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

OP here. Any issues with her teeth? That's the main reason I want her to stop by two.

She had braces, but so did my DS who didn’t take to the pacifier. She was going to need them anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

This is not a good idea.

It’s ok. It really is. Don’t take away the thing your child needs to self soothe.

[Anonymous]

It's fine, age 2 is not a hard deadline. Limit it to just nighttime and use toys, songs, etc to occupy her in the car.
Then get something else she can put in her mouth like the adult "chewies" and transfer to that. Look up the ARK brand on Amazon, my kidnliked the red key shape. Fine for teeth because it's not sucking.

[Anonymous]

The mouth is the center of the nervous system input at this age. It's how little one explore the world, self-soothe -- a good thing for them to know how to do -- and focus themselves on things they are learning.

Just keep giving age appropriate safe things for a child to use.

[Anonymous]

Wait until 2, then when a friend she knows has a new baby say it's time to pass down her baby things to the new baby. Include the pacifiers (then throw them out later).

[Anonymous]

This is OP. Thanks very much everybody! This makes me feel better. I think this is a tough age to take it away as it's hard to explain it to her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The pacifier was my DD's comfort object. I just let her use it until she gave it up on her own at 5. We had some rules along the way as she got older---only at home, and then only when she was in her room. I know people will disagree with me, but I didn't see any harm in letting her use it for the long term.

This is not a good idea.

It’s ok. It really is. Don’t take away the thing your child needs to self soothe.

If they require a pacifier to sleep or be calm then they can’t self soothe.